Massachusetts General Hospital is ready to put the life-saving drug Narcan in more hands.
Officials there want security guards who patrol the property to carry it. Narcan is an antidote to narcotics like heroin and can save the lives of people who overdose.
David St. Germain, a recovering heroin addict, thinks the plan is a smart idea.
"I think it’s an awesome idea, me, myself, I’m in recovery, and it’s saved my life many times," Said St. Germain. "I overdosed on heroin and it’s like a nasal thing, they squirt it up your nose, it’s like an adrenaline shot, it wakes you right up, out of a heroin overdose."
St. Germain said he has used heroin many times in the bathrooms at the hospital.
"You just go in the bathroom, you go in the stall, hang your jacket up so nobody can peek inside, and you just do what you gotta do, as fast as you can," he said.
St. Germain, who has been sober for over a year, said he believes Narcan should be available everywhere. He said he keeps some at his home because he has friends who still use the drug.
"When someone is it the midst of an overdose, time is of the essence," MGH said in a statement. "As such, one way MGH is trying to address this issue is to train our police and security staff in how to identify someone who might be in the midst of a drug overdose and how to administer the revival drug Narcan. This also helps us manage the slight uptick in drug overdose cases we have witnessed both in our emergency department and across other locations on our campus."
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