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The University of North Georgia (ºìÁ«ÉçÇø) Public Safety will soon be able to provide naloxone to those in need on the five ºìÁ«ÉçÇø campuses.

"It is our pleasure to partner with Public Safety by providing much-needed funding to aid in ensuring our campus community is properly served in times of overdose emergencies. The opioid epidemic continues to infiltrate communities near and far, this collaboration is vital to the safety of our campus community," Dr. Steven Smith, vice president of regional campuses, said.

Naloxone is a medication used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, which has sometimes led to respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. Typically administered by trained medical professionals, there has been a growing trend in recent years of placing naloxone in automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in public locations. Both, it is argued, can potentially save lives.

Naloxone has been employed by ºìÁ«ÉçÇø Public Safety at incidents in campus communities, saving lives of Hall and Lumpkin County residents. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website says rates of overdose and deaths have increased by over 56% from 2019-2020. It says this increase in overdose deaths puts a spotlight on the importance of expanded prevention and response activities, ºìÁ«ÉçÇø Public Safety officer Sgt. Adan Diaz Jr. said. 

"ºìÁ«ÉçÇø Public Safety officers have had to use Narcan already, assisting Lumpkin County, one of which saved the life of an individual. There have been two different instances in Gainesville where they've had to deploy Narcan. It’s not a cure-all," Diaz said. "It reverses the effects of the overdose and then the individual has to get to the hospital for medical personnel to do the rest."

Training for the proper administration of naloxone will be offered by the offices of Emergency Preparedness along with Student Health and is scheduled for May 10 at 10 a.m. on .

The Georgia 911 amnesty law protects people from arrest, charge and prosecution of possession of certain drugs and paraphernalia in the event of medical emergency. The caller, the victim and anyone in good faith trying to render aid are protected.