In the past five years, there have been 416 deaths due to fentanyl overdose in the Santa Clara county. Year by year, an uptick in deaths has caused concern in the Bay Area. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is a major contributor to both fatal and nonfatal overdoses.
According to the CDC, fentanyl is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Fentanyl is made both pharmaceutically and illegally. Pharmaceutical fentanyl is prescribed to treat severe pain, especially post-surgery and for certain types of cancers. In contrast, illegally made fentanyl, which is available on the drug market in the form of pills, liquids and powder, is tremendously dangerous. Even slight exposure to it can result in an overdose. Pills that may look harmless could be laced with fentanyl, which means that there is no way to observe whether pills contain fentanyl or not.
“It is logical to think that that problem [fentanyl exposure] might reach our school, and if there’s an emergency we want to be prepared to address it,” FHS Assistant Principal Andrew Walczak said.
Fentanyl deaths are common and have unfortunately become more prevalent in recent years with it being the leading cause of death in people under 50. This means that fentanyl accounts for more deaths than heart disease, cancer, homicide and suicide, according to BehavorialHealthServices.
Signs of overdose include but are not limited to falling asleep or losing consciousness, slow or weak breathing, discolored skin especially lips and nails, cold or clammy skin as well as a multitude of other symptoms. Exercising caution is a necessity when accepting pills or other products. Pills such as painkillers, like Advil and Tylenol, can easily be made as fakes and include doses of fentanyl. There is no way of knowing whether a pill is laced with fentanyl unless it is in a sealed container from a legal store, or from checking it with a test strip.
Fentanyl test strips are a newly implemented solution in an attempt to reduce overdoses. These strips are a low-cost method to help prevent harm, giving results in as little as 10 minutes and can help save lives. They can detect any trace of fentanyl in all types of drugs and in any form of drug (liquid, powder or pill).
Additionally, Narcan kits are another solution schools are working towards to reduce deaths due to overdose. These kits are a safe medication that can save someone’s life by reversing the effects of an overdose.
“If that [having narcan kits on hand at school] prevents kids from getting hurt then I think that is a pretty good concept that we are trying to work towards,” Walczak said.
Schools and districts are trying to implement Narcan kits as a resource in case of an emergency.
Fentanyl has been a leading cause of death in the Bay Area in the past few years. This dangerous drug has affected people all over the county, taking the lives of people as young as 12 years old. Implementing more life-saving resources to the student population could result in a decline in fentanyl overdoses.
