Special weather-proof cabinets called Noloxboxes hold up to 12 doses of Narcan, an anti-opioid overdose drug. Northampton installed these boxes in municipal buildings, local businesses and now in city parks in 2024.
Republican file photo
NORTHAMPTON — A community naloxone training hosted by Hampshire HOPE and the Drug Addiction Recovery Team will take place on Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. at Bombyx Center for Arts and Equity.
Offered through the Northampton Department of Health and Human Services, the training is free and open to the public, and registration is not required.
Naloxone, commonly known by the brand name “Narcan,” is a life-saving opioid overdose reversal medication. Hampshire HOPE Coordinator Lauren Kelly told Reminder Publishing that community members are invited to learn how to identify signs of a potential overdose, strategies for responding to an overdose, steps for administering naloxone, and where to access Narcan and other community resources.
“Narcan education and distribution has been a cornerstone of Hampshire HOPE’s work for the entire existence of the coalition as a means of making sure that all our community members, one, not only have access to naloxone, which we know has proven to be a life saving medicine for overdose prevention, but also making sure that community members feel empowered and equipped with the skills to both identify a potential opioid overdose, and being able to respond to that overdose,” explained Kelly.
She said that through Hampshire HOPE and DART’s collaboration around Naloxone education, they have hosted similar training events for many groups, including schools, businesses and organizations that request the educational training.
The last community-wide naloxone training in Northampton was last fall in collaboration with Tapestry and the city’s Division of Community Care, where about 20 public participants attended. Kelly said while they do not have a set schedule for community-wide trainings, they still look to host them regularly so naloxone education is accessible.
“We also wanted to meet people where they are and be proactive at the same time. So, in addition to always taking training requests and working with individual groups and organizations and schools, we also wanted to host some community-wide sessions as well so that somebody who maybe doesn’t know much about naloxone or hasn’t necessarily encountered an opioid overdose, or maybe has, can have a space to really understand the role of naloxone, the importance of it, and also ways to respond and support any of our community members who might be in distress experiencing an opioid overdose,” added Kelly.
Bombyx Center for Arts and Equity collaborated with Hampshire HOPE for a naloxone training last fall for the center’s staff. Following what was a productive session, Bombyx reached back out to the team at Hampshire HOPE with the idea for the community gathering in February.
“We’re really grateful to Bombyx. They were really interested in using their space to host a community-wide training,” said Kelly. “They found it so valuable for themselves, and also recognized their role as a community space and being able to reach a wider audience. I really have to give them credit for helping to be the catalyst for this opportunity.”
DART Coordinator Kathi Cotugno co-hosts these trainings with Kelly and Hampshire HOPE. Kelly explained that she and Cotugno often try to collaborate, especially when it comes to Narcan education and distribution. She said the collaboration has been a great opportunity in educating the public.
A big part of naloxone training is eliminating the stigmas around the life-saving opioid overdose reversal medication, explained Kelly. Often, attendees come in with a surface-level thinking around how to use a Narcan cartridge, but Kelly said there is so much necessary education that people need to be aware of.
“One of our first slides is talking about the role and power of language when we talk about people who are experiencing issues or needs or concerns surrounding substance abuse, and the words we use to describe individuals or their experiences and how that can be so rooted in stigma and judgment,” said Kelly. “So, when we talk about creating a community and environment centered around care and compassion and wellbeing, it starts with how we talk about each other and how we show up for each other, in addition to how we respond in those moments of crisis.”
Kelly continued, “I think in normalizing it and bringing awareness and consciousness, we’re not putting it in the shadows, but really shining a light on it. I think that’s so important in terms of challenging and breaking stigma, that we’re not ignoring it or shying away from it, or something we are ashamed to talk about. It’s something that we should be talking about like any other public health issue or concern.”
Kelly said she has seen the stigmas around Narcan change over the years, even if there are still more barriers to be broken.
“So often I’ve started to hear more and more people talk about the importance of having naloxone dispensers, just as they would to have an AED machine, or have a first aid kit in a public space, school or a business. So, I think that is really encouraging to me in terms of how we maybe see some of the stigma shifting, that we should be thinking about this again like we should any other public health concern,” Kelly said. Just like we want to make sure we’re caring for folks in any sort of crisis situation, this is no different … we want to make sure that people are equipped and supported in being able to support fellow community members.”
Kelly said that the training is for anyone, regardless of experience or knowledge with Naloxone. Those who feel the community training space does not work for them are invited to reach out to Hampshire HOPE via its email at hampshirehope@northamptonma.gov. People can also reach out if they are interested in having a training in their community, business, organization or school.
