In Arizona, five people die each day due to an opioid overdose. According to the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS), opioid abuse and addiction have reached an all-time high nationwide. In 2017, a statewide public health emergency was issued to reduce opioid deaths.

HonorHealth is committed to improving the health and well-being of our community. Over the last several years, our Opioid Stewardship Network Initiative Committee has led the optimization of opioid prescriptions. In early May, in collaboration with AZDHS, we launched the Take Home Naloxone program across all our emergency departments.

How the program works

AZDHS is providing hospitals and emergency departments, law enforcement, county health departments and community-based organizations free naloxone (Narcan) nasal kits, with a goal to distribute kits to anyone who might be at risk of an overdose. Recipients may include patients using high doses of opioid pain medication, individuals taking or prescribed a combination of pain medications and other sedatives, or those who have medical conditions that might put them at risk. Other recipients might include friends and family members of those known to use opioids, and others who may find themselves in a position to save the life of someone at risk of an opioid overdose.

The identified distribution program will:

• Use all tracking protocols in accordance with our regulatory and state guidelines. Emergency department physicians, hospitalists and specialists working in the hospital can choose to distribute naloxone to patients when discharged.
• Ensure all naloxone kits provided by the state will be kept separate from pharmacy supply. The state kits are stored in locked cabinets in each emergency department.
• Permit care team members to help identify patients who may need a kit or who may save someone else’s life with naloxone. Questions to consider:
  • Has the patient had a previous visit or is the current visit related to an overdose?
  • Has the patient been admitted into the hospital for a substance use disorder?
  • Are co-morbidities such as respiratory issues or other medication including sedatives, present?
  • Are there factors to consider, such as Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) or inability to pay?

• Permit regulatory oversight. In the event of a medication recall, the following will need to be documented and tracked by the physician or specialist:
  • Lot number and expiration date
  • Name of physician who supplied the kit
  • Patient information by way of patient sticker

Craig Norquist, MD, chief medical information officer, shares how naloxone can help save lives and how fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is impacting our state. Click here to watch the video

Additional resources

• How to use the naloxone nasal spray

For more information about the Take Home Naloxone program, you can reach out to Dr.  Norquist at [email protected].