Included in this edition: Article, Video, Podcast, and Upcoming Community Information Night with Medical Experts
The Natomas Unified School District (NUSD) has taken proactive measures to ensure the safety of our community, during California’s current opioid epidemic. “Even though we haven’t had an overdose in Natomas Unified School District, we’re trying to prepare, so that we never lose a student or staff member to a potential overdose,” Anthony Da Marto, NUSD’s Director of Student Services and Support. Da Marto supervises NUSD’s healthcare programs. One of the steps our district has taken is to train staff members on the use of Narcan, also known as Naloxone, a nasal spray that can prevent overdose.
Our district has so far trained NUSD’s licensed vocational nurses, Health Assistants, Covid Specialists, the transportation department, aspiring leaders, Assistant Principals, Principals, Campus Safety Staff, and the Safety and Safe Schools Department to administer Narcan. Administering Narcan quickly to a potential overdose victim is vital, “It’s a very short period of time once the overdose gets to the point where the people can’t breathe,” Kathy Phillips, an NUSD Registered Nurse said.
Just two milligrams, which weighs more than a grain of sand, of illicit fentanyl is all it takes to kill. Administering Narcan quickly and calling 911 can help save a victim’s life, as it only takes minutes to die from overdosing on counterfeit pills.
Narcan is now located at all NUSD sites. “It’s a wonderful program. It’s another step in making sure that we keep our students and community safe,” Da Marto said.
Listen to New Episode NUSD Conversations Podcast
Click here to listen to our latest podcast featuring Chris Didier, a Placer County father, raising awareness of the dangers of illicit Fentanyl
NUSD is also raising awareness of the current Fentanyl Epidemic by sharing Chris Didier’s story. Didier’s son, Zach, was a Placer County teenager who excelled in academics, music, sports; a well-rounded, responsible son. “Zach was a high-caliber kid across the board,” Chris, Zach’s father said.
In December 2020, the Didier’s lives changed forever, when Chris found his son in the teen’s room, appearing to be sleeping. “As I approached him to wake him up, I sensed a void I never felt before, and I knew something was horribly wrong,” Chris recalled.
Investigators would later learn that Zach may have purchased what he thought was Percocet from a drug dealer at a Roseville mall via Snapchat. However, the pill was synthetic and contained a lethal dose of Fentanyl. Chris has been raising awareness since Zach’s death and, although a sensitive topic, advises parents to talk with their students with empathy and understanding about the dangers of ingesting such pills. “This is not the time to experiment (with illicit Fentanyl). In the past, the danger was getting addicted and falling down that slippery slope of addiction, but today, especially with counterfeit pills, it could be one time… it could even be half a pill and it is lights out,” Chris advised.
