Canadian Red Cross adds overdose response to training programs
Posted Sep 9, 2021 04:26:00 PM.
The Canadian Red Cross is hoping to get more people educated on how to respond to an overdose.
“Between January 2016 and December 2020 there were more than 21,000 apparent opioid toxicity deaths in Canada – with 97 per cent happening by accident,” said a media release. “The crisis has worsened since the onset of COVID-19 – with 6,214 deaths recorded in 2020 alone.”
As a result, The Red Cross is adding opioid poisoning and response training to all of its first aid and CPR programs across the country.
It's set to begin this fall and a self-directed online course will launch in 2022, where people will be able to order their own naloxone kits.
The Red Cross is estimating that the new training will help equip 1.5 million Canadians with the skills and knowledge they need to respond to opioid poisonings and save lives.
