Nasal spray saves life

By BRIAN WALKER

Staff Writer

POST FALLS — The bad news is, he woke up with two police officers staring down at him.

The good news? He woke up.

A 22-year-old man is the first person to be revived from a heroin overdose since Post Falls Police began carrying a nasal spray three weeks ago. He said he has a newfound appreciation for life — and officers.

"Normally I haven't been a person to like police, but I'm thankful and feel differently toward them now," said the Post Falls man, who spoke to The Press on Monday under the condition of anonymity.

"I'm definitely going to find treatment."

Post Falls Police Chief Scot Haug said when officers responded to the home on Saturday, the man wasn’t breathing, his eyes were slightly open and he was sweaty.

"There were indications that he was passing or had just passed," Haug said. "On this kind of overdose, about 75 percent of the time, CPR is not successful when it is administered. It is our belief that (the opioid "antagonist" Narcan) saved this person's life."

The man said he remembers getting water and going to his room to lie on his bed.

"I woke up to two cops above me," he said.

The man said he was startled to see the police and was confused about why they were there.

"I got loud with them, then put two and two together," he said.

Haug said the man's wife found that he had overdosed on heroin, so she called police. Within a minute of an officer administering Narcan, the man was fully alert, walking and talking, Haug said.

Police in Post Falls respond to most medical calls and arrive on scene sooner than medical personnel about half of the time, Haug said. He said medics arrived six minutes after the first officer in this case.

"Six minutes may not sound like a long time, but when somebody is not breathing, six minutes can be the difference between life and death," Haug said.

The man said the only side effects he had after being revived were a headache and chest pain, likely from his wife trying to revive him.

"It was a lot like normal in terms of waking up," he said, adding he declined to be transported to the hospital for treatment.

He said he's thankful police started carrying Narcan.

"If I was that far out, it could've been bad for me," he said.

The man said he's carrying a lot of guilt after putting his wife through the scary moments.

Haug said he thinks PFPD and the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office are the first local law enforcement agencies to carry Narcan on the street. Others are in various stages of exploration.

Medics have carried Narcan for years. Kootenai County Fire and Rescue trained the law enforcement agencies on its usage. The spray is a way that responders have been dealing with the nationwide heroin "tsunami."

Haug said he's come full circle on whether to have officers carry the nasal spray.

"Several years ago I was of the opinion that it's not a police issue," he said. "Then, as I started to research this and see what has been happening across the country, we have an obligation.

"If we know there is a tool, you can administer it with little to no side effects and, if cost is the only thing that's in the way, we need to make it happen. That's why I had a change of heart."

Each application costs $45 and the shelf life is 18 months.

Haug said Post Falls' first purchase for the spray was nearly $3,000. The KCSO uses drug seizure funds to pay for it, and Haug said Post Falls will consider that avenue in the future as the first shipment was funded through the department's regular budget.

Haug said when officers apply Narcan to patients, the patients are not charged for the spray.

"This is a brand-new program and we do not anticipate using it a lot," he said. "I'm not sure we'd even have a mechanism to charge (like medical services does)."

KCFR treated 32 patients in 2016 with Narcan.

Opponents of police using Narcan have said the availability could give addicts a false sense of security and prompt them to push the limits with heroin even more.

"I don't know if that is the case or not, but all I can say is that in this incident and previous ones, (the spray) is saving people's lives," Haug said.

Because no heroin was found at the scene, the man wasn’t charged with a crime related to his overdose. However, police records show he was cited for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.