Marion County officials supplied, trained regarding opioid overdose medication
First responders in Marion County will now carry Narcan, a nasal spray used to revive victims of opioid overdoses.
Officers from seven local departments received training Thursday from Angela Mallette, outreach coordinator for Stand Up Mississippi.
The medication is paid for by a grant.
“It’s absolutely 100 percent no cost to the taxpayers of Marion County,” Chief Deputy Jamie Singley, who helped bring the program here, said. “A free tool is always a good tool.”
Narcan purchased over the counter could cost as much as $150 per dose, but the supplies were provided to Stand Up Mississippi, a program of the Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Services and the Mississippi Department of Health, at a cost of $37.50 per dose due to bulk purchasing and government discounts.
The program came out of meetings of multiple state and federal agencies as part of Gov. Phil Bryant’s opioid task force. A $3.6 million grant covers the cost of the Narcan. Eighty percent of the overall grant funds go toward sending individuals for treatment for addiction. It’s part of a national response to the growing problem of prescription pain pill abuse, which has subsequently led to more heroin use.
Marion County has 182.9 opioid prescriptions per 100 people, the second-highest rate in Mississippi.
Representatives from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Columbia Police Department, Columbia Fire Department, Marion County Emergency Management Agency, Tri-Community, South Marion and Pine Burr volunteer fire departments were on hand Thursday at the Marion County Civil Defense Center to receive the naloxone nasal spray and the training to use it. Those attendees will then assist in training their own departments.
Each department will report via email when they use doses of Narcan, a brand name for the drug naloxone, which will then be replaced.
Each department received 40 units, which have a shelf life of 18 months.
As Mallette spoke, she asked the dozen or so first responders in the room if they had ever witnessed an overdose. Nearly all of them raised their hands.
Each deputy and police patrolman will receive doses beginning immediately.
“We face it a lot, when you’re talking about deputies who are constantly going,” Singley said. “It’s not a knock to fire departments or medical staffs in Marion County; it’s just that often the deputies are in the area of a call because they are always on the road. A lot of times when they’re rolling and patrolling, they might be right around the corner. When they roll up, time could make a difference.”
Lt. Jonathan Harrison, a detective for the Columbia Police Department, said they’re also happy to have it.
“Obviously, we have our share of narcotics problems in Columbia and it could be a vital tool to our officers if they are exposed to drugs that could accidentally overdose them,” he said.
Mallette emphasized that Narcan is not a substitute for medical care.
“That’s the most important thing I can tell you,” she told the first responders. “You need to call an ambulance and get them to the hospital.”
The medication will affect those who have used opioids, but not meth, alcohol or other drugs.
“If you administer it and it was not an opioid overdose, there are no side effects,” Mallette said. “When you overdose on opioids, your brain forgets to tell your lungs to breathe. Naloxone will flush the opioids out. It will bring them out of the overdose.”
One reason medical attention is required is the half-life of opioids. Narcan can reverse or subdue effects for two hours. Opioids last far longer, with Oxycontin last as long as 12 hours, heroin four to six hours, morphine eight hours and fentanyl up to 11 hours.
“The opioids are still in their systems,” Mallette said. “They can OD again.”
She said they may need to administer multiple doses, saying she’s heard of it taking up to nine to revive someone.
Anyone can purchase Narcan over the counter, and in 2015 Mississippi passed the Emergency Response and Overdose Act, considered the Good Samaritan Law.
Mallette said it removed any civil or criminal liability for the decision to administer or not administer Narcan.
“There was a real case in the 14th Judicial District involving an MBN agent,” she said. “The agent administered Narcan to a subject who had stopped breathing for a period of time. He saved the man’s life, but he suffered brain damage from lack of oxygen for an extended period of time. The family filed suit, but it was thrown out.”
She said Narcan could also protect law enforcement if they’re exposed to a powerful drug like fentanyl, for example, at a scene.
“Narcan can help save a life,” Mallette concluded.
Pictured Above: Lt. Jonathan Harrison of the Columbia Police Department holds one of the Narcan kits after a training session in Columbia on Thursday. Each patrol officer will be given one. | Photo by Mark Rogers
