North Texas News

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX) sits down with Hometown Hero Erin Broadhead, PharmD to discuss the fentanyl crisis, how to administer lifesaving Narcan, and drug shortages.  

Hometown Hero: Erin Broadhead, PharmD 

Doctor in the House 

Listen to the full episode HERE.

Highlights:  

  

Dr. Burgess: “As we all know, our country has been grappling with drug shortages. We've also got a Fentanyl crisis. And unfortunately, it's not a distant problem. It's affecting communities right here in North Texas. And recently, there was a heartbreaking story out of Carrollton, where several high school students overdosed, some of them died, leaving a devastating impact on our community. In response to these events, I decided to include a narcan presentation in my annual emergency preparedness summit.” 

  

Dr. Burgess: “I can't stress how much this disease [the opioid crisis] has changed in a relatively short period of time. And I think we talked about a little bit of the summit. But now, adding into this, of the effect of social media where someone can go on Snapchat or TikTok and obtain a pain pill what they think is a pain pill, which, in fact, is a medicine that's been laced with fentanyl. And that's why it's so important for friends and neighbors, moms and dads to be aware of what is available in over the counter or readily available narcan, to reverse the effects of an opioid poisoning.” 

  

Erin Broadhead: “It's [fentanyl poisoning] kind of like a house fire. Nobody intends on a fire happening in their own home. Nobody tries to get anything set up like that. But when a fire breaks out, it's nice to have that fire extinguisher to help the immediate problem. And so that's what Narcan can do is if you've got it in your home, and somebody is suffering an opioid poisoning or an overdose, it's nice to have.”

Original source can be found here.