County Health Dept. program aims to make community safer
Two different types of trainers used by the Lincoln County Health Department for teaching students how to use naloxone to save someone from an opioid overdose. (Ben Kibbey/The Western News)
The Lincoln County Health Department is offering training for anyone interested to learn how to properly administer naloxone to someone suffering an opioid overdose, and a state grant provides those who finish the training with the medication, free of charge.
Lincoln County Public Health Nurse Trista Gilmore said that she has already trained local law enforcement on the use of naloxone. She blended the training with CPR re-certifications.
After a 90-minute online training, students can be certified by a master trainer in administering the medication. That live training takes about 45 minutes to an hour, Gilmore said.
“It’s just going through each different kind of delivery method,” she said. The types of delivery methods vary from a nasal spray to a compact auto-injector.
The type of delivery method that students receive for free will vary based on what the state has in supply, she said.
By providing the training to first responders, those most likely to come in contact with an emergency will be provided the medication free of charge. However, the training and free delivery method for the medication is not limited to first responders.
Gilmore said that she would like to see people take the training who have family members or others they are in regular contact with who are at risk for overdose.
But not just people engaged in illegal drug use could be in danger of an overdose, Gilmore said. Even someone such as a grandparent on prescribed pain medication could be at risk.
“Grandma might be taking a lot of pain medicine and getting older, and your body doesn’t process it like it used to,” she said.
Gilmore also recalled a scenario from nursing school, where a child came into contact with a discarded fentanyl patch. The child in that case died from the contact.
“It could be anything; it could be a kid that got ahold of something, it could be a lot of different things,” she said. “I just think it’s a really great opportunity to get one in your hands.”
Still, Gilmore said part of the reason for the program is for those who are putting themselves at risk for overdose by abusing drugs.
“It’s that thought of harm reduction,” she said. “I know it’s everybody’s cup of tea or favorite thing to think about, but I think that harm reduction is important in our community.”
Someone who comes back from an overdose may return to using drugs or not change their lifestyle at all, Gilmore acknowledged. Yet, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be helped.
Gilmore said it’s about small steps that walk people back from the edge, and back toward being a productive member of society. “Small steps to a safer community.”