Heroin “Every Towns Worst Nightmare”
This session is designed to help Prehospital Care Practitioners, Emergency Nurses & Physicians, and Respiratory, X-ray, and Lab Technicians better understand and manage patients who have fallen victim to Heroin use.
The impact of Heroin use is felt across the United States with Heroin being identified as one of the most important drug abuse issues effecting communities coast to coast. It is estimated that 50 million people Worldwide are users of Cocaine, Heroin, and Synthetic Drugs. Included in those numbers are 700,000 Americans who use Heroin as a recreational drug to seek euphoria or a pleasurable sensation known on the street as a “Rush”. Heroin under the chemical name (diamorphine, diacetylmorphine or morphine diacetate) is illegal to manufacture, possess or sell which makes it also illegal to use. Heroin on the street is known to many as H, smack, boy, horse, brown, black and tar. Afghanistan’s Multibillion Dollar Heroin business supplies 87% of the Heroin in the World, while production in Mexico has risen six fold since 2007 which makes it the second largest opium producer.
During this session we will discuss both Basic & Advanced treatment for managing a Heroin overdose. We will discuss the dangers that Emergency Room Nurses encounter when treating patients of Heroin Overdose. We will explain how Heroin enters the brain and how it can affect other body functions including breathing and heartrate making it a life-threatening emergency.