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Events Scheduled in Missoula Mark International Overdose Awareness Day

Saturday, Aug. 31 marks International Overdose Awareness Day. Missoula Public Health and other members of the Missoula Drug Safety Coalition have organized several events to raise awareness within the community, including:

  • 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., Friday, Aug. 30: Promoting Positive Childhood Experiences to Prevent Overdose and Suicide Workshop at Providence St. Patrick Hospital (500 W. Broadway).
  • 12 to 1:30 p.m., Friday, Aug. 30: Overdose reversal and prevention training at the Missoula Scheels, in the conference room. Participants will receive free Narcan (opioid overdose reversal spray).
  • 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 31: Additional overdose reversal and prevention training at the Missoula Public Library (fourth floor).
  • Saturday, Aug. 31: Events on the University of Montana campus, including an informational booth and tailgate hosted by Students for Sensible Drug Policy before the Griz football game at 4 p.m., and the Lighting of the Main Hall at 8:30 p.m.
  • More information about these events is available at overdosedaymissoula.org

    All events are free and open to the public. ā€œAttending an Overdose Awareness Day event is a powerful way to stand together to remember people who have lost their lives to overdose,ā€ said Leah Fitch-Brody, Substance Use Disorder Prevention Coordinator at Missoula Public Health. The health departmentā€™s Substance Use Disorder Prevention Program works to prevent substance use disorder and other potential harms related to substance use across Missoula County.

    Organizations like MPH and Open Aid Alliance provide free Narcan (or Naloxone), a medication that can reverse an opioid overdose. In addition, four harm reduction kiosks with Narcan and fentanyl test strips are located at the Mountain Line Transfer Center, the Missoula Food Bank, the Johnson Street Shelter and Hope Rescue Mission.

    International Overdose Awareness Day is an annual campaign to end overdose and remember, without stigma, those who have died while acknowledging the grief of the family and friends left behind. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 107,543 people in the US died of overdose in 2023. In the last decade, 170 overdoses have occurred in Missoula County and more than 1,537 Montana residents have died from fatal overdoses.

    Photo courtesy of Leah Fitch-Brody.