Education, training planned for Overdose Awareness Day

The Whatcom County Health and Community Services (WCHCS) and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) are using Overdose Awareness Day as an opportunity to educate the public and encourage conversation on overdoses in the community. 

WCHCS and EMS are jointly holding an Overdose Awareness Day recognition event behind Bellingham Public Library, 210 Central Avenue, from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday, August 30. The event will provide information and training on administering naloxone, widely known by its commercial name Narcan. Adults attending the event may receive a free Narcan kit, according to an August 10 WCHCS press release. 

Attendees will learn how to identify and respond to an overdose, use nasal naloxone and safely store naloxone. Event organizers will also explain Washington state’s Good Samaritan law, which protects people giving aid in an emergency situation from being liable for civil damages. 

The event’s theme is recognizing people who go unseen. 

“With this year’s theme we honor and support those people whose lives have been lost or forever changed by overdose,” wrote Dr. Greg Thompson, WCHCS co-health officer, in a statement. “These are the family and friends grieving the loss of a loved one, workers in healthcare extending training and compassion, and spontaneous first responders who selflessly assume the role of lifesaver with Naloxone.”

So far in 2023, Whatcom County EMS has received nearly as many suspected opioid overdose calls as it did for all of 2022. As of August 18, EMS data shows 562 suspected opioid overdose calls, and in 2022, there were 593 total suspected opioid overdose calls. 

To date, Whatcom County has had 72 overdose deaths in 2023 versus 93 overdose deaths in 2022, according to the Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s Office. From 2010 to 2021, the opioid overdose death rate doubled in Whatcom County. 

Overdose deaths were highest among people 25-44 years old and 45-64 years old from 2017 to 2021. During that time, overdoses were higher in men than women. 

For more information on Whatcom County overdose prevention, visit whatcomoverdoseprevention.org.