Take-home naloxone
Naloxone is the antidote to an opioid overdose, and timely administration of this drug is crucial in helping the victim survive. For decades, take-home naloxone programs have been found to be successful in training non-medical bystanders on how to identify and respond to an opioid overdose using this medication.
Despite the documented merits of these programs, very few have existed as government-supported initiatives.
Findings
In this study, over 20 low-threshold facilities in Oslo and Bergen became distribution sites where people who are at risk of overdosing could receive the naloxone nasal spray. Many of the people who were trained exhibited known risk factors for overdosing, indicating that the study met its goal of reaching at-risk groups.
From the over 2,000 nasal sprays that were given out, 277 were reported to have been used to successfully reverse an overdose.
Through the coordinated efforts from existing facilities, and the partnership among various interest groups, this study achieved high coverage of the antidote to people know to be at risk in a relatively short amount of time.
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