As part of Interior Health’s overdose emergency response, the Take Home Naloxone Program has expanded to 70 sites.
This includes all Interior Health (IH) emergency departments, public health centres, mental health and substance use offices as well as several community agencies.
Drug-related overdoses and deaths are a huge concern, says Health Minister Terry Lake.
“Interior Health’s expansion of the Take Home Naloxone program could potentially save the life of someone’s friend, parent or child….”
In emergency departments, the program is offered to patients who are being treated for an opioid overdose.
At public health centres, mental health and substance use offices and community agencies, the program is available to anyone at risk of overdose from opioid drugs.
Opioid drugs include both prescription and illicit drugs, such as oxycodone, morphine, heroin, fentanyl and others.
This expansion increases access to the life-saving medication, naloxone. Naloxone can reverse an opioid overdose by restoring breathing within two to five minutes. It improves the chances of survival while waiting for medical help to arrive.
Naloxone is a safe medication that cannot be abused and has no effect on the body in the absence of opioids. It is non-addictive, does not produce a high and has no street value.
In addition to making naloxone kits more accessible, the Take Home Naloxone program also provides training on how to prevent, recognize and respond to an overdose situation.
The training also offers practical overdose prevention tips, such as always starting with a small amount of the drug, avoid mixing different drugs, and avoid using alone.
Crucial life-saving steps, including recognizing the signs of an overdose, putting someone in the recovery position, how to perform rescue breathing, and administer naloxone, as well as the importance of getting emergency medical help as soon as possible are also covered.
The Take Home Naloxone program is provided in collaboration with the BC Centre for Disease Control.
Approximately 1,670 naloxone kits have been distributed across IH since the program first began in August 2012. Reports indicate at least 180 kits have been used to reverse an overdose.
The Take Home Naloxone program is specifically for those at risk of an opioid overdose. A list of Take Home Naloxone sites is available on the IH website (interiorhealth.ca).
Friends, family members and others who wish to carry naloxone are encouraged to purchase a kit from local pharmacies – a prescription for naloxone is no longer required.
All of the initiatives support the work of the newly formed Joint Task Force on Overdose Response. Headed by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall and Director of Police Services Clayton Pecknold, the task force will provide expert leadership and advice to the provincial on additional actions to prevent and respond to overdoses in British Columbia.
The actions also align with recommendations identified by the BC Overdose Action Exchange.
