A Lifesaving Opioid Antidote

If someone you love has abused or may be in danger of abusing opioids, you need to know about—and know how to administer—Narcan (Naloxone), a life-saving prescription medication that serves as an antidote to opioids such as heroin, morphine, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, fentanyl, methadone, and others.

Narcan blocks the effects of opioid drugs and restores breathing to a person who is overdosing, effectively reversing the overdose. As part of County Executive Rob Astorino’s Safer Communities initiative, Health Commissioner Sherlita Amler, MD, has helped train hundreds of county police officers to administer Narcan—and, as of press time, these officers have already saved 17 lives with the medication. The drug, usually administered intra-nasally, until recently had to be administered by a trained emergency responder or in a clinical setting.

But now, the Westchester County Department of Health is offering free Narcan training to Westchester residents. “Narcan can be given to an overdose victim who is barely breathing,” says Amler. “Once someone stops breathing, you only have a few minutes to save their life by administering Narcan and giving CPR. That’s why it’s so important for more Westchester residents to get this training.”

Those who successfully complete a training session will receive a Narcan kit. Training sessions are held on a fairly regular basis, and health department staff are also available to provide Narcan training to community groups with 10 or more participants. For more information on Narcan, to find out when the next training session will be held, or to arrange a training session for your group or organization, call (914) 995-6584 or visit health.westchestergov.com/narcan