Quebec teachers to train students on how to intervene during an opioid overdose
Some 2,300 high school teachers in four Canadian provinces are now able to train their students to intervene in the event of an opioid overdose.
Just under 800 of these teachers are in Quebec.
The ACT Advanced Coronary Treatment Foundation has added the use of naloxone, the antidote administered nasally to counter the effects of an opioid overdose, to the cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillation program it offers free of charge to high schools across the country.
"Thanks to this training, we have more students who can respond to emergency situations and who sometimes make the difference," said Salim Grim, program manager for the ACT Foundation in Quebec.
Launched in June 2022, the first phase of this training program has now reached 2,300 teachers in 830 high schools in Quebec, Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia. It's estimated that more than 160,000 students could now be trained each year to respond to a suspected opioid overdose.
Among other things, the training enables teachers to teach students what opioids are and how overdoses occur; what naloxone is and how it works; how to recognize a suspected opioid overdose; and how to respond to a possible overdose, including administering a naloxone nasal spray if necessary.
"Opioid overdose response is an emerging issue in Canada in recent years," said ACT Foundation director of operations Jennifer Russell. "It's also related to CPR. It's something that students and even their teachers find completely logical and normal in the course of our training."
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, almost 6,000 deaths from apparent opioid overdose were reported between January and September 2023.
The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction notes that 94 per cent of opioid overdose deaths occur by accident, and that young Canadians aged 15 to 24 are the fastest-growing population requiring hospital care due to opioid overdose.
"Training the next generation of good Samaritans starts at school," said Grim. "We started with CPR a few years ago. The defibrillator was added to that training, and opioid overdose training was a logical evolution."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton dead following prison attack
Convicted B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, who preyed on women he lured from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside to his rural pig farm, has died.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Ex-husband charged with murder in death of Lumby, B.C., woman
The ex-husband of Tatjana Stefanski – the woman whose disappearance and death set the small town of Lumby, B.C., on edge last month – has been charged with her murder.
Oilers beat Stars, one win away from Stanley Cup berth
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored two power-play goals as Edmonton smothered the Dallas Stars 3-1 to take a 3-2 lead in the NHL's Western Conference final on Friday.
Baby dead after being delivered via emergency C-section to woman who was in police custody
A newborn is dead after being delivered via emergency C-section to a woman in police custody.
Jennifer Lopez cancels summer tour: 'I am completely heartsick and devastated'
Jennifer Lopez has cancelled her 2024 North American tour, representatives for Live Nation confirmed to The Associated Press.
This Calgary home has a giant tree in the middle, and it's for sale
There's a luxury 'tree home' for sale in Calgary.
DND moving 1,000 employees out of Ottawa office building due to safety concerns
The Department of National Defence is moving approximately 1,000 employees out of an office building in Ottawa's Lowertown neighbourhood, citing safety concerns for its employees.
Man convicted of killing Toronto cop in 1980 granted day parole
A man convicted of murdering a Toronto police officer more than four decades ago has been granted day parole for six months.