Tag Archives: narcan

August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day

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International Overdose Awareness Day is held every year on August 31, as a day to create awareness about overdose and drug-related death. The day also acknowledges the grief felt by families and friends who have experienced the death of a loved one due to overdose.

Would you be able to recognize the signs and symptoms of an overdose?

According to the Harm Reduction Coalition, signs of an overdose include:

  • Loss of consciousness
  • Unresponsive to outside stimulus
  • Awake, but unable to talk
  • Breathing is very slow and shallow, erratic, or has stopped
  • Choking sounds, or a snore-like gurgling noise (sometimes called the “death rattle”)
  • Vomiting
  • Skin complexion changes (bluish purple for lighter skinned people and grayish or ashen for darker skinned people)
  • Face is very pale or clammy
  • Body is very limp
  • Fingernails and lips turn blue or purplish black
  • Pulse (heartbeat) is slow, erratic, or not there at all

What can you do if someone is suffering from an overdose?

Call 911 immediately. Emergency response personnel can save someone from overdosing by administering a dose of Naloxone. Naloxone, also known as Narcan, can be used to prevent and reverse an opioid overdose. Naloxone is a safe medication that counteracts the effects of an overdose. If a person is not suffering from an opioid overdose, the medication will not affect them.

After the South Carolina Overdose Prevention Act became law in 2015, DHEC, in collaboration with the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office and South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services (DAODAS), created the Law Enforcement Officer Naloxone (LEON) program, which focuses on law enforcement officers who are frequently the first emergency responders to arrive on scene and response time is critical to saving lives. LEON’s goal is to provide comprehensive training to law enforcement agencies across South Carolina that focus on identification, treatment and reporting of drug overdoses attributed to opioids.

Learn more about how you can prevent an opioid overdose and about treatment resources in your area by visiting the DAODASwebsite at www.daodas.sc.gov.

 

DHEC in the News: Narcan, flu, litter control

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Myrtle Beach Police saved most lives with Narcan in South Carolina in 2018, DHEC says

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The Department of Health and Environmental Control says the Myrtle Beach Police Department saved the most lives from overdoses using Narcan than any other law enforcement agency in the state.

According to DHEC, the Myrtle Beach Police Department administered Narcan 21 times in 2018, and eight times in 2017.

Flu activity decreases in SC, deaths increase

Now that we’re getting into the typical peak of flu season in South Carolina, a decrease in activity may provide a false sense of security.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) puts out a weekly “Flu Watch” report. The most up-do-date numbers posted on their website showed a decrease in flu activity across the state for the second week of January.

However, there was a surge in the number of flu-related deaths.

PalmettoPride Releases 2018 Litter Control Report Numbers

PalmettoPride announced this week the 2018 Litter Control Enforcement Grant ticket numbers. From the 24 enforcement agencies that received a 2017-2018 Enforcement Grant, reports indicate that a total of $341,306.73 in fines were collected from 898 successfully prosecuted cases.

Many of the reporting agencies utilize both state statues and local ordinances when addressing littering and illegal dumping.

DHEC in the News: Flu, opioids

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Flu activity no longer widespread in South Carolina after difficult season that has killed 201

Flu activity in South Carolina is considered to be regional, not widespread, for the first time since the flu began sweeping the state in the beginning of the year, the Department of Health and Environmental Control reported Wednesday.

Though influenza has been on the decline for a few weeks after a difficult season, the first week of March saw only 2,192 confirmed cases.

There were almost three times that amount the week before, with 6,332 cases.

DHEC report shows flu is slowing down in SC after 200 deaths

Over the course of what’s been an especially difficult flu season, there have been more than 200 deaths in South Carolina.

But a new flu report shows the flu is slowing down in our state.

ODPS preparing for opioids; city officers training to use Narcan

The Orangeburg Department of Public Safety is preparing its officers for the growing opioid problem, Chief Mike Adams said Tuesday.

“Drug overdose is currently the leading cause of accidental death in the United States with 62,497 lethal drug overdoses in 2016 for an average of one every eight and a half minutes,” Adams said.

“It took a while to get here to Orangeburg, but it’s here,” he said.

DHEC in the News: Flu, opioids, recycling

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

New flu cases balloon in Horry as medical facilities seek to stop its spread

Headed into the final week of January, Horry County had been spared the worst of flu season.

It took only a span of seven days for all of that to change.

A recent S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control report revealed 701 new flu cases in Horry County were diagnosed within the past week. Prior to that, approximately 795 cases were diagnosed since the start of flu season in October.

‘A miracle drug’: How Narcan is impacting opioid crisis, first responders locally

In 2016, more than 46,000 people nationwide overdosed on opioids, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The death rate from the drug type was a historical high for the United States—the CDC reporting most overdoses having occurred that year from heroin, prescription opioids and fentanyl.

The weight of the country’s rising opioid crisis is also being felt across South Carolina and the tri-county, as an increasing number of law enforcement agencies are equipping officers with Narcan to reverse the drug’s fatal effects.

New recycling program picking up steam at High Point Academy

A new recycling program at High Point Academy has become so popular it already needs to be expanded.

The school recently put plastic bins in every classroom and several large bins throughout the school thanks to an S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control grant. The $1,500 helped Rivers Carroll, an eighth-grade science teacher, put the program in place.

“I noticed, while they’re eating, they’re throwing a lot of stuff away. And I come from a management background at a grocery store,” he said. “There’s a large population of consumers here. I thought, ‘Hey, this isn’t too good.’”

DHEC in the News: Opioids, abandoned tires, flood-prone homes

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Fighting Opioid overdoses on the front lines

Nearly 100 people a day are dying from opioid overdoses, it’s part of a growing issue that South Carolina is not immune to.

In the past 3 years, opioid related deaths have risen 18%. That crisis is causing police officers to equip departments with a overdose reversal drug known as Narcan.

South Carolina Health Officials Propose Fines Over Old Tires

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Health officials in South Carolina are proposing fines for a recycling company because of abandoned tires that serve as a mosquito breeding ground.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control has proposed more than $1 million in civil penalties against the 21-acre (8.5-hectare) Viva Recycling operation in Berkeley County, The Post and Courier of Charleston reported.

Health officials say the company has more than 200,000 abandoned tires in Berkeley County. DHEC says the company has not paid the $1.65 million in fines yet.

General Interest

‘A huge shift in our mindset’ – Charleston looks at how best to treat flood-prone homes

In a move that one Charleston preservation leader called “a sea change,” the city will be more receptive than ever to property owners’ requests to elevate their homes or other buildings, even along its most historic streets.

The city held a day-long workshop Friday to discuss design solutions that would allow historic buildings to be elevated while minimizing disruption to the city’s ambiance, one that has given the city a national reputation and fueled its multimillion-dollar tourist economy.

The workshop came several weeks after Tropical Storm Irma flooded dozens of historic homes downtown, many for the third time in as many years.