Photo provided by the Virginia State Police.
RICHMOND, Va. -Trooper J.A. Montgomery responded to a call in Lynchburg earlier in June that without a new policy from the Virginia State Police, could have resulted in a death.
That call was for a woman who had overdosed on opioids, and Montgomery, who was trained on how to administer the drug NARCAN only nine days earlier, injected the woman with it while waiting for local EMS. She would later end up living because of the quick action by the trooper.
It is the first of what VSP hopes is many after mandating that troopers across the Commonwealth carry the life-saving drug, which the agency purchased 2,100 canisters of recently.
The life-saving overdose drug will allow VSP troopers to quickly respond to dangerous opioid exposure and overdose emergencies, say state officials. Training on how to use and administer the drug is also involved.
“Equipping our uniformed and investigative personnel with NARCAN dispensers was necessary due to the continued increase in heroin and opioid overdoses in recent years in Virginia,” said Col. Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police superintendent. “Having this emergency treatment readily available to our personnel not only helps save the lives of Virginians, but also the lives of our first responders who are at risk of an inadvertent exposure to dangerous synthetic opioids during the course of their public safety duties.”
The state police purchased its initial NARCAN® supply and additional inventory through a DBHDS grant of $154,800.
