Peer distribution of naloxone is the best way to get the opioid overdose reversal drug where it’s needed.
by Nye Jones, We Are With You
Andy struts through Redcar town centre, his bright blue naloxone hoody protecting him from the fierce north sea breeze. He bellows hello to a woman across the street and fist bumps a guy he knows from his childhood. Then he sees a man he recognises from picking up his methadone script and it’s all systems go. Andy asks if he’s heard of naloxone. He hasn’t. He asks if he’d like to learn how to save a life. He would. The two sit together on a bench outside Sports Direct. In just eight minutes Andy expertly takes him through how to respond if someone has taken an opiate overdose. With a slap on the back, he hands the man a naloxone pack to keep and waves him on his way.
It seems like he’s been doing this for years, but just three months before the programme started Andy knew very little about naloxone — “I’d never seen a pack before, I never had a clue.” Drug related deaths are at record levels in the UK, with the north east recording the highest rate of deaths in England. Now, Andy is part of a team of peers proactively taking naloxone out into the community in the coastal area of Redcar and Cleveland.
Read the full article on the We Are With You Blog.
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