First Responders

Coming soon!

1. Evaluate for Signs of Opioid Overdose. Using the below signs, identify if the patient may be experiencing an opioid overdose.
2. Call 911 for Help. If no emergency medical services (EMS) or other trained personnel is on the scene, call 911 immediately.
3. Administer Naloxone. Naloxone should be administered to anyone who is showing signs of an opioid overdose. Read more about how to administer in the section below and sign up for the free training offered by Project FREEDOM.
4. Support the Person’s Breathing. Ventilatory support is an important intervention and may be lifesaving on its own.
5. Monitor the Person’s Reponses. A person must be monitored for at least 4 hours after receiving naloxone. Naloxone’s effects are short, so overdose symptoms may return.

An opioid overdose occurs when someone has opioids in their system. Opioids include heroin, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and pain relievers that are available legally by prescription.
In an overdose, a person’s breathing can be dangerously slow or stop completely, resulting in the brain not getting enough oxygen. This can happen in as little as minutes or even hours and results in brain damage or death.

Signs of an opioid overdose:

• Small, constricted “pinpoint pupils”
• Falling asleep or loss of consciousness
• Slow, shallow breathing
• Choking or gurgling sounds
• Limp body
  Pale, blue, or cold skin

• Using opioids after your tolerance has decreased
• Using unregulated opioids – the strength can vary
• Mixing opioids with benzos, alcohol, other opioids, methamphetamine or cocaine
• Using opioid pain medications more often or at a higher dose than prescribed
• Using someone else’s opioid pain medication
• People who have overdosed in the past are more likely to overdose again

When an opioid overdose is detected, the next step is to administer Naloxone.

Naloxone is a safe medication that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. It has been used for over 40 years in emergency medicine. Naloxone can quickly restore normal breathing to a person if their breathing has slowed or stopped because of an opioid overdose. It can quickly wake someone up in just a few minutes.

Naloxone has no effect on someone who does not have opioids in their system, and there are no known side effects (e.g., no allergic reactions, no potential for abuse). It is not a controlled substance nor is it a treatment for opioid use disorder.

First Responders can complete a form to join Project FREEDOM and sign up for training to receive Free Naloxone for First Responders. 

Administering Naloxone

HOW TO GIVE NALOXONE NASAL SPRAY:

• Call 911.
• Lay the person down, tilt their head back, and put one hand under their neck.
• Insert the nasal spray in one of their nostrils with your other hand.
• Push the plunger on the device with your thumb to administer the nasal spray.

If the person is not breathing…

• Use personal protective equipment (i.e., gloves, breath barrier device) if you have them available.
• Roll the person onto their back.
• Seal your mouth over theirs and breathe in 1 breath every 5 seconds. Their chest should rise, not their stomach.
• Give another dose of naloxone if there is no response after 2–3 minutes and continue to watch them.

First Responders can access these steps and other information on opioids, overdose, treatment and help lines, by downloading the app Connect Alabama.