International Overdose Awareness Day 2021

The Iroquois County Public Health Department (ICPHD) recognizes International Overdose Awareness Day, August 31, 2021. International Overdose Awareness Day is the world’s largest annual campaign to remove the stigma associated with addiction and end overdose. The purpose of Overdose Awareness Day is to remember those who have died and acknowledge the grief of family and friends left behind. According to the CDC, over 70% of the nearly 71,000 overdose deaths in 2019 involved opioids. ICPHD offers free Narcan (naloxone) training for individuals over the age of 18. Narcan is an opioid overdose reversal drug used to save lives in the event of an opioid overdose. Opioids come in various forms such as prescription pain medicine, heroin, and fentanyl. Opioid overdose can cause slow, shallow breathing and can result in death. Narcan training includes an overview of the opioid epidemic, instructions on how to use Narcan, and a free Narcan kit. The Narcan kit contains two 4 mg doses of Narcan, a Narcan quick use guide, a resource card, and face shield for providing rescue breaths. These services are supported in full or in part by a contract with the Kankakee County Health Department, the Illinois Department of Human Services, Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery, as part of the Opioid-State Targeted Response grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. To schedule individual or group Narcan Training, please contact Gina Greene, Community Health Educator, by phone at (815)432-2483 or by email at ggreene@co.iroquois.il.us.