Over 130 Americans die each day from opioid overdose. Texas A&M University Health Science Center is responding, Dr. Joy Alonzo, the spearhead of the effort, says, "We are going to be the first health-science center in the country where every health professions student is going to be trained on the opioid crisis and gets an introduction to addiction and overdose medicine." Included is the administration of Naloxone, a life-saver for an opioid overdose. "The idea is that you can't get someone into treatment who's dead," Alonzo reasons.
As often happens at Texas A&M, they are spreading their mission to the 9 counties over the Brazos Valley. Alonzo explains they are, "training the trainer right now with law enforcement from the Valley. When their own training is completed, over 800 officers will be trained."