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Whitestown Fire Department releases video on how to use Narcan

WHITESTOWN, Ind. (WISH) — A new video by a central Indiana fire department shows the measures taken to save someone’s life from an overdose and how you can use the life saving tool.

The Whitestown Fire Department released the video Wednesday morning on social media and it shows people how to use Narcan, a drug that reverses the effects of an overdose.

The release comes just one day after Governor Eric Holcomb talked about the opioid epidemic in his State of the State Address.

This six-minute video shows the painful reality of the opioid epidemic on friends and family.

“Oh man, John, John, John,” said one man in the video. “Wake up buddy. I think he overdosed again.”

The Whitestown Fire Department worked on the public service announcement with St. Vincent Hospital.

The video is a step-by-step guide on what you need to know about Narcan; from the packaging to the assembly and how to use it.

“You can’t name a town or city in the state of Indiana that hasn’t dealt with this or isn’t dealing with this. Some areas are worse, some are better,” said Clinton Crafton, deputy chief of operations for Whitestown Fire.

In the video, Crafton talked about two different types of nasal spray. The fire department got the idea for the video after hearing about the low turnout at a training session on Narcan in southern Indiana.

“The reason is because of the stigma association with abuse and addiction,” he said.

Crafton said Narcan allows them to have fighting chance to save someone’s life.

“This is a step that can be taken before we even arrive, just like an AED, an Epipen. It’s EMS prevention, just like we do fire prevention,” Crafton said.

Narcan is now available over the counter at drug stores and you don’t need a prescription to buy it.

“This is only a band-aid that requires a transport to the hospital to make sure they will make it through the night,” Crafton said. “It requires long term recovery, counseling and addiction help. That is the only way to cure the problem.”

The Whitestown Fire Department is working on several more opioid addiction videos for this summer. So far the department released two videos as part of the series.

Click here if you would like to watch the videos.