South Africa: Naloxone Rollout in City of Tshwane Saves the Life of Opioid User During an Overdose

22 October 2021
South African Network of People Who Use Drugs
press release

Recently the life of an opioid user in the City of Tshwane was saved by Naloxone following the new rollout of training sessions on how to administer this drug, which is the most effective way of reversing a heroin overdose.

According to a report on opioid overdoses published by the WHO in August, about 500 000 deaths are attributable to drug use with just over 70% of these deaths related to opioids and with more than 30% of those deaths caused by overdose. The report estimates approximately 115 000 people died of opioid overdose in 2017. The Office of National Statistics in the United Kingdom found that 4,561 deaths related to drug poisoning were registered in England and Wales in 2020; the highest number since records began in 1993, and 3.8% higher than in 2019. Deaths related to opiates are driving the figures, with a total of 2,263 drug poisoning deaths registered in 2020 involving opiates (such as heroin and morphine).

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