Take part in our Naloxone interview - with Scots!

by David Hewson

Interview naloxone professionals from Scotland! UPDATE: the details for this interview have now been finalized!!

Let us know your thoughts! 

Ok CSSDPers, we've got an interesting opportunity here!

As most of you already know, the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs passed a resolution last week to promote naloxone, an antidote for opiate overdoses. This is good news.

Amid the tweeting around this, I connected with two people from Scotland who work with naloxone: Kirsten, a registered nurse working in addictions, and Stephen, the national coordinator and lead trainer for Scotland's Naloxone Programme. I asked if they'd like to be interviewed for a post on our blog...and got a great response!!

@StephenCMalloy @kristenlh23 to keep this #Naloxone ball rolling, would either/both of you be interested in an interview for our blog?
— CSSDP (@CSSDP) March 21, 2012

@CSSDP @kristenlh23 vey kind offer! Sure we both could offer something from national and local perspectives. Thanks! :)
— Stephen Malloy (@StephenCMalloy) March 21, 2012

@StephenCMalloy @injectingadvice @cssdp ditto
— Kirsten H(@kirstenlh23) March 21, 2012

If that wasn't enough, a British harm reduction group called Injecting Advice saw what we were tweeting about, and now they want to reprint the interview on their website! Not bad.

@stephencmalloy @CSSDP @kristenlh23 would we be able to re-print the interview on the naloxone site when we launch? #itallhelps
— Injecting Advice.com (@injectingadvice) March 21, 2012

So the stage is set...and this is where you guys come in.

We want your help with this - and here's why:

1. We need to ask some good questions! For those of you with no background in harm reduction (like myself) - what do you want to know about naloxone? For those of you with more experience - what do you want to ask the pros now that we've got their attention?

2. If Injecting Advice is interested in our interview, then lots of other people must be too. Who else should we be telling about this? Some of our friends from the conference come to mind, like CAANS in Red Deer and Streetworks in Edmonton. Who else can you think of who might want to submit questions, post the interview on their blog, or otherwise get involved?

3. Last, but not certainly not least...just because. That's why you should get involved. Interviewing interesting people, building connections and promoting events for a worthy cause are all activism skills we want you to learn - so seize this opportunity to do so!

So here's what happens next.

In the comments below, tell us:

- what questions should we ask our interviewees? what do you really want to know about harm reduction, naloxone, or what's happening with drug policy in the land of haggis? ;)

- who should we tell about this? where and how can we promote this cool opportunity?

- how do you want to be involved? do you want to take part in the interview directly (you're welcome to!!)? should we try to livestream the event? do you want to live-tweet your thoughts/reactions for our followers while the interview is happening?

Let us know what you think, and we can all go on from there. Looking forward to hearing from all of you!

Overdose awareness- our demands

August 31st was overdose awareness day. An event was held on the human rights monument in Ottawa, ON. There were speakers, an exchange of information and a call for action.

here is what I (Alex Rowan) had to say.

Now that we have addressed the issue of overdose in the city of Ottawa, I want to discuss what needs to happen to deal with this devastating trend.

         First, I want to tell you about a medication called naloxone. It is an opioid antagonist which blocks the opioid receptors and quickly reverses life threatening depression of the central nervous system and respiratory system. It is essentially an opiate antidote.  It lasts for about 30-90 minutes, giving the individual time to access emergency medical services. It is a safe medication and will not cause harm if administered to someone who isn’t overdosing. This medication is often used by emergency medical professionals. However, some areas run peer based naloxone distribution and training programs, which have resulted in very positive outcomes and have saved many lives.

Ottawa needs this.

These programs train users how to identify and respond to opiate overdose, including when and how to administer naloxone. This gives people the opportunity to literally save the lives of their peers. Unfortunately, we do not have a way for people to access this drug and learn how to use it. That needs to change.

Our next demand is accurate reporting of overdose related deaths. It is incredibly difficult to find information regarding the number and frequency of overdose deaths. Often the cause of death will not be labeled as an overdose, but instead as a “heart attack” or something else. Though that may look better on an obituary, it makes finding information that much more difficult. It is also harder to develop public health education on overdose prevention and to advocate for programs such as naloxone distribution without this information. This also needs to change.

Our final demand is far more broad, but still crucial. We need to view overdose as a human rights issue. That’s why we chose to hold this event here. People who use drugs deserve better than they’re getting. We need better access to appropriate, evidence based treatment. This includes harm reduction programs like methadone maintenance and safe consumption rooms. We need to improve access to health care services, especially for street involved drug users. We need affordable housing. We need to stop criminalizing people for drug use, as it only makes the problem worse.

I know that’s a lot to ask for, and it will take a lot of work to get to that place. However, our demands for naloxone distribution programs and accurate reporting of OD deaths are a great place to start. These suggestions will both reduce the number of overdose related deaths and give us more accurate information so that we can move forward. We will strive for a community that respects everyone’s right to life and the highest level of health possible. We need to realize that people who overdose are worth keeping alive.  If you only take one thing from this event, I hope that’s it.