PC: Greater Green Bay YMCA
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) — As more public health vending machines are popping up around Brown County, questions have arisen from the community about why certain items are included but not others.
Common items inside a public health vending machine may include band-aids/general first aid, period products, condoms, toothpaste, soap, sunscreen hand sanitizer, Narcan, etc.
Narcan; a nasal spray that reverses the effects of an overdose is commonly stocked in the machines, but why not other items like insulin or inhalers?
“Insulin and inhalers require a prescription for use, and they can cause harm to individuals if they’re used without proper training, and if the individual does not actually need them,” said Marissa Powell, population health and quality improvement manager for Brown County Public Health. “But with Narcan, there is no risk of misuse and no risk of harm to an individual if they are given Narcan and do not need it.”
Additionally, insulin must be kept at certain temperatures, which might not be possible for some public health vending machines.
While Narcan is used to reverse the effects an overdose, Powell says the medicine can be a useful resource for anybody; not just people who use illegal drugs.
“It could be your elderly parent who has been prescribed an opioid for chronic pain, who might also have dementia and they accidentally take a double dose,” said Powell. “Or, it could be that a young child is visiting a family member that has a prescription opioid, and they get into it thinking that it’s Tylenol.”
Powell said carrying Narcan is like carrying band-aids; it’s not that anybody intends to get hurt, but it’s good to have on hand just in case.
Brown County’s newest public health vending machine went up earlier this week at the Ferguson Family branch of the Greater Green Bay YMCA. It was funded through a Wisconsin Department of Health Services grant.
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