| | | | | | | | THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
OF PHILADELPHIA | No. 823 | SECTION: 800 Operations | TITLE: 823 Naloxone (NEW) | ADOPTED: | REVISED: |
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| | | | | | | | Purpose The Board of Education (“Board”) is committed to making every school a safe, welcoming, and healthy place. The purpose of this policy is to permit an employee in a position to assist a person at risk of opioid overdose to obtain and administer Naloxone as a means of enhancing the health and safety of School District of Philadelphia (“District”) students, staff, and visitors. |
| | | | | | | | Definitions
For purposes of this policy, terms are defined as follows:
Drug overdose: An acute medical condition, including, but not limited to, severe physical illness, coma, mania, hysteria or death, which is the result of consumption or use of one or more controlled substances causing an adverse reaction. An individual's condition may be deemed to be a drug overdose if a prudent person, possessing an average knowledge of medicine and health, would reasonably believe that the condition is in fact a drug overdose and requires immediate medical attention. [1]
Naloxone: A medication that can reverse an overdose caused by an opioid drug. As a narcotic antagonist, Naloxone displaces opiates from receptor sites in the brain and reverses respiratory depression that usually is the cause of overdose deaths.
Opioid: Illegal drugs such as heroin, as well as prescription medications used to treat pain such as morphine, codeine, methadone, oxycodone, hydrocodone, fentanyl, hydromorphone, and buprenorphine. |
| | | | | | | | Authority As authorized by the Pennsylvania Public School Code, the Board may adopt and enforce such reasonable rules and regulations as it may deem necessary and proper regarding the management of its school affairs. As a means of enhancing the health and safety of its students, staff and visitors, the District may obtain, maintain, and administer doses of an opioid antagonist, specifically Naloxone for intranasal administration, for emergency use to assist a student, staff member or visitor believed to be experiencing an opioid overdose. [1][2]
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| | | | | | | | Delegation of Responsibility The Board directs the Superintendent or their designee, through the Office of Student Support Services and in consultation with the District’s school physician, to establish administrative procedures for the acquisition, stocking, and administration of Naloxone and related emergency response procedures and to determine which schools will store Naloxone and ensure that personnel at these schools are trained to administer Naloxone.
The District's school physician shall be the prescribing and supervising medical professional for the District's stocking and use of Naloxone. The Superintendent or designee, through the Office of Student Support Services, shall obtain a standing order from the District’s school physician for administration of Naloxone.
The school nurse shall be responsible for building-level administration of Naloxone and management of Naloxone stocks. The Office of Student Health Services shall be responsible for maintaining a stock of Naloxone at the Central Office to be used to refill supplies upon request of the school nurse or principal.
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| | | | | | | | Mandatory Regulatory Procedures:
The Office of Student Health Services shall annually inform staff about this policy and specifically:
- The availability of Naloxone to treat opioid drug overdoses and what it does;
- The symptoms of opioid drug overdoses;
- How students and staff should report suspected overdoses;
- The protection from criminal prosecution provided by law for persons who report a suspected overdose using their real name and remain with the overdosing person until emergency medical services (“EMS”) or law enforcement arrive, as well as for the person whose overdose they report; and [1][2]
- The protection from civil liability provided by law for persons who report overdoses or administer Naloxone in overdose emergencies. [1][2]
Administration of Naloxone shall not be required in circumstances of unavailability of Naloxone, unavailability of a qualified Naloxone administrator, and/or uncertainty as to whether an opioid overdose is occurring, among other reasons. This policy does not create a duty on the part of the District and/or its personnel to administer Naloxone.
Standing Order from the District’s School Physician
The District’s school physician shall provide and annually renew a standing order for administration of Naloxone to students, staff members, or other individuals believed or suspected to be experiencing an opioid overdose.
The standing order shall include at least the following information:
- Type of Naloxone (intranasal or auto-injector),
- Date of issue,
- Dosage, and
- Signature of the school physician.
The original, signed standing order shall be maintained in the Superintendent's Office, and copies of the standing order shall be kept in each location where Naloxone is stored.
Training
Before any District employee may have custody of Naloxone or administer Naloxone under this policy, the employee must successfully complete an online Pennsylvania Department of Health Training Program about recognizing opioid-related overdoses, administering Naloxone, and promptly seeking medical attention for a person experiencing a drug overdose.
The District shall provide training to all school nurses, and at least one other school employee at each school, during their regular work schedule.
A list of District employees who successfully complete such training shall be maintained, updated, and kept in the relevant school nurse's office and with the Office of Student Health Services.
Acquisition, Storage, and Disposal
The school nurse shall ensure that two doses of Naloxone shall be safely stored in the Principal’s office of each school identified in the administrative procedures in accordance with the drug manufacturer's instructions. The Office of Student Health Services at the Central Office and the school nurse or designee at each identified school shall regularly inventory and replenish Naloxone stocks either due to expiration or use, and maintain records thereof, in accordance with the established procedures, manufacturer recommendations, and Department of Health Guidelines.
Reports, Referral to Law Enforcement, and Parental Notification
Subsequent to administration of Naloxone, the school nurse or other trained personnel shall submit a Naloxone Administration form to the Office of Student Health Services.
The Superintendent or designee shall immediately report incidents involving the use of controlled substances on school property, at any school-sponsored activity, or on a conveyance providing transportation to or from a school or school-sponsored activity, to the local police department that has jurisdiction over the school's property, in accordance with state law and regulations, the procedures set forth in the memorandum of understanding with local law enforcement, and Board policies. [3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
The Superintendent or designee shall notify the parent/guardian of any student directly involved in an incident involving use of controlled substances immediately, as soon as practicable. The Superintendent or designee shall inform the parent/guardian whether or not the local police department that has jurisdiction over the school property has been or may be notified of the incident. The Superintendent or designee shall document attempts made to reach the parent/ guardian. [3][8][9][10]
Referral to Mental Health Supports
Any student who experiences a drug overdose shall be referred to mental health support either internally through the STEP initiative or to an external provider as is clinically appropriate.
Indemnification
The District shall indemnify and hold harmless any employee who administers Naloxone in good faith to another individual experiencing a suspected drug overdose, if all of these conditions apply: [2][12]
- The employee did not act with the intent to harm or with reckless indifference to a substantial risk or harm in administering Naloxone to that individual;
- The employee successfully completed the training contemplated by this policy;
- The employee promptly sought additional medical assistance before or immediately after administering Naloxone; and
- The employee is administering Naloxone pursuant to this policy.
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| | | | | | | | Administrative Procedures: |
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