Feb 22, 2012 11:40 AM
Despite popular perception, a drug overdose does not kill instantly. Rather, there is a 1-to-3-hour window of opportunity to save a life, according to Dr. Jeffrey L. Reynolds, the executive director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence.
“Overdose is completely preventable,” Dr. Reynolds told an audience of about 30—including several employees of Southampton Hospital and Seafield Center and two Southampton Village Police officers—during a presentation and overdose prevention training workshop held Saturday afternoon at the Shinnecock Presbyterian Church on the Shinnecock Indian Reservation.
Saturday’s event took place in partnership with the Shinnecock Substance Abuse Mobilization Project, which seeks to create a system of support for those suffering from substance abuse. SAMP is an acronym that refers to a traditional, nutritious corn and bean dish that was a staple of the Shinnecocks’ diet.
One of the biggest health challenges on Long Island and nationwide, drug overdoses often occur behind closed doors because families are embarrassed, Dr. Reynolds said. Many of those afflicted work in health care professions.
Not only that, but drug overdoses claim the lives of more than 370 young people on Long Island each year, and the potency of street drugs has increased dramatically over the years.
Since many overdoses are witnessed by others, having the appropriate training and knowledge of what to do is critical, said Dr. Thomas Jan of Massapequa Pain Management and Rehabilitation, who was the day’s main presenter.
Toward that end, he touted the use of naloxone, a substance that can save a life if injected into the thigh or upper arm of someone overdosing. Naloxone will not reverse overdoses of some substances, like alcohol or cocaine, but it will work with those drugs classified as opiods, a list that includes heroin, morphine, codeine and oxycodone, among others.
Good Samaritan laws protect those who administer the drug if they do so in a good faith effort to help, he said.
In addition to demonstrating the proper administration of naloxone and distributing overdose prevention kits to those who participated in the training, Dr. Jan dispensed various tips. Point to a specific person when asking someone to call 911, he suggested. If that person hesitates or says no, move on quickly to someone else. Simply shouting out for someone to call 911 is not as effective, he said.
Southampton Village Police Detective John Rodecker said afterward that he would speak to Police Chief Thomas Cummings about having the department get certification for all its members.
Gail Zappone, a Shinnecock Hills resident, said afterward that she learned to keep a “clear, cool head” if faced with such a situation.
