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Crossroads Medical Mission offers free Narcan and hands-on overdose training at council meeting
Summary
Crossroads Medical Mission representatives demonstrated naloxone administration, distributed free Narcan kits supplied by the Virginia Department of Health, and urged residents to stay with and call 911 for suspected overdoses.
Crossroads Medical Mission staff gave a demonstration and distributed free naloxone (Narcan) kits at the Bristol Virginia City Council meeting on June 24, 2025, urging residents to carry the drug and explaining how to use it in the event of an opioid or fentanyl overdose.
The training focused on a simple three-step approach Crossroads uses: “check, call, care,” and emphasized safety for the responder. “You’re going to want to check if you suspect an overdose,” said Nikki Robertson, a certified peer recovery specialist, demonstrating signs such as blue lips, how to do a sternum rub and when to call 911. Robertson cautioned volunteers to wear gloves if possible and to step back after injecting naloxone because it can cause sudden agitation in a revived person.
Brooke Jenkins, identified as a behavioral health clinic manager and CPRS, described the practical details of the nasal naloxone device: each boxed kit contains two doses; once the dose “clicks” it is administered and cannot be retracted. Jenkins recommended waiting 30 seconds to two minutes after a dose and administering additional doses if there is no response. She added that Emergency Medical Services have sometimes given multiple doses for fentanyl overdoses and that naloxone cannot harm an unopposed person if given mistakenly.
Crossroads staff said the kits were provided by the Virginia Department of Health and that recipients were asked to sign a simple name-and-email sheet so the program could track distribution. The presenters reminded the public of Virginia’s Good Samaritan protections and urged people to stay with the person until EMS arrives.
Council members and the mayor encouraged residents to accept kits and learn the procedure. Mayor Becky Nave said the training and kits are lifesaving: “We can’t help them if they’re dead,” she said, supporting the distribution. No council action or vote was required; the session provided an informational presentation and community distribution of Narcan kits.
