Fentanyl antidote kits at Calgary universities not being used

Post-secondary students in Calgary aren't taking advantage of free Naloxone kits offered to help stem the tide of fentanyl deaths in Alberta.

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Mount Royal University and the University of Calgary both offer kits of Naloxone,which reverses the symptoms of an overdose, but so far no one has picked one up.

"They're not thinking about themselves as needing some form of prevention but we know just by looking at the Alberta statistics, and now going east across Canada, that young people are at risk, that the number of deaths is high," said Debbie Bruckner with the U of C's wellness centre.

'They don't pay attention'

Calgary police estimate there were around 300 fentanyl-related deaths in Alberta last year, more than double 2014's deadly tally.

"Until a person identifies themselves ashaving some kind of risk, they don't see the information as relevant, they don't pay attention," said Bruckner.

That's true for MRU student Lanette Klettke, whose perspective changedwhen the crisis hit close to home.

"I actually didn't know anything about it until someone at my school overdosed on fentanyl very tragically and that kind of opened my eyes to what it was and that it's a big problem," she said.

Bruckner said there needs to be more work done on campuses,with institutions working together to bring more awareness to the dangers of fentanyl and the availability of Naloxone.

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