WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Firefighters and paramedics with the city of Wilkes-Barre go through trainings all the time.
They gathered at the South Station on High Street for a lesson on handling exposure to a powerful opioid called fentanyl.
A professor from the pharmacy program at Wilkes University led the training.
"We know that fentanyl is probably the number one illicit substance that's being misused. We know it's in the community, and we're not going to pretend it's not," said Thomas Franko, associate professor of Pharmacy Practice.
Fire Chief Jay Delaney says his staff had to administer naloxone 192 times last year to people who had overdosed on fentanyl or other opioids.
"For instance, if you are taking care of a patient who has overdosed on fentanyl, and you're doing a pat down, it's powdered, and if a firefighter or paramedic gets it on their skin, how bad is that?" said Chief Delaney.
This is the first-of-its-kind partnership between first responders and Wilkes University's Pharmacy Practice.
"We wanted to make sure they feel safe when they are around it and that they know if they got exposed to this what they could expect and what they could do," said Franko.
"Just making sure they know fact versus myth, so they can do their job to the best of their ability," said student pharmacist Nick Norman.
Firefighters and paramedics also learned more about naloxone and the science behind how it works to reverse an opioid overdose.
"The entire fire department will receive this training, and I am hopeful the knowledge keeps them safer in the street, and they understand in a better fashion what the naloxone does and how it continues to save lives with it," said Chief Delaney.
Franko hopes to do more sessions like this with other first responder groups.
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