NARCAN, EpiPen: Wilson County Schools responds to 390 vape violations

Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean
·4 min read
Vaping products that have been confiscated from students at Wilson County Schools.
Vaping products that have been confiscated from students at Wilson County Schools.

Wilson Country Schools will stock NARCAN and EpiPen products for nurses and trained faculty as concerns about student overdoses and severe medical reactions rise.

Minors often purchase vapes on a black market of unregulated goods, which school board member Carrie Pfeiffer said can lead to use of fentanyl and other illegal and dangerous substances.

"We see the potential for a tainted product to be in the hands of our young people," Pfeiffer said, "and for an adverse event to happen in school."

This school year, Wilson County Schools — which includes five traditional high schools — logged 390 vaping violations through February, according to Wilson County Sheriff’s Office Capt. Scott Moore.

The school district logged 405 vaping violations during the 2021-22 school year.

NARCAN is the common brand name for naloxone. It's used to quickly restore normal respiration when breathing has stopped or slowed because of an opioid overdose. It also can be administered as a precaution — and without a negative reaction — for other medical emergencies. EpiPen, a brand for epinephrine, helps in emergencies to treat severe allergic reactions.

Director of schools Jeff Luttrell recommended both products to his school board, which unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding that led to a contract with Dr. Bernard Sy at Family Medical Associates.

“Unfortunately, when (we) look statewide and nationally, this is a widespread growing concern,” board chair Jamie Farough said. “As a result, the district is taking action to put added precautionary emergency resources in place.

"The unanimous vote speaks to how we all feel about this, and we want to do all that we can to help protect students.”

Wilson County Director of Schools Jeff Luttrell.
Wilson County Director of Schools Jeff Luttrell.

Vaping: the problems in schools

Illegally manufactured fentanyl is reported to be many times more potent than heroin and morphine, resulting in deadly overdoses across the nation.

This month in Williamson County, a school resource officer was forced to administer two doses of NARCAN after a student was discovered unresponsive on school property. Officials said the incident was connected to a product laced with fentanyl in a sale of a narcotic.

"The school board’s decision allows our schools to be prepared during the worst-case scenarios," said Lebanon High student Eli Hodge, a member of the school’s Youth Prevention Coalition, a division of DrugFree WilCo.

"Having multiple certified individuals on campus is critical during life-threatening situations where every second counts."

How it will work in Wilson County

  • NARCAN and EpiPens will be supplied for all its schools, said Keisha Cone, the health services manager at Wilson County Schools.

  • All school nurses will be trained by the regional overdose prevention specialist to administer NARCAN. All traditional Wilson County Schools have registered nurses, according to the district. The specialist will also provide one opioid antagonist kit to each school nurse that completes the training.

  • Wilson County Sheriff’s Office provides school resource officers for all schools. Moore of the sheriff’s office said SROs are trained and have access to NARCAN.

  • There are no plans to place medication on buses due to storage requirements and temperature control.

  • Training could eventually be extended to additional faculty.

A can of NARCAN.
A can of NARCAN.

What other Middle Tennessee public school districts are doing

Rutherford County Schools stocks supplies of NARCAN and epinephrine at its schools. Nurses train all staff on EpiPens, district spokesperson James Evans said, and first responder teams are trained to use NARCAN.

Metro Nashville Public Schools nurses and trained staff have had access to epinephrine for several years, district spokesperson Sean Braisted said. School nurses, employed through the health department, and SROs, employed through the Metro Nashville Police, are trained and have access to NARCAN. The district has also trained school administrators in the use of NARCAN. The administrators gain access to NARCAN after training.

Robertson County Schools stocks NARCAN and EpiPens, and all nurses are trained. Faculty members who completed CPR training through Robertson County Schools are also trained for EpiPen and NARCAN distribution. Several administrators are also trained to use NARCAN.

Williamson County Schools has NARCAN in each school with school nurses and SROs trained to administer. The Anti-Drug Coalition donates a double pack of Narcan to each school clinic after specific training is completed, district spokesperson Carol Birdsong said. SROs also have access to NARCAN through the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @AndyHumbles.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why Wilson County will stock NARCAN and EpiPen products at schools