LAURINBURG — Eastpointe is partnering with Scotland County to save lives from opioid overdoes.
Eastpointe resented 50 Narcan Kits to the Scotland County Sheriff’s Department on Wednesday.
Scotland County Sheriff Ralph Kersey and Chief Deputy Lloyd Goins received the Narcan Kits from William Sellers, Eastpointe community relations specialist for Scotland County.
“Eastpointe is proud of the partnership that we have with the Scotland County Sheriff’s Department, as we work together to fight against the deadly Opioid Epidemic that is gripping our communities,” Sellers said.
The Nasal Narcan Kits are used to deliver the drug Naloxone to persons who have overdosed on opioids. Eastpointe previously donated Narcan Kits to Scotland County Emergency Management Services in August 2017.
Opioids are a class of drugs that include the illegal drug heroin, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and pain relievers available legally by prescription.
When a first responder determines that a person has suffered from an opioid overdose, they can administer Naloxone, a life-saving drug.
Naloxone is a medication designed to rapidly reverse opioid overdose. It is an opioid antagonist—meaning that it binds to opioid receptors and can reverse and block the effects of other opioids. It can quickly restore normal respiration to a person whose breathing has slowed or stopped because of overdosing with heroin or prescription opioid pain medications. Naloxone only works if a person has opioids in their system; the medication has no effect if opioids are absent.