drugs
West Siders learn how to prevent drug overdoses
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Loretto Hospital and Maryville Academy offered free Narcan and trainings last week to commemorate International Overdose Awareness Day.
AustinTalks (http://austintalks.org/tag/overdose/)
Loretto Hospital and Maryville Academy offered free Narcan and trainings last week to commemorate International Overdose Awareness Day.
The training will be held from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Aug. 31 at The Loretto Hospital. Behavioral health clinicians from the hospital and Maryville Academy will show participants how to administer Narcan, which can reverse the effects of an overdose.
State Rep. La Shawn K. Ford has introduced legislation that would allow people to inject illegal drugs under supervision. He hopes lawmakers will vote on the proposal later this year.
Narcan – a medicine that can reverse an overdose – doesn’t work with xylazine, making deadly overdoses more likely, local health officials say. The Cook County medical examiner’s office found 236 xylazie-related deaths over the course of five years, with the numbers increasing each year.
A free information session will be held on Zoom at 6:30 p.m. April 27. A representative from the Chicago Department of Public Health will explain how Narcan can be used to reverse an overdose.
Later this month, patrons at 14 branches across the city will be able to get a free Narcan kit. The Austin locations are at 5615 W. Race Ave., 5724 W. North Ave. and 4856 W. Chicago Ave.
Mark “International Overdose Awareness Day” by joining members of the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force at 11 a.m. Aug. 31 at the corner of Pulaski and Jackson, 4000 W. Jackson.
A new state law protects a person who provides emergency medical assistance to someone who’s experiencing an overdose. A Good Samaritan in these cases cannot be arrested, charged or prosecuted for drug violations. State Rep. La Shawn Ford lauds the new law, noting more Good Samaritans are needed to give naloxone, the medication used to reverse an overdose.
The West Side Heroin and Opioid Task Force offers training each month to help reduce the record number of overdose deaths.
Faith leaders on the West Side are being encouraged to get trained on how to stop someone from having an overdose. At the monthly meeting of the 15th Police District’s faith-based leaders, attendees also were urged to complete training offered by the Chicago chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.