Nonprofit HarborPath recently announced it is equipping every college campus in the state of Mississippi with ODRescue™ overdose response toolkits thanks to a grant from the Mississippi Opioid Settlement Fund, recommended through the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Council chaired by Attorney General Lynn Fitch.
ODRescue is a program of specialty pharmaceutical distributor FFF Enterprises, Inc. with the mission of expanding on-demand, immediate access to life-saving overdose medication and tools for helpful bystanders.
“This grant is going to give us the ability to save lives on college campuses,” said Ken Trogdon, president of HarborPath, an organization dedicated to providing free medication to uninsured individuals as well as stamping out fentanyl-related deaths through its On Campus program. “It will be a significant way to reach any and every college student in the state of Mississippi by putting ODRescue Boxes on every college campus in the state.
“ODRescue is a very effective tool in helping save lives on campus. We know the boxes work.”
Trogdon said approximately 6,000 ODRescue Boxes have been purchased for campuses. He said the toolkits will be installed first in the University of Mississippi and Mississippi State University starting this month, addressing the state’s largest campuses. Boxes will be rolled out to every four-year college as well as community colleges within the next 60 to 90 days, he added.
“If we can save a life between 18 to 24, we hope that we’re able to put them on the right road,” Trogdon said. “Most of these kids in college that overdose, they’re experimenting; they’re not addicted. They’re buying it off social media. They’re buying Adderall® or a XANAX® and don’t know it’s laced with fentanyl. That’s what’s killing them.”
Schools are placing boxes in high-traffic gathering areas to allow for quick accessibility when every second counts. Each box will be stocked with multiple naloxone doses, CPR kit (adult/child CPR mask, one-way valve with filter), nitrile gloves, and an antiseptic wipe. Five common overdose signs are displayed on the box’s front cover. A QR code links to training videos.
Trogdon said higher education campuses remain a priority given that drug overdoses remain a leading cause of death among young adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He stressed that the ease with which students can purchase drugs off social media is alarming.
“You don’t know what’s in it,” he said. “I’ve talked to too many families whose children never woke up due to buying party drugs off social media that were laced with fentanyl. It’s a horrible issue in this country. I do think, though, that ODRescue is a very effective tool in helping save lives on campus.”
HarborPath previously worked with ODRescue in distributing boxes throughout public areas in the state of Mississippi.
For more information about HarborPath’s efforts in disease awareness as well as medication accessibility and affordability, visit their website.