Attend a Free Narcan Training and Help Save a Life
Smithtown, NY - February 26, 2014 - Every day, someone on Long Island dies of a fatal drug overdose. This is a problem that needs to be addressed before mortality rates increase. Therefore, St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center, together with the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (LICADD), will offer a free community Narcan Training on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at 6:00 pm. The free 1-hour lecture, paired with a 20-minute demonstration will provide the proper training to any person interested in saving lives from opioid overdose. Completion of this training program will qualify participants in the proper administration of Narcan, the antidote for opioid overdose. This qualification protects the responder under the NYS “Good Samaritan” law.
Narcan (Naloxone) is the safe and effective drug used to counter the deadly effects of overdose from heroin and other opiods. LICADD has been working for years to raise public awareness about this life-saving tool, regularly offer free Narcan trainings, and increase the availability of Narcan kits. For many struggling with a powerful addiction, and their family members who love them, Narcan has offered a chance to seek help with the support groups and referrals to treatment that LICADD provides. In response to the growing numbers of Long Islanders dying each year of overdose, Suffolk County introduced a pilot program in June of 2012 and over 20 lives were saved within the first month. In that same year, Nassau County began training its EMTs and Police Department personnel, and now offers public trainings through its Prescription Drug Misuse and Abuse Prevention Task Force.
"The goal of this program is to provide family and friends of those afflicted by opiate dependence the ability to save their loved ones life in case of overdose," said St. Catherine’s Emergency Department Attending Physician Shan Ahmed DO, MS, FACOEP, FACEP. “This is a life saving program that must be attended by anyone who has a family member suffering with narcotic addiction.”
The free Narcan Training program will be held at St. Catherine of Siena Nursing and Rehabilitation Care Center located at 52 Route 25A, Smithtown, NY, in the lower level recreation room. Space is limited and registration is required. Please call (631) 870-3444.
For more information about St. Catherine’s Community Outreach Program and the Narcan Training offering, please call (631) 870-3444 or visit stcatherines.chsli.org.