Wyoming, Mich.-based Metro Health — University of Michigan Health will now provide free kits of the opioid overdose reversal drug Narcan to patients discharged after an opioid overdose.
Here are three things to know.
1. Each kit contains two doses of the drug with instructions in English, Bosnian and Spanish.
2. By providing the free kits, the hospital aims to eliminate the need for patients to travel to the pharmacy to obtain Narcan, remove the financial barriers that prevent individuals from obtaining a kit, educate patients and caregivers about appropriate use of the medication and ultimately reduce the number of opioid-related deaths in the community.
3. "At Metro, we want to be clear about one thing: we do not encourage the improper use of opioid drugs; rather, we recognize that Narcan used immediately by family and friends could save the life of someone they hold dear," said Pete Haverkamp, director of pharmacy services at Metro Health — University of Michigan Health, in an emailed release. "We recognize that not all overdose victims are using illegal drugs, and whatever the cause of the overdose, we want to provide life-saving tools to those who may need it the most."
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