Hempstead, NY - November 19, 2015 - Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano will host a free Lifesaving Overdose Prevention Seminar for residents at this year’s Long Island Youth Safety Coalition conference. Attendees will learn when and how to administer the lifesaving antidote Narcan, and how to access help for those living with addiction. Trainees age 18 or older will receive a free Narcan kit at the end of the training.
County Executive Mangano stated, “Nassau County is proud to partner with the Long Island Youth Safety Coalition to offer a free Lifesaving Overdose Prevention Seminar to help save young lives and give those with addiction another chance at recovery. Together with our education, awareness enforcement and treatment initiatives, my administration is diligently combatting drug abuse throughout Nassau County.”
The free Lifesaving Overdose Prevention Seminar takes place on Friday, December 11th at 3 p.m. at Hofstra University’s Sondra and David S. Mack Student Center, located on the North Campus. The seminar is offered in conjunction with the Long Island Youth Safety Coalition’s 2015 Conference: The Danger Zone – Keeping Our Youth Safe. For more information on the Youth Safety Conference, call (516) 463-5750.
Heroin and prescription painkillers accounted for 190 deaths last year in Nassau County. Double that number, however, have been saved by Narcan. A 2006 State law allows citizens to administer Narcan in an attempt to save a life, without fear of liability. Narcan is administered through a nasal spray, and is provided at no charge to trainees over the age of 18. Nassau County Behavioral Health officials have trained more than 5,800 non-medically trained citizens since becoming state-certified as an Overdose Prevention program in October 2012. Nearly two dozen trainees have used that knowledge - and a Narcan kit - to revive someone overdosing on heroin or painkillers, and save their lives. The program is overseen by the New York State Department of Health, which distributes Narcan kits free to Nassau County, allowing the County to pass them along to trainees at no cost. County officials also coordinate trainings in the community and at community agencies while also teaching residents the warning signs of drug addiction, how to recognize an Opiate overdose, available treatment options, and allowing residents to share their personal stories of recovery.
No prior medical experience is necessary to participate in the Overdose Prevention Seminars. All trainees will receive a certificate of completion. The Seminar schedule is available here. To RSVP and reserve your free Narcan kit, email or call (516) 571-6105.