KENT COUNTY, Mich. — In an effort to curb accident opioid overdoses, select pharmacies in the greater Grand Rapids area will be offering patients with naloxone.
Food distributor SpartanNash – which owns the Family Fare and D&W Fresh chains – is conducting the Opioid Safety Project, and their goal is to provide patients education on how to diagnose, prevent, and reverse an accidental opioid overdose with the drug naloxone, which specifically counteracts the effects of opioids.
SpartanNash is partnering with Dr. Sandra Dettmann of the Dettmann Center, a Grand Rapids-based addiction medicine clinic who authorizes the dispensement of the naloxone medication and safety kit to patients.
Patients with an opioid prescription will be asked if they’d like to participate in the program, and will be given instructions on how to administer the naloxone if it’s necessary. Also included in the overdose reversal kit is a face shield for rescue breathing and a pamphlet on the symptoms of an opioid overdose.
In a release, SpartanNash says that caregivers should call 9-1-1 before administering the naloxone.
The participating pharmacies in Kent County can be found at the following grocery stores:
Cascade D&W – 6425 28th St., SE in Grand Rapids
Leonard St. Family Fare – 1225 Leonard, NE in Grand Rapids
Rogers Plaza Family Fare – 1148 28th St., SW in Wyoming
