INDIANAPOLIS — As the opioid crisis continues, Eskenazi Health is providing more places for anyone to have access to a potentially lifesaving medication.
Through a partnership with Overdose Lifeline, a naloxone vending machine is now at Eskenazi Health Center West 38th Street, and ten NaloxBoxes are now outside Eskenazi Health Centers across Indianapolis.
Naloxone is a nasal spray medication that temporarily reverses opioid overdose.
Each kit inside the vending machine includes a single dose of naloxone, instructions for use and a referral to treatment for substance use disorder. Each NaloxBox contains six to eight naloxone kits.
MAP: NaloxBox locations and Naloxone distribution centers around Indiana
Dr. Tyler Stepsis, chief of emergency medicine with Eskenazi Health, says no training is needed to give someone naloxone.
"The nice part is unless you somehow spray it outside of the body, you're doing it okay. You don't need any special medical training; you just need to know where the nose is and how to direct the spray into the nose," Dr. Stepsis said.
He says it takes awhile for the antidote for work, so the person may not wake up right away. The goal of using naloxone is to get the person breathing again.
Stepsis says Eskenazi's emergency room sees "a fair amount" of people who have overdosed or suffer from opiate use disorder.
"We know that access to naloxone saves lives," Dr. Stepsis said."The hard part is that the stigma still remains."
He says you don't need to be afraid that you're giving it to the wrong type of person; naloxone has no side effects if given to an unconscious person who is not overdosing.
"If you can be in a place where you can use it and maybe help someone, by all means do it," Dr. Stepsis said.
These Eskenazi Health Centers now have NaloxBoxes outside their facilities:
- Eskenazi Health Center Blackburn — 2700 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St.
- Eskenazi Health Center College Avenue — 1650 N. College Ave. Ste. B
- Eskenazi Health Center Forest Manor — 3840 N. Sherman Dr.
- Eskenazi Health Center Grassy Creek — 9443 E. 38th St.
- Eskenazi Health Center North Arlington — 2505 N. Arlington Ave.
- Eskenazi Health Center North Illinois Street — 1660 N. Illinois St.
- Eskenazi Health Center Pecar — 6940 N. Michigan Rd.
- Eskenazi Health Center Pedigo — 1112 Southeastern Ave.
- Eskenazi Health Center West 38th Street — 5515 W. 38th St.
- Eskenazi Health Center Westside — 2732 W. Michigan St.
RELATED: Naloxone vending machines help Hoosiers struggling with addiction | Naloxone vending machine unveiled in Indiana | 'It’s an uphill battle': Leaders say overdoses across Indiana on the rise | Naloxone can reverse an opioid overdose in minutes, and it's becoming more accessible | Indiana to receive up to $40.2 million in national opioid settlement
-
Parents sue after 11-year-old's suicide after 'severe and pervasive bullying'
The parents of an 11-year-old girl who died by suicide have filed a wrongful death lawsuit alleging the school district failed to address “severe and pervasive bullying.”
'Complete shock': Cleanup under way in Bloomington after severe storm
Cleanup is underway in Bloomington after a powerful storm tore through neighborhoods on the city’s west side.
Bloomington businesses hit hard by severe weather damage
Bloomington residents are waking up to widespread damage Friday morning after a reported tornado struck the west side of the city Thursday evening.
Trump signs order for new tariffs after Supreme Court blocked earlier plan
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled, 6-3, that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not give President Donald Trump the authority to impose tariffs, dealing a major blow to his trade agenda.
