MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - On September 8, all 55 West Virginia Counties are banding together to host the largest day of free naloxone distribution in the state. In its third year, Save a Life Day will include every county for the first time. You can find a statewide map of over 150 events at savealifewv.org.
Save a Life Day is made possible by support from the WV Office of Drug Control Policy, which supplies the lion’s share of the Narcan for the statewide event. Key logistics support also comes from the University of Charleston Pharmacy School and the WV Office of Maternal Child & Family Health.
This year’s major sponsors include: Aetna, Ayuda Medical, CareSource, CAMC Foundation, Community Connections, Unicare, and the WV Drug Intervention Institute.
West Virginia lost an average of two family members to fatal overdoses each day in 2021, down from over three lives lost a day, on average, in 2020. This improvement is due in part to the expansion of free naloxone programs including Save a Life Day events, which started in 2020.
The theme for this year’s event is “Meeting People Where They Are.” What this looks like for Save a Life Day events is getting a larger portion of naloxone to people at risk of overdose by focusing distribution on high-risk areas, incorporating outreach strategies, and partnering with people who use drugs.
Pick-up sites include churches, clinics, libraries, colleges, recovery homes, gas stations, fire departments, grocery stores, parks, and dollar stores. The West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute is also providing over 10,000 fentanyl test strips across the state for free distribution.
Locations for Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan Counties include Inwood Family Dollar, New Life Community Church, Family Dollar on Winchester Ave., Martinsburg City Town Square, Martinsburg Fire Station 1 on Raleigh St., NewLeaf Dispensary on Foxcroft Ave., Berkeley Day Report Center, Berkeley County DHHR, 7-Eleven in Falling Waters, Bentley’s Specialty Pet Food in Hedgesville, Mountaineer Recovery Center, Knutti Hall on the Shepherd University Campus, 7 Sea’s Food Store, Jefferson County Community Ministries, CNB Bank on Washington St. in Berkeley Springs, and Union Chapel United
Methodist Church in Berkeley Springs. In addition, five mobile outreach teams will be distributing Narcan in high-risk neighborhoods within the tri-county area.
Attendees will receive one Narcan kit, an in-person training, and information about local resources.
“Save a Life Day is about communities taking care of each other. It activates the local organizations and individuals that see every life as precious and worth saving. When we reach out to those in the depths of despair, we send the message that we want you to be well, and when you're ready to begin healing we are here to help,” explained David Didden, M.D., medical director of overdose prevention and innovation projects at the WV Bureau for Public Health.
Organizers plan to distribute over 5,000 naloxone kits (or over 10,000 naloxone doses) throughout the day. Each location is powered by local volunteers who attended training to be able to participate. There are more than one hundred volunteers for this year’s event in the Eastern Panhandle.
Family members, friends of people who take opioids for pain, friends of people who use drugs, and anyone who wants to be prepared to save a life are welcome to get trained. The training often takes just 5-10 minutes and people can show up anytime from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with three sites open until 7 p.m.
Caroline Wilson, Social Worker from the WVU Medicine CORE Team and Stephanie Stout, Region 2 Coordinator from Potomac Highlands Guild are serving as the lead contacts for Save a Life Day in Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan Counties, with the Berkeley County Recovery Resource Center, EastRidge Health Systems, and WVU Medicine serving as key partners and site leaders for the event.
Many people know naloxone by one of its brand names, Narcan. Narcan is an easy-to-use nasal spray with no adverse side effects that works to reverse opioid overdoses. Naloxone has been approved by the FDA for over 50 years.
“West Virginia is ground zero for the overdose crisis and there’s no one better suited to help than the people on the ground,” said Joe Solomon, co-director of SOAR WV, a group that is helping to support the statewide event. “Whether you’re giving out or picking up Narcan on September 8, you’re a hero of this story.”
--WVU MEDICINE—
For media inquiries:
Chelsie Davis, Marketing Strategist, 304-596-6327,
chelsie.davis@wvumedicine.org
22 – Aug
CED: 8-17-22