Eau Claire workshop on opioid crisis July 11

© Provided by La Crosse-Eau Claire WEAU The Eau Claire City-County Health Department and the Alliance for Substance Misuse Prevention are hosting a workshop about opioid misuse and preventing overdoses.

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) -The ongoing opioid crisis continues to affect communities in Western Wisconsin.

The Eau Claire City-County Health Department and the Alliance for Substance Misuse Prevention are hosting a workshop about opioid misuse and preventing overdoses. That workshop is scheduled for Monday, July 11 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Community Table in Eau Claire.

The focus of the workshop is on Narcan, a drug which helps people who are overdosing breathe and stabilize. The health department says fatal opioid overdoses in Eau Claire County rose from six to 15 in 2020.

Local law enforcement officers say they’re seeing a rise in heroin and fentanyl use.

“Some people don’t necessarily know that Vicodin, a medication is an opioid. They might just think of that now. So we want to be able to provide more education on what opioids are,” Sarah Dillivan-Pospisil, Public Health Specialist, said.

The workshop is said to cover:

• What are opioids.
• How to recognize an opioid overdose, and how to help a person overdosing.
• How to safely store opioid medication.
• How to get rid of unused opioid medication.
• How do use Narcan and fentanyl test strips.

Those looking to attend the workshop must register by July 8. You can register for the workshop here. You can learn more by visiting the City of Eau Claire website.

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