Edhat StaffSource: Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office
On February 9, 2018, at about 5:00 p.m., an observant citizen noticed a car was parked and running near the corner of Park Street and Highway 246 with a young male occupant inside. The occupant was slumped over and appeared to be unconscious. The citizen called 911 and reported this to the Santa Barbara County Public Safety Dispatch Center. A Sheriff’s deputy assigned the City of Buellton received this call for service and immediately responded to this emergency. Upon his arrival, the deputy saw the unconscious male in the driver’s seat of the car. The victim did not appear to be breathing and he had begun to turn blue. The deputy also noticed drug paraphernalia in the vehicle and suspected that the victim was suffering from an opioid overdose. The deputy attempted to gain entry to the car and render aid; however, all of the doors were locked. The deputy then used his baton to break a window and unlock the car. After gaining access to the victim, the deputy adminis tered a single dose of his department issued Naloxone nasal spray.
After receiving the dose of Naloxone, the victim’s condition improved and the deputy could detect a faint pulse. Santa Barbara County Fire and American Medical Response personnel arrived and took over care of the victim. The victim, an 18-year-old resident of Buellton, was transported to a local hospital.
Naloxone Hydrochloride, more commonly known by the brand name Narcan, blocks the effects of opioids (both medications and narcotics) including extreme drowsiness, slowed breathing, or loss of consciousness
The core mission of the Sheriff’s Office is to protect life, and the opportunity for our Sheriff’s deputies to deploy naloxone within our local communities is directly saving lives.
Sheriff’s Office was fortunate to have the opportunity to work closely with the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department and its Emergency Medical Services Agency to develop a nd implement a Naloxone program, which puts life-saving medication as close as possible to where it is needed.
Since the program started in April of 2017, deputies have utilized Naloxone 10 times and saved the lives of 8 community members.
