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Tennessee distributes Narcan in Chattanooga for treating opiate overdoses

Sgt. Chris Rice stands behind the Red Bank Police Department on November 8, 2016 and speaks about his experience using Narcan nasal spray to save a man from a drug overdose on October 27 of this year. Sgt. Rice was the first officer from the department to use the spray which is now standard issue for Red Bank Police Officers. Sgt. Chris Rice stands behind the Red Bank Police Department on November 8, 2016 and speaks about his experience using Narcan nasal spray to save a man from a drug overdose on October 27 of this year. Sgt. Rice was the first officer from the department to use the spray which is now standard issue for Red Bank Police Officers.

By Emmett Gienapp February 1, 2018 4 min read

On Wednesday morning, Jean Key held up a unit of Narcan nasal spray and started recounting the signs of an overdose.

“Unresponsiveness, slow or shallow breathing, turning pale, blue or gray, pinpoint pupils and choking sounds,” she said. “These are some of the things to be on the lookout for.”

Key, a regional opiate overdose prevention consultant for the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, showed the spray to a handful of people who attended her presentation at Eastgate Town Center.

More info

If you or someone you know is struggling with opioid addiction, call the Tennessee Redline at 1-800-889-9789 any time of any day to get connected to available services and resources.Anyone interested in attending a Narcan training session and receiving Narcan to keep on hand can visit hccoalition.org to reserve a spot at future events.

Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 10/20/16. Hamilton County EMS Station 9 Paramedic Ian Stearns explains how Narcan works on Thursday, October 20, 2016. Area EMS workers have seen an increase in drug ODs, and have had to use Narcan, an anti-overdose drug, more frequently.

The group had come to learn about what to do in the event that someone they knew overdosed on opioids, and Key intended to send each of them out the door with their very own box of the emergency, lifesaving medication after explaining how and when to use it.