New York State Senator Pete Harckham, in partnership with the Village of Croton-on-Hudson and the Croton Free Library, hosted a naloxone training on Monday, Dec. 18, giving more than 30 people, including first responders and interested residents, an opportunity to learn how to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
“In order for someone to enter recovery, first and foremost, they must be alive,” said Harckham. “A person equipped with naloxone and the training to use it properly can literally give someone a new lease on life and the opportunity to enter recovery.”
The training, which was held at the Croton Free Library, was the tenth training Harckham has held since 2020. Now the chair of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, he served for four years as chair of the Senate Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Committee.
Chris Caulfield, an opioid overdose outreach training specialist with the state’s Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) based in Albany, led the two-hour training session, which focused on both the administration of naloxone, a powerful opioid antagonist best known as Narcan, and instruction in rescue breathing.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 109,680 people died from a drug overdose in 2022, mostly from opioids. The surge in deaths is attributable to the rise in use and prevalence of illicitly manufactured synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Fentanyl and other adulterants are now increasingly common, making an overdose all too easy.
The naloxone training participants learned how to administer naloxone as a pre-packaged, FDA-approved nasal spray. More first responders are being trained to use naloxone, and families with members with an opioid use disorder should have the opioid antagonist nearby. People should still call 911 in the event of an overdose.
Participants at the Croton-on -Hudson training received an emergency kit with two doses of naloxone.
“We’re so appreciative of Senator Harckham and his staff for facilitating this program here in Croton-on-Hudson and all over his district,” said Gwen Glazer, director of Collection Development and User Engagement at the Croton Free Library. “This kind of training is incredibly valuable to our community, and we’re glad the Croton Library can play its role as a place where people can come to learn in so many different ways.”
