Oklahoma City Police See Spike In Narcan Use To Revive People From Overdoses

The Oklahoma City Police Department used Narcan 135 times this year to revive people from opioid overdoses, a substantial increase compared to just a few years ago.

OKCPD said the department began using Narcan in 2015 through a partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. During that first year, officers used Narcan twice on people who overdosed.m Then in 2016, officers used Narcan 14 times, followed by 13 in 2017, 26 in 2018, 35 in 2019, 32 in 2020, 73 in 2021, and 135 in 2022.

"Numerous lives have been saved by the usage of this Narcan and so, it's been proven to work for us in just a matter of moments," said Sgt. Dillon Quirk, assistant public information officer with OKCPD.

The Oklahoma County Sheriff's Office recently released a body cam video showing how effective Narcan is at reviving someone after spraying the medication into the nose. The person in the video overdosed on fentanyl, which has become more prevalent in the area in recent years. The Sheriff's Office said in 2020, deputies seized 3 pounds of the synthetic opioid. But this year, they've already seized 29 pounds.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in 2020, Oklahoma saw 762 overdose deaths. Last year, there were an estimated 107,622 overdose deaths across the U.S., an increase of 15% from the year before, the CDC said. To help reverse that trend, Oklahoma City officers have Narcan in their patrol cruisers.

"We've become more comfortable in using it when we arrive on scene," said Quirk. "I don't know if surprised (at the increase in Narcan use) is the word. But it's definitely nice to know that numerous lives have been saved simply by our officers being able to utilize this medication."