Watson Lake food bank volunteers trained to administer life-saving overdose drug

Volunteers at the Watson Lake Food Bank and Soup Kitchen are among the first members of the community, outside of emergency and medical responders, to learn how to injectnaloxone.

The drugcan save the life of somebody overdosing on an opioid, such asfentanyl.

The food bank's director says some of its clients are considered at a high risk for drug use, but added naloxone kits should be available at all public places in Watson Lake.

"Because they're dealing with the public first-hand, there's not always going to be an ambulance here or public health right on the immediate site, so if you have the kits there you can at least administer it until the ambulance arrives," saidPatrickKostiuck.

About a dozen people from different occupations and backgrounds were at the training session at the food bank on Friday. The training was delivered by officials from Yukon's public healthand addictions services, said Kostiuck.

"They brought an orange andwe got to inject the orange," said volunteer Michelle Quimet.

"You're supposed to put it in the muscle part either in the thigh or the back or the bum. It's supposed to help cancel out some of the drugs they may have taken."

The food bank now has a naloxone kit on hand.Kostiuck says public health officials are willing to supply the kits to people who are trained to use them.