PORTLAND, OR -- Saturday is International Overdose Awareness Day and one Oregon hospital is focused on community prevention.

OHSU is distributing free Narcan kits this week at farmers markets and other events in Portland, and teaching people how to use the medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Pharmacist Emily Skogrand says they're also educating people about who is at risk, "Fentanyl is everywhere. We know that just from the massive amount of overdose that the United States has seen. And you never know who is using drugs or- Fentanyl is found in counterfeit pills, where the person doesn't even think that they're using fentanyl."

Skogrand says Narcan - also known as Naloxone - comes in a two-dose package and is easy to use. You place the applicator in the person's nose and spray the mist, "And then you wait two minutes, which feels like a really long time. But two minutes; and then if the person doesn't respond, you can repeat with a second dose." She says Narcan is not harmful if given to someone not suffering from an opioid overdose.

She says she hears from a lot of people who say they don't need to carry Narcan because they don't know an addict. But, she says, illicit fentanyl is sometimes taken unintentionally, "This is especially hitting our youth, where it's found in fake Adderall pills, fake- they're 'Xani bars,' is what they call them - Xanax, or fake Percocets. So, our kids are taking what they think is a fake Adderall from their friend and it actually has fentanyl in there. So, you just don't know who is either intentionally taking fentanyl or unintentionally being exposed to fentanyl." She adds, "I really do feel like everyone should have Narcan available to them. You never know where you're going to be or what situation you're going to be in, or what situation you're going to be in where you might be able to save someone's life."

Narcan is available without a prescription at pharmacies, "Unfortunately, there's still a significant cost associated with it," says Skogrand, "It's $40-45, and so I think that's another barrier to people obtaining it and carrying it. And so, we're just really trying to increase the amount of Naloxone out there, to save people's lives."

According to the Oregon Health Authority, in 2023, almost 1,400 people died in Oregon from an unintentional opioid overdose.