Volunteers from the St. Bart’s Food Bank and Community Hot Lunch programs attended their first “Naloxone Training Session” offered by Lianna Corsini, Gibsons’ new Community Paramedic. Lianna’s presentation reviewed the signs and symptoms of an overdose along with the appropriate responses including the administration of naloxone. Naloxone is a fast-acting injectable medication that restores breathing that is slowed or stopped by opioids (e.g., dilaudid, morphine, methadone or fentanyl). It takes effect in two-to-three minutes and can prevent longer-term brain injury and death. You can’t overdose on naloxone, and using it on someone who isn’t having an opioid overdose will not harm them.
Administering naloxone is only one aspect of an effective response to an opioid overdose. Lianna reviewed the provincial first aid protocol represented by the acronym: SAVE-ME which means: S (Stimulate); A (Airway); V (Ventilate); E (Evaluate); M (Medicate); E (Evaluate & Support).
Volunteers at the training session practiced giving chest compressions, ventilations (breathing) and giving injections. As one volunteer noted, “Lianna is a knowledgeable and committed trainer who communicated a very important subject in a relatable way.”
For more information on Naloxone Training Sessions contact Lianna at: [email protected] or 604-741-3190.
