International Overdose Awareness Day brings a global community together to take action on overdose. The theme for this year is 25 Years On. Still Needed.
For 25 years, International Overdose Awareness Day has brought people together to remember those lost to overdose and to take action to save lives.
Overdose continues to affect every community. Yet it can be prevented by reducing risk and keeping people safe. By speaking openly, learning from one another, and treating each other with care and respect, the aim is to build a world where fewer lives are lost.
The teams in Lincolnshire will host a number of informative and engaging events aimed at promoting the support available to residents, reducing stigma, and encouraging healthier life choices.
There will be a continuation of naloxone, a fast-acting medication used to reverse effects of opioid overdose, outreach to people who may not be accessing services across all the Lincolnshire hubs.
Alongside our outreach, the team will be visiting Tonic Health in Spalding, holding a Naloxone/overdose awareness drop-in session at our Lincoln Hub and will also have a Naloxone training drop-in session at Mint Lane, Lincoln.
The team are also creating a visible Messages & Memories display across all the hubs in Lincolnshire. They’re inviting people across the county to share an anonymous message to honour lives lost, raise awareness and prevent future overdoses with each message becoming a part of a large display at the selected locations.
Nathan Brannick, Criminal Justice Recovery Worker at Lincolnshire Recovery Partnership:
Nathan has used naloxone to reverse and overdose six times in the course of his work. Ahead of International Overdose Awareness Day, he’s sharing what those moments are really like and why he believes training and access to naloxone should be everywhere.
Nathan says that during the first time he administered naloxone, there was no time to think and that the training simply took over.
“The moment I found the person, my training just kicked in straight away. I gave him two injections, and after a bit, he came around” he says. “It wasn’t scary until after, once the adrenaline calmed down. That’s when you start thinking back over everything, wondering if you did all right. But it worked, I remembered everything from my training and a life was saved. If I hadn’t had naloxone with me, the outcome would have been completely different. That’s exactly why training and access is so important”.
Nathan then says no two situations are quite the same. When he arrived at a home visit in Gainsborough, the fifth time he used naloxone, it was the client’s partner who opened the door. It turned out that the client had been unresponsive for over 20 minutes before Nathan arrived and that their partner hadn’t known what to do.
“That really showcases why training and awareness of Naloxone is so important” he says. “It’s not just about professionals being trained, it’s about anyone and everyone knowing what to do, because you never know when you might come across someone who needs it. If that partner had been trained and had access to naloxone, help could have come a lot sooner”
Nathan also talks about the positive changes in attitude he’s seen among professionals he works alongside. He recalls a colleague, a police officer, who only six years ago didn’t even know what naloxone was or how to use it and was amazed at how quickly it worked when he saw it in action.
“Now they’re carrying it themselves” Nathan says. “Response officers carry it, and the whole city centre team is trained on it. Take a recent example, where police in the area came across someone who needed naloxone and the officer who was able to save a life had been trained by us. It just shows we’re getting more and more awareness out there and it’s saving people’s lives”.
Nathan’s experiences with naloxone demonstrate exactly why our message shared throughout Overdose Awareness Day is so important. Naloxone saves lives, training saves lives and awareness saves lives.
Adam Sutclifffe, Senior Operations Manager at Lincolnshire Recovery Partnership, said:
“Behind every overdose statistic is a person, a family and a community affected by loss. While it is important to raise awareness of the risks, it is equally important to send a message of hope. Through the right support, practical harm reduction advice and treatment, people can reduce the risk and build a positive future for themselves. Overdose is preventable, support is available, and there is always hope for recovery.”