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The use of Naloxone, also known as Narcan, has prevented hundreds of opioid overdose deaths in the city. (Charles Krupa/AP).
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - City Councilman Vincent J. Gentile (D-Brooklyn) is setting aside 50 seats for Staten Islanders to attend a free seminar on naloxone Wednesday night at McKinley Junior High School in Brooklyn.
Naloxone, commonly known as Narcan, is a medication used to counter the effects of opioid overdoses. An unresponsive person whose breathing has slowed to a fatal level due to accidental overdose can be revived after being administered naloxone - buying time to get them to the hospital for further treatment.
Staten Island has long led the city in its overdose death rate for opioid painkillers. And due to skyrocketing heroin use in the borough, the Island now also has the highest death rate citywide for heroin overdoses: In 2012, 36 Islanders died of heroin overdoses, and 37 Islanders died of painkiller overdoses, according to statistics from the Department of Health.
During the seminar, Gentile along with Donna Mae Depola, president/founder & CEO of The Resource Training and Counseling Center, will teach attendees about Narcan and how it is used to prevent, recognize and respond to an overdose. Little training is required to safely administer Narcan. Emergency responders have found it easier to use than the EpiPens, which have long been in wide use, saving lives by counteracting allergic reactions.
Gentile, who is partnering with the Resource Training and Counseling Center to host the 7 p.m. event, formerly represented the North Shore of Staten Island in the state Senate.
McKinley Junior High School, the site of Wednesday night's seminar, is located at 7301 Fort Hamilton Parkway, Brooklyn.