Health council offering overdose training

Opioid overdoses can be fatal in minutes, so it is important to act quickly and know how to use Narcan, a life-saving nasal spray that can reverse their effects.

The Quay County Health Council is offering three free training sessions for the overdose medication on Sept. 5 at noon, 3 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. in the Great Room at Mesalands Community College.

The trainings each will last about an hour and include how to identify an opioid overdose, laws that protect people trying to save a life, how to use Narcan and follow-up care of an overdose victim. Free Narcan kits will be provided to each participant, a $140 value.

In addition, the council will have lock boxes available to safely store medications or cannabis edibles and keep them away from children. The lock boxes are only available to those who attend one of the trainings. The free lock boxes are available on a first come, first served basis, with only one per household.

The Health Council noted many opioid overdoses occur with those that do not abuse drugs. Prescriptions for opioids are provided to those who have severe pain, cancer or recovering from surgery. But sometimes accidents happen: A child may get into the medicine, the patient forgets and takes an extra dose, or there is a reaction with the patient’s other medications.

For more information, call the Health Council at (575) 815-4575.