Could you recognize someone overdosing on opiates? Would you know what to do?
That’s part of the reasoning for the installation this summer of a vending machine on Butternut Street to dispense Narcan, the commercial name for Naloxone, an opioid antagonist. Unlike your typical vending machine, the product in this one is free.
Cindy Frazier, the program director for the Community Coalition Partnership at the Taylor Alliance for Prevention, described the signs of an opioid overdose.
“If they have very pinpoint pupils, if their breathing is labored or they're completely unconscious and can't be roused by shaking them, it's always safe to give them the Narcan,” she said. “It's not going to hurt them.”
If they are having an opioid overdose, the drug will immediately shut it down within three minutes. On occasion, the box’s second dose might need to be administered as well.
“That's perfectly safe to do, but it can immediately reverse the effects of an opioid,” she added.
“It's as simple as laying the person down flat, tear off the back of the Narcan, and it's a like a nasal spray. You put it up one nostril and plunge it," Frazier said.
The machine has been located outside of Book Therapy at 1017 Butternut St. since July 2. It was dedicated on July 31 before an audience of social workers, outreach coordinators and media.
Once limited to heroin and prescription painkillers, fentanyl has surpassed all others in fueling the opiate crisis. Frazier’s agency serves communities in 30 counties from Wichita Falls down to Brownwood.
“It's increasing across the state of Texas,” Frazier said. “There was close to 5,000 overdose deaths in Texas in 2023, and almost half of those were fentanyl induced.”
And how does that compare to a decade ago?
“We weren't tracking fentanyl 10 years ago,” she said. “As we've seen fentanyl get in the mainstream of counterfeit drugs and even some of the street drugs, they’ve started to track those things.”
Did fentanyl surpass heroin?
“I don't know that it's surpassed it. It's the thing that you can't tell that you're taking,” she said.
If someone purchases counterfeit drugs — perhaps to avoid seeing a doctor and the expense involved — they might think they are getting Vicodin or some other opiate but maybe not.
If it’s been replaced with fentanyl, the dose could be far higher than what would be safe.
“A lethal dose of fentanyl is two milligrams, which is equal to about four to six grains of table salt,” Frazier said. “You cannot see it, you cannot taste it, you cannot smell it, and you won't know it until it hits your system.
“And that's the scariest part about fentanyl.”
Michael Prado carries Narcan with him everywhere he goes. He recommends you do, too.
“I’m the outreach coordinator for West Texas Harm Reduction,” he said. “The data shows that (fentanyl has) exploded. It's more of a threat than it ever has been in Taylor County.”
There’s a stigma against Narcan and addiction overall that can be difficult for people to surmount. A box of Narcan can cost $40 at the store, but thanks to grants and donations, the machine offers it free to any who needs it without paperwork or hassle.
“People deserve to live, you know? This doesn't promote or enable drug use,” Prado said. “It promotes life, and it enables breathing.”
The machine can hold about 40 or more boxes of Narcan. It was installed in the beginning of July, and about 124 boxes had gone through it by July 31.
“I always tell people, 'The reason I do this is because dead people can't recover,’” Prado said. “Those kids that passed away, our children of Taylor County, they ain't going to get another chance.
“They deserved to recover, too, but they didn't get the chance.”
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This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: 'They deserved recovery, too': Life-saving Narcan free in Abilene vending machine
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