Monongalia County QRT's Free Naloxone Day will be bigger and better
Sep. 19, 2024
Monongalia County QRT's Free Naloxone Day will be bigger and better
MORGANTOWN, WV — The Monongalia County Quick Response Team (QRT) has been holding Free Naloxone Day events for three years now, and the one taking place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, promises to be bigger and better.
First of all, the event that started in two West Virginia counties in 2020 has expanded to all 55 counties and this year, to 31 other states, according to SOAR WV, the Charleston-based group that has helped coordinate Save a Life and Free Naloxone Days.
Also, the number of two-dose naloxone kits that the Monongalia County QRT has to give out will be more than ever. The state is providing 1,404 kits, or 2,808 doses to Monongalia County, and the QRT has additional doses of the medication that reverses an opioid overdose, noted QRT coordinator Brittany Irick, who is also a grant writer for Monongalia County Health Department.
“We expect to give out everything we got from the state, plus what we already own,” Irick said.
And the Monongalia County QRT has upped its swag game and will be handing out cryptid-themed stickers featuring the annual Free Naloxone Day T-shirt design. Cartoon renditions of Mothman and the Braxton County Monster hold a naloxone dispenser with the words “Saving Lives in the Mountain State” underneath.
“I like that it encompasses West Virginia and what makes it unique,” Irick said.
The QRT was formed in April 2019 using grant funding obtained by MCHD and includes several agencies in the region working together to combat substance use disorder.
QRT members and volunteers will be stationed at 12 locations around Monongalia County: the
Sabraton and Suncrest Towne Centre McDonald's restaurants; Pop The Soda Shop in Westover; WVU Mountainlair; WVU Rec Center; WVU Health Science Center; Pierpont Pharmacy; 7-Eleven in Blacksville; Rock Forge Presbyterian Church; Arnettsville Community Center and two new downtown locations, the courthouse plaza and Ruby Amphitheater.
The WVU Mountainlair site will also offer HIV testing, Irick noted.
Lindsay Acree, the University of Charleston’s Director of Experiential Education, an assistant professor at UC’s School of Pharmacy and a member of the Monongalia County QRT, coordinates naloxone distribution from UC to different counties.
UC obtains naloxone mostly through the State Opioid Response (SOR) funds, which come from the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
In some counties, settlement funds from the pharmaceutical companies that helped drive the epidemic may also help pay for the medication, Acree said.
This year, 14,628 two-dose naloxone kits will be spread among each of West Virginia’s counties for the Sept. 26 event, Acree added.
During the Monongalia County QRT’s first Save a Life Day in September 2021, about 704 kits, or 1,408 doses of naloxone, were distributed throughout the community. Those numbers rose each year, to 810 kits, or 1,620 doses, in 2022; and 1,037 kits, or 2,074 doses, in 2023. Figures from smaller events throughout the year are not included in that tally.
“The 1,404 kits, or 2,808 doses we are receiving this year is a nice increase and we’re really grateful to have more naloxone to get into the hands of our community members,” Irick said.
As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes, “Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can reverse an overdose from opioids including heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid medications — when given in time.”
Naloxone, or Narcan, the brand handed out by the QRT, is easy to have on hand when needed, and giving it to someone who is not having an overdose will not hurt them. Narcan is a nasal spray, and all volunteers undergo training and can teach community members who attend Free Naloxone Day how to administer it in about five minutes.
Joe Klass of MCHD Threat Preparedness who also works as a paramedic, has revived patients using naloxone.
“How effective it is and how fast it works is amazing,” Klass said. “It’s pretty cool how it takes someone who is not breathing and gets them breathing again in front of your eyes.”
As Acree noted, distributing naloxone to individuals who can give it to someone having an overdose is vital to how the medication works.
“When somebody is experiencing an opioid overdose, they can’t administer it to themselves. It has to be in the hands of others so they can administer it to save a life,” Acree said. Experiencing an overdose is not just limited to those with substance use disorder. Children can get into medicine cabinets, young people experimenting with recreational drugs can unknowingly ingest deadly amounts of fentanyl and individuals with memory issues can sometimes forget if they have taken their medication and then take a second dose.
“I don’t have memory issues but I can tell you, I’ve forgotten if I’ve taken maintenance medication,” Acree said. “It can be anybody who forgot they took it.”
To learn more about Free Naloxone Day and to watch a video about naloxone and its administration, go to