NARCAN Distributed to All DMPS Buildings
The DMPS Board of Directors approved a policy for schools to keep a supply of Naloxone, commonly known as NARCAN. It is an opioid antagonist that is administered as a nasal spray and acts on opiate receptors in the brain, immediately countering the effects of an overdose. If any student, employee, family member, or visitor in the school appears to have overdosed on opioids, the medication would be administered by the nurse or another trained staff member. The supply of NARCAN was distributed to school nurses on Monday, October 31st.
The adoption of the policy qualifies Melissa Abbott, the DMPS health services supervisor, to access two prescriptions for each DMPS building through the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, which provides the drug at no cost to schools.
Medical professionals say keeping a supply of Naloxone is similar to stocking an EpiPen for extreme allergic reactions, or an AED for heart failure. They are meant to be temporary measures. When there is a medical emergency, schools will still call 911 for an ambulance.
NARCAN Distributed to All DMPS Buildings
The DMPS Board of Directors approved a policy for schools to keep a supply of Naloxone, commonly known as NARCAN. It is an opioid antagonist that is administered as a nasal spray and acts on opiate receptors in the brain, immediately countering the effects of an overdose. If any student, employee, family member, or visitor in the school appears to have overdosed on opioids, the medication would be administered by the nurse or another trained staff member. The supply of NARCAN was distributed to school nurses on Monday, October 31st.
The adoption of the policy qualifies Melissa Abbott, the DMPS health services supervisor, to access two prescriptions for each DMPS building through the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, which provides the drug at no cost to schools.
Medical professionals say keeping a supply of Naloxone is similar to stocking an EpiPen for extreme allergic reactions, or an AED for heart failure. They are meant to be temporary measures. When there is a medical emergency, schools will still call 911 for an ambulance.