Like all communities, Caroline County has been hit hard by the opioid epidemic. The rise in fentanyl is largely responsible for the worsening of the crisis. Fentanyl is up to 100 times more powerful than morphine and often mixed with other substances, like cocaine and counterfeit pain medication—sometimes without the user’s knowledge.
Many people personally know someone battling the disease of addiction or you may come across someone in your day to day life who is in the midst of an active overdose. The good news is that Naloxone (also known as Narcan) is an easy to administer nasal spray medication that can help reverse the affects of an overdose and allow time to get life-saving medical attention.
The Health Department’s Drug and Alcohol Prevention Office is focused on making Narcan widely available in the community and encourages everyone to get trained, regardless of their personal circumstances. They offer free training and Narcan kits to anyone who is interested. The training only takes 15 minutes and can be done on an individual basis, or trainers can come to events or meetings to train larger groups together.
“This crisis impacts people from all walks of life, ages, and races,” said Prevention Specialist Shelly Niehaus. “The terrible thing is that you could encounter someone overdosing at any time – like at work, or a restaurant or grocery store. But the amazing thing is that if you carry Narcan and have been trained on how to use it, you can quite literally save a life.”
If you would like to schedule Narcan training for yourself or your organization, contact Shelly Neihaus at shelly.niehaus@maryland.gov or (410) 479-1882. Shelly is also available to present on a broad range of prevention related topics and welcomes the opportunity to be a featured speaker at meetings and events, or to participate in community events.