Overdose Awareness Day August 31st, 2021

IMPORTANT LESSONS FROM OVERDOSE AWARENESS DAY

The overdose crisis in B.C. has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic – making this year’s Overdose Awareness Day on August 31st all the more important. The annual day of mourning for those who have been lost to drug overdose began in 2001 as a small ceremony in Melbourne, Australia. It has since grown into an international movement confronting one of the world’s worst public health crises, and stimulating action and discussion about evidence-based overdose prevention and drug policy.

Of course, it takes more than wearing a purple ribbon once a year to effect positive change, which is why Langley Community Services Society (LCSS) has developed harm reduction programs to help those who struggle with addiction. From its Substance Use Program to its Intensive Case Management Team (ICMT), LCSS staff and volunteers work to end the fentanyl-fuelled menace that is killing, on average, a person every day in the Fraser Health region.

DRIVE-BY HERO

LCSS staff are trained in first-aid and many carry naloxone kits that can rapidly reverse an opioid overdose if promptly used. Frontline workers never know when they are going to have to administer the miracle drug.

One day, our ICMT case manager was driving in Langley and witnessed an unknown female slumped over on a bus stop bench with her belongings strewn about. The woman was unresponsive and not breathing. The case manager called 911 and administered naloxone. The patient did not respond.The 911 operator told her to start chest compressions and a second dose of naloxone was administered.

Finally, the woman began breathing on her own, but was still unresponsive. She was placed inthe recovery position. When the paramedics arrived, the case manager returned to work andnever received an update, but given the speed with which the drug binds to opioid receptorsand blocks the effects of fentanyl, it is likely that she saved the woman’s life.

RESPONDING TO AN OVERDOSE

If you suspect an overdose, follow the SAVE ME steps:

Check if the person is responsive. Can you wake them up? If they are unresponsive, call 911. The sooner you call, the better the chance of recovery. Know that you are protected by the Good Samaritan law, which protects you from drug possession charges if you experience or witness an overdose, and call emergency services.

Make sure there is nothing in the mouth blocking the airway, or stopping the person from breathing. Remove anything that is blocking the airway.

Help them breathe. Plug the nose, tilt the head back and give one breath every 5 seconds.

Do you see any improvement? Are they breathing on their own? If not, prepare naloxone.

Inject one dose (1cc) of naloxone into a muscle.

Is the person breathing? Naloxone usually takes effect in 3-5 minutes. If the person is not awake in 5 minutes, give one more 1cc dose of naloxone.

It’s important to stay with the person until they have woken up or emergency services have arrived. If you need to leave the person alone for any reason, place them into the recovery position before you leave to keep the airway clear and to prevent choking. To place somebody in the recovery position:

Turn them onto their side.
Place their bottom hand under their head for support.
Place their top leg at a 90-degree angle to the body, with the top knee touching the ground to prevent the person from rolling onto their stomach.

Source: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/overdose/what-you-need-to-know/responding-to-an-overdose

ALLOW YOUR SMARTPHONE TO SAVE YOU

Over 90% of all overdoses occur when people use drugs alone, in their own spaces. Naloxone kits are useless to them, unless they can summon help. Dialing a phone when you are overdosing is not an option. However, for those who have smartphones, they can download the free Lifeguard App and program it so that if they fail to stop the timer after injecting, a text-to-voice call will go straight to 911 and alert emergency medical dispatchers of a possible overdose.
Website: www.stopoverdose.gov.bc.ca

WHERE TO GET NALOXONE KITS

LCSS distributes free naloxone kits through its ICMT and Substance Use Programs. Other agencies, such as Lookout Housing and Health Society, Starting Point Homeless Outreach, Lower Fraser Valley Aboriginal Society, and the Public Health Unit do the same. The BC Centre for Disease Control,which started the Take Home Naloxone program in 2012, has a harm reduction website featuring a site finder map with all the Langley pharmacies that give away free kits. Website: www.towardtheheart.com/naloxone

INTERNATIONAL OVERDOSE AWARENESS DAY ACTIVITY IN LANGLEY

The Langley Overdose Response Community Action Team invites you to a Memorial Walk to remember, without stigma or judgment, those who have died in the opioid crisis and to acknowledge the grief of family and friends left behind. The event will take place on August 31, 2021 6 p.m. at Derek Doubleday Arboretum – 21559 Fraser Hwy. The participants will walk to Douglas Park where there will be a candlelight vigil and free naloxone training.

We acknowledge that our work takes place on the traditional and unceded lands of the Kwantlen, Matsqui, Katzie, and Semiahmoo First Nations. As well, we acknowledge the Inuit and Metis Nations peoples who live and work on these lands.

Langley Community Services, 5339-207 Street, Langley, BC V3A 2E6
Email: info@lcss.ca | Phone: 604 534 7921 | Fax: 604 534 3110

Langley Welcome Center #100 6470-201 Street, Langley, BC V2Y 2X4