Ireland’s health service has rolled out an eLearning course focused on opioid overdose awareness for its frontline staff and volunteers, the HSE announced last week.
Aimed at arming healthcare providers with the skills to identify and manage an opioid overdose, the course also covers the administration of naloxone, a life-saving drug that reverses the effects of opioids.
Prof. Eamon Keenan, HSE National Clinical Lead for Addiction Services, welcomed the initiative.
“The administration of naloxone while waiting for medical care to arrive during the recent emergence of synthetic opioids undoubtedly saved lives,” he said.
According to the HSE, naloxone was administered 569 times from 2018 to 2020, with “at least” 22 lives saved.
The training comes against the backdrop of a rise in overdoses, particularly from synthetic opioids, with HSE officials previously citing an increase in the sale of synthetic nitazene opioids in Ireland, contributing to a rise in overdose incidents last year.
LAB-MADE OPIOIDS: There was an unprecedented level of overdoses in Ireland last year due to a surge in synthetic drugs being circulated according to the HSE.#gripthttps://t.co/2hZ5ZAWeNW
— gript (@griptmedia) January 4, 2024
Moreover, the issue gained prominence after the mid-December discovery of multiple overdose cases involving fentanyl within the Irish prison system.
Fears that killer drug Fentanyl is now in Ireland after prison overdoses https://t.co/dyNzB1FJ2v
— Irish Independent (@Independent_ie) December 15, 2023
The HSE course addresses the dangers of “polydrug” use, which includes the simultaneous use of multiple substances, legal or illegal, such as heroin, alcohol, and prescription medications like benzodiazepines. This practice, the HSE warns, significantly increases the risk of respiratory depression and death.
In 2020, Ireland recorded 409 drug-related overdose deaths, with opioids implicated in 70% of these, and prescribable drugs in 60%. Over 60% of these deaths were men, and half had documented mental health problems. Among the deceased, 1 in 8 were homeless, with 11% passing away in homeless accommodation.
The course notes that 9% of overdose deaths occurred in public spaces, 42.5% when the individual was alone, and 57.5% with others such as family or friends present.
This initiative by the HSE is an effort to improve the response to opioid overdoses and to better equip first responders in such emergency scenarios.