The Sconi

The Eau Claire City-County Health Department and University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire are taking action as a bubbling drug crisis that has caused overdose-related deaths to rise to new heights in the state tightens its grip.

With the number of such deaths on the rise across Wisconsin, the two entities are set to host a series of “Opioid Overdose Prevention and Narcan Training” sessions for UW students and staff, with at least part of the discussion centered on a medication now being sold as a lifesaver. (Although many are familiar with the term Narcan, that is one brand of Naloxone, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses.) 

The Leader-Telegram reports the added actions are being funded by the “Overdose Data to Action” and “Narcan Direct Program,” grants that the City-County Health Department recently received.

Sarah Dillivan-Pospisil, City-County Health Department public health specialist, sees the grants, which focus on opioid data and education and providing Narcan training to partners and agencies in Eau Claire County as coming at just the right time in the community’s ongoing battle to gain control of the problem.

“In Eau Claire County, we know that opioid deaths have more than doubled between 2014 and 2020,” she said. “I think with the increasing opioid overdoses that are happening in Eau Claire County, you never know when you might potentially come across that medical emergency, so the more people that have access to Narcan nasal spray (and) know how to use it, is really a good prevention tool.”

Even as the university has been fortunate enough not to have witnessed the high number of overdose cases others have, Director of Risk Management, Safety and Sustainability Brian Dollinger stresses it is important for school officials to keep abreast of everything that’s going on.

“We want to make sure that they’re able to get more education about these (drugs) and that they know there are some resources, especially here on campus, to help save a life,” he said.

In addition, the university has implemented 19 “Nalox-Zone” boxes in high-traffic areas across the campus, including residency halls, the Davies Center, Zorn Arena, Hilltop Center and McIntyre Library. The Nalox-Zone boxes contain two Narcan nasal sprays, masks for rescue breathing and instructions on how to use the medication.

“It’s something that reverses the effects of the overdose, at least until possibly emergency personnel can get to the scene,” Dollinger said. “We’re hoping that this tool doesn’t have to be used on campus, however, we just want to give the campus community an opportunity to have access to it if need be.”