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Heroin overdose and use of naloxone
Soraya Mayet, Consultant Psychiatrist in Addictions, Clare Morgans, Senior Registrar in Addictions, Tees Esk & Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust and Anna Williams, Researcher, National Addiction Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, London

Abstract
Overdose is the major cause of death for injecting heroin users. Annually almost one in every hundred people using heroin will die from a heroin overdose. About a quarter of overdoses are witnessed by a friend or carer. If the witness was trained in how to deal with a heroin overdose and give the antidote to heroin, a substantial number of these deaths may be prevented.

Death normally occurs by heroin stopping the breathing. The drug 'Naloxone' is the antidote to heroin and reverses the effect of heroin (such as the breathing). Naloxone can now be given without a prescription to the overdose victim by any person in order to save a life. Carer's, service users and staff can be trained how to give Naloxone.

This is a practical workshop that aims to empower delegates when confronted with a heroin overdose. The course aims are for delegates to learn about opioid (e.g. heroin) overdoses and develop the skills for dealing with an overdose if present when it happens. This is aimed at services users, carer's and staff.

This workshop will give information on heroin and other opioids, detail the risky times for an opioid overdose and go over myths surrounding heroin overdose. The steps for dealing with an opioid overdose including recognition of an opioid overdose and management of an overdose including the recovery position and use of Naloxone to save a life will be discussed.

Delegates will have the opportunity to learn overdose management skills by simulated demonstrations of how to deal with an opioid overdose and going through the emergency steps for a stimulated overdose in small groups. Delegates will be able to discuss and practice their skills with the aim that they feel confident to deal with an overdose if this occurred in future.

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Biographies

Dr Soraya Mayet is a consultant psychiatrist in Addictions at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust. She works in substance misuse services in County Durham, HMP Durham and is principle Investigator for the Randomised Injectable Opioid Treatment Trial (RIOTT) Darlington. She is an honorary lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry and is completing her doctor of medicine research thesis at Kings College London. Her interests are injectable opioid treatments, perinatal addictions, cardiac effects of opioids and expanding the provision of Naloxone for opioid overdose.

Dr Clare Morgans is a General Adult Psychiatry Higher Trainee (ST6) and has just started working with the County Durham Substance Misuse Service, which includes Durham Prison. She has a special interest in Substance misuse and has been involved in the RIOTT trial (Randomised Injectable Opioid Treatment) in the Darlington pilot site for the past year.

Anna Williams is a PHD student and researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London. She has previously completed her Masters in Brazil. Her current work is related to heroin overdose training and use of Naloxone. In particular she is carrying out a project looking training family members in the use of Naloxone for opioid overdose and evaluating different training approaches for providing the most effective training.