‘Save a life’: UT organizations host opioid overdose prevention training

Dozens of students attended an Aug. 28 training to help prevent opioid overdose deaths. The workshop, which was hosted by Operation Naloxone as a part of Longhorn Welcome, taught attendees how to administer an overdose-reversal drug and spot signs of an overdose.

Operation Naloxone is a collaboration between the College of Pharmacy and SHIFT, a UT organization that aims to address the culture of substance use on campus. Operation Naloxone teaches students how to administer Narcan, a nasal form of naloxone, which reverses the effects of an opioid overdose. Operation Naloxone offers free Narcan at various spots on campus and hosts events to reduce stigma around substance use disorders.

“(Substance) use gets treated as a crime and not a health concern, and that can make people afraid to ask for help if they are experiencing negative consequences,” said Lilly Ettinger, director of the Center for Students in Recovery, which works with students to create a college experience free from alcohol and drugs, at the training.

The speakers said that opioid overdose deaths have increased since the rise of fentanyl, which is often mixed into other drugs without the user’s knowledge. According to Texas Health and Human Services data published in March, fentanyl-related deaths make up 30.4% of all drug poisoning deaths.

“Students are put in a culture that is layered with risk,” said Kate Lower, director of SHIFT. “My hope is that it empowers (students) to intervene and save a life, and we know it has.”

Attendees learned how to spot physical signs of an opioid overdose. Signs include shallow breathing or gurgling, discoloration in hands and feet, pinpoint pupils and unresponsiveness.

If a person exhibits signs of an opioid overdose, bystanders can use Narcan to potentially save their lives, after calling 911, said AJ Inglis, SHIFT community engagement program director. To administer Narcan, attendees learned the mnemonic “peel, place, press,” meaning they should open the packaging, tilt the person’s head back, place the Narcan inside their nose and press on the applicator.

If the person does not respond within two or three minutes, they can repeat the process in the other nostril. Although fentanyl is extremely potent, those assisting cannot overdose from touching it, so they are not at risk from helping someone experiencing an overdose, Inglis said.

Attendees said that after the training they felt more comfortable with how to handle an overdose, and said the content covered in the workshop was very topical, especially for college students.

“There is a big drug culture, especially in college, with parties,” said Sofia Torres, College of Natural Sciences freshman. “Even if you’re not directly affected by people who use opioids … there could be someone that it would help if you had the knowledge.”

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