Police in Paisley are being given life-saving anti-overdose kits to help reduce the number of drug deaths in the area.
The force’s officers will be equipped with Naloxone, following a decision earlier this year to train and equip all operational officers up to and including the rank of Police Inspector.
With the drugs death crisis continuing unabated, and Renfrewshire being one of the areas worst affected - according to National Records of Scotland, between 2017 and 2021, 29 deaths per 100,000 were due to drug misuse - it’s hoped that this move will go some way to helping those who find themselves in potentially-deadly circumstances.
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Naloxone works by reversing the effects of opioids such as heroin and so can be used as an intervention in the event of somebody taking too much.
It works by reversing the respiratory suppression caused by opioids/opiates and can buy the casualty critical minutes until ambulance clinicians arrive on scene.
The aim is to have the medicine available as part of officers’ standard kit.
What began as a trial in Falkirk, Grangemouth and Stirling; Dundee City; Glasgow East, and Caithness and local custody suites, has now been widened to include Paisley, Greenock, and Shetland.
Around 150 pouches of Naloxone are being distributed in Renfrewshire & Inverclyde and Highland & Islands Police Divisions.
Officers will get online training before beginning to carry the first aid equipment as they go about their duties.
Chief Superintendent David Duncan, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde divisional commander, said: "A core role of a police officer is to protect and preserve the lives of our citizens. Equipping our officers in Renfrewshire and Inverclyde with Naloxone supplements their existing extensive first aid training and helps them to fulfil that responsibility.
"Drug misuse can have a devastating effect on individuals, families and entire communities. By working alongside partner agencies, I very much hope the carriage of Naloxone by our officers helps to save lives and positively change attitudes."
Since officers in the pilot areas were given naloxone last year, they’ve helped to save 78 lives by administering it, on only two occasions were they unable to save the casualty’s life.
The circumstances leading to Naloxone administrations by police have been varied, and have included incidents where officers have discovered unconscious casualties during patrols, or being alerted to an overdose by a member of the public.
Other incidents have involved people in police custody, during police Public Order incidents and the execution of a search warrant.
Naloxone has also been administered to people intending to complete suicide.
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