June 15, 2017
Contact: Jane Lerner, Director of Strategic Communications
Office of the County Executive (845) 638-5645

Rockland to Hold Narcan Training With Refuah

NEW CITY, NY – Rockland County Executive Ed Day has announced that the county will hold a Narcan training session for the public in partnership with Refuah, a health care center that specializes in outreach among the Jewish community.

The free training will be held at 7:30 p.m., June 19 at Refuah's offices at 400 Rella Blvd., Suite 205, Suffern. It is open to everyone.

Registration is required. Contact the Refuah Community Health Collaborative at 845-694-6300 or via email: info@refuahchc.org.

"Opioid addiction knows no barriers," the County Executive said. "It affects all communities."

The training is being coordinated by the Rockland County Department of Mental Health and will be done with the help of the state Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services

Participants will be taught how to use Narcan, a nasal spray, and given a rescue kit.

Narcan, also known by its generic name, naloxone, is an opiate antidote that can reverse the effects of opioids, including heroin and prescription pain pills.

Additional Narcan training sessions are also being planned, including one for the Spanish-speaking community.

This is the third training session organized by the county.

A well-attended session designed for Haitian residents was held June 14 at Konbit Neg Lakay in Spring Valley.

Nearly 100 people took part in a training session offered by the county in April.

"Narcan can mean the difference between life and death for someone in the throes of a heroin or opioid overdose," the County Executive said. "We know that all across this country, people are dying from opioid abuse."

In 2015, there were 31 drug-related deaths, according to the Rockland County Medical Examiner. Most of them – 25 – were opioid related.

In 2016, there were 40 drug-related deaths. Almost all – 37 – were opioid related.