Narcan training begins in Wasilla, another slated for Saturday

WASILLA — Public access to Narcan (naloxone) officially began Wednesday evening with the first training session on administering the potentially life-saving drug. About a dozen members of the public attended the one-hour gathering at MyHouse in Wasilla. With the amount of interest, more sessions are already on the calendar.

Narcan is a fast-acting drug that reverses the symptoms of opioid overdose without adverse side effects. State of Alaska Medical Duty Officer Andy Jones, who is spearheading the effort to get the drug out to the public, provided the required, but brief and simple training which allows non-medical individuals access to the product. Through a federal grant, the state was able to secure funding to eventually purchase approximately 5,000 doses which are available at no charge.

Jones said his main goal is getting the word out to the public. He said that although the push is on to get Narcan into Alaskans’ hands, he wants to see opioid education play just as important of a role as the state's Project HOPE continues unfolding. He continues working with members of the Mat-Su Opioid Taskforce in developing ideas in that vein.

"This was the first one in the state,” said Jones. “It was a pilot test but it's not just about Narcan."

Jones said his role in the Narcan distribution process is playing the middle-man. To date, he's dropped off hundreds of Narcan kits at both Fiend 2 Clean and MyHouse. Additionally, Jones has trained staff at both so that they, in turn, can train others and distribute kits. Fiend 2 Clean is run by Karl Soderstrom and Kirby Krauss, both recovering opioid addicts who offer peer support and community connection in the Valley. Jones said he hopes to recruit both men to travel around the state and offer their expertise in staying clean.

Jones said he has already been contacted by people in Kenai to put on a training session so the distribution process there can begin. In the meantime, demand for Narcan here in the Mat-Su shows no sign of letting up. To help get more out to the public, Fiend 2 Clean and MyHouse have teamed up for additional training sessions with the first taking place tomorrow.

Soderstrom said Saturday's training will start at 1 p.m. Another is slated for Tuesday, April 4 at 3 p.m. just prior to the month opioid taskforce meeting. Soderstrom said those attending that session are invited to sit in for the taskforce meeting scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. in the Wasilla city council chambers across the street. Both training sessions will be held at Gathering Grounds coffee shop/restaurant inside MyHouse located at 300 North Willow in Wasilla.

For more information on the Narcan project, visit http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Director/Pages/heroin-opioids/narcan.aspx. More information on MyHouse and Fiend 2 Clean can be found on their respective Facebook pages.