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View Full Version : NYPD beings deploying heroin antidote



PedroDaGr8
05-29-2014, 01:15 AM
The NYPD has begun training its officers on the use of Naloxone, also called Narcan, an effective antidote to heroin overdose. It works as an opioid receptor antagonist and acts to prevent opiates (heroin, morphine, etc.) from depressing the central nervous system. This is some really cool stuff. The Quincy, MA police department deployed it and in 211 heroin overdoses it had a success rate of 95%.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/27/us/new-york-police-heroin-antidote/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1

suncat05
05-29-2014, 02:28 PM
This is a good idea, but I am not sure that I would want to be administering anything to a street doper. I am not a combat medic, and don't want to be, either. These people can be extremely hard to deal with, in many ways. And dangerous, besides.
And now this is just more gear that I would have to carry, as if I don't have enough crap on my gunbelt as it is.
Handgun, 2 extra magazines, TASER with extra cartridges, handheld radio with lapel mike & earbud, pepper spray, 2 sets of handcuffs, a small flashlight, and last but not least, my body armor. Oh yeah, the leather belt with holsters, ammo cases & device holders too. I'm out of room already!
I will always call for an ambulance when it is needed. That is their job, their calling, to help those who truly need them.
Also, how is this kit going to be transported and who inspects it when needed? I have a take-home car, but what about those guys in NY, who usually drive pool cars that get traded around? That is a headache, sharing a patrol car with other guys on other shifts. Those cars never work right, too many hands messing with them. Which brings me to my first point in this paragraph, who keeps it and signs for it and maintains custody over it? Does it get passed along from shift to shift, going through God only knows how many sets of hands? Yes, I have a take-home and I am the only one who drives it, so that kit would certainly be much more secure in my patrol car, but again, I am not a combat medic. Again, I am certainly going to call for an ambulance to get them the help they need, but I should not be required to have to carry something like that. JMHO. I have my reasons for not wanting to deal with one more added duty that really does not fall within the parameters of my real function as a LEO.

blueboss
06-04-2014, 07:52 PM
That was F^&$NG tripy


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpMxpzfSRUA

I'm all for saving lives, but I wish we had a bang stick that would curb addiction.

suncat05
06-05-2014, 07:31 AM
We do have a 'bang stick' that will curb addiction. It's called a 12 guage shotgun, loaded with 00 buck. It can cure ALL ills, and evil too!

blueboss
06-05-2014, 04:38 PM
We do have a 'bang stick' that will curb addiction. It's called a 12 guage shotgun, loaded with 00 buck. It can cure ALL ills, and evil too!

With the latest influx of heroine that's hitting the streets you won't need your 12 ga, the needle is taking care or killing plenty. The sad part is it's taking a lot of kids in there teens by nothing more than curiosity.


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Darrell KSR
06-06-2014, 08:06 AM
The NYPD has begun training its officers on the use of Naloxone, also called Narcan, an effective antidote to heroin overdose. It works as an opioid receptor antagonist and acts to prevent opiates (heroin, morphine, etc.) from depressing the central nervous system. This is some really cool stuff. The Quincy, MA police department deployed it and in 211 heroin overdoses it had a success rate of 95%.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/27/us/new-york-police-heroin-antidote/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1

"The police department of Quincy, Massachusetts, was the first in the nation to require its officers to carry naloxone and has successfully reversed 211 overdoses with a success rate of over 95%. In New York's Suffolk County, 563 lives were saved last year alone, the statement said."

Wow. This is heroic stuff.

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CitizenBBN
06-06-2014, 11:05 PM
I have to say suncat makes a pretty good case, at least for some kind of limited deployment versus just every officer.

What's not clear to me is if the 95% rate would be different than if it were SoP for EMS responders and if they were used instead. How many OD and die before they could get there and administer it? I"m sure it's not 563, that's the total who were saved but not all of them would have died waiting the other 5 minutes or so for an ambulance.

Also depends on the availability of EMS. Back home the EMS is all volunteer, it's a slower response than in a city like Lexington with 24/7 stations on duty. The problem there is that most LEO is also more part time with less training, not sure they are the ideal candidates for this kind of work either. At least our town cop when I was a kid would make me think twice. Good guy, good cop, but he was hired to keep the bored punk kids from shooting out street lights and selling dope in the bank parking lot, and he was good at it, but doing medical stuff?

Could do it on a volunteer basis. IF suncat feels good about it and has the kit in a take home car so it's secure then great, maybe not all the officers are in that position.

I would think the kits could be sealed such that they wouldn't be tampered with, could be swapped out if expiration is an issue. I definitely wouldn't want it to be something you could open/close without an audit trail if they were in pool vehicles.

I can also see how this could put LEOs in a bad place both trying to deal with the situation but also the post-situation nonsense. They are in a no win situation, supposed to do it all right all the time despite dealing largely with morons and assholes who need a good rap in the mouth.

PedroDaGr8
06-07-2014, 01:10 AM
@Suncat: You make a good point on the first part. Your duties as a LEO are already complex, difficult and stressful. This is just one more mess to add. That being said, I think we would agree that no one deserves to die for their addiction anymore than anyone deserves to die for any other mental illness. As an aside, this is the reason that the "War on Drugs" has been an abject failure. It's not a behavior problem you can punish away. Instead, like Alzheimers, ADHD, schizophrenia, depression, OCD, etc. its a mental illness albeit one with very physical manifestations. Now whether they had the mental illness before becoming addicted is up for debate, the fact is after addiction there are well documented biochemical changes to the brain. These changes are the cause of the mental disorder. As such, addiction must be treated as such if you want to "win" the war. If you don't treat the illness you are creating a repeat offender. It's like telling a schizophrenic to stop seeing God or I will arrest you or a person with ADHD pay attention to me or I will throw you in jail. The fact is they are no longer physically capable of doing what you want. Without the proper help, they will keep reoffending until either 1) they die or 2) they get the help they need.

That being said, it seems like this device is something you could keep in the car for specific situations. This drug doesn't have an abuse potential as it serves to inhibit opiods and is not addictive itself. You make a good point about shared cars, I am not sure how this works so I cannot comment about this. It is NOT likely to be tampered with because its not addictive. Though some people are messed up and may do it because they DO think addicts deserve to die.

As for why LEOs, they are usually the actual first responders. Often times with opiod overdose you have a matter of minutes to help the person. The heart is shutting down, the lungs are shutting down much like a person drowning, time is of the essence. This is why LEO's are the best target in this. It's a quick easy response. It basically can keep them alive long enough for the EMTs to get there and finish the intervention procedure.


A bit more about one of the devices available called Evzio.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/fda-approves-device-to-combat-opiod-drug-overdose/2014/04/03/35b69cac-bb3e-11e3-96ae-f2c36d2b1245_story.html

Much like a defibrilator it has both written and voice instructions for use and it auto-injects. It's mentioned that for people on large doses of oxycodone this is actually prescribed to a family member in case of accidental overdose.

suncat05
06-08-2014, 12:06 PM
Agreed, Pedro. I will always help, that is what I do. And yes, even though I am at the Courthouse now and things there are A LOT LESS STRESSFUL, there is still the potential for problems. They seem to walk in the door during all business hours, these problems. They have feet and legs that just seem to propel them all kinds of places, mostly places they shouldn't be, hence I have to deal with them.
If this stuff "had to be deployed here locally", then I would think that one officer per shift would be enough. And whatever officer does it would probably need to volunteer to do it, and not be forced to do it.
Again, it is a good idea, just not sure that I would be the one participating. But I will gladly call for the paramedics, no problem.