Last year, the former Team Awareness Combating Overdose President, Nicholas Ward, worked to put Narcan in all Automated External Defibrillator (AED) boxes on campus.
Since then, TACO has distributed test strips and Narcan during events and continued to educate the public on the importance of testing drugs. At the beginning of this year, they replaced the Narcan in every AED box, which is now fresh until 2028.
Current TACO President Dezi Rachels shared that Narcan from a campus AED box was used last semester to reverse an overdose. The University of Arizona Emergency Medical Services is currently doing research to see how effective having Narcan available on campus is.
Rachels stressed the importance of being educated on Fentanyl and drug overdose. “At least five people die every single day in Arizona from an opioid overdose,” Rachels said.
Rachels explained that it’s vital to test your drugs, because the cost of using a small amount of a substance to test it is less than the cost of your life.
Every Tuesday, TACO shares an informational post on their Instagram for what they call “TACO Tuesday.” Sharing these posts on Instagram emphasizes the “peer interaction,” Rachels said. She explained that it allows other students to share the posts and reach people outside of UA.
Another way for students to become educated on recognizing an overdose and administering Narcan is by taking a course. UAEMS offers training courses for CPR, STOP THE BLEED and Narcan.
“We love teaching,” Jacob Herbert, an EMT and captain of public information and outreach for UAEMS, said. “We’re trying to teach as many classes as possible and educate the public as much as possible.”
Anyone can reach out to request Narcan training for a club or organization — even groups outside of the UA.
“Our PIO team’s mission this semester has been just letting students know their resources,” Herbert said. This year, they met with all the residential assistants in dorms to train them on how to recognize the signs of an overdose and administer Narcan.
Last semester, they got to educate all of Greek Life as well. Herbert encourages students to download the SafeCats app for safety resources and to know what’s in the AED boxes around campus.
Herbert explained that oftentimes the EMS team receives calls from people unsure whether a friend or acquaintance is overdosing. It can be hard, Herbert noted, to tell the difference between an altered mental status and a dangerous overdose.
“If you’re not sure if someone is overdosing or not, you’re not sure what kind of drug they took or if they are actually overdosing on an opioid, you can still give that Narcan because there are no negative side effects from administering the Narcan to the person,” Herbert said.
Herbert shared that it’s common for the bystander effect to occur because other students assume someone else will be the one to call 911 when an overdose, or any situation, is happening.
Herbert and Rachels both shared that it’s important for students to know about the Good Samaritan Law, which protects people from disciplinary actions if they get help when witnessing an overdose, even if they themselves are under the influence. This law was intended to help combat the bystander effect and encourage more underage individuals to speak out.
For students in need of Narcan, it is available in all the AED boxes, but students can also find it at the Health Promotions Hideaway on the first floor in Bear Down Gym. TACO and UAEMS also distribute at events, and TACO will be at the second club fair on Oct. 10 where they will be distributing Narcan along with testing strips.
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