Emergency responders alarmed at increased Narcan dosage needed

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

When Boardman Fire Chief Mark Pitzer was first trained in paramedicine 15 years ago, emergency responders administered between 0.4 and 2 milligrams of the overdose antidote naloxone to patients.

Now, Pitzer said, an alarming trend has taken shape over the last several months. Members of his department are regularly dispensing as much as 8 mg of the medication to revive someone.

“It’s taking more and more doses of Narcan [naloxone’s brand name] to get them to even start breathing on their own,” he said.

Not only that, but his crew is getting called out for overdose cases more frequently than ever.

“This year, we’ve seen a marked increase in overdoses and unresponsive patients,” he said.

Police, too, have noticed an uptick this year.

“My sense tells me that it’s absolutely a definite increase,” said Boardman Police Chief Jack Nichols. “It’s almost a daily thing now.”

Data from both Trumbull and Mahoning counties put into perspective what Boardman officials, and many others in the Mahoning Valley, are seeing for themselves.

Read more about the matter in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.