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District partners with Southwest Suburban Health Department to expand Narcan training and availability
Summary
The district and the Southwest Suburban (formerly West Allis) Health Department described a multi‑pronged effort to train staff, supply Narcan to nurses and staff, and explore stocking AEDs with naloxone and public vending machines to increase community access.
District leaders and public‑health officials told the board on June 9 about a partnership to expand naloxone (Narcan) training and distribution across the West Allis‑West Milwaukee community and schools.
Nick Maniaci of the Southwest Suburban Health Department (formerly West Allis) said public‑health staff trained more than 630 people in 2024 across the local region and distributed hundreds of Narcan boxes through trainings and four public vending machines his department operates. Maniaci said two vending machines the health department manages are inside West Allis and the department also monitors machines at Rogers Behavioral Health and the VA in West Milwaukee.
Staff told the board the health department trained more than 180 intermediate and high‑school staff earlier this year; the district also arranged a deeper training session with school nurses at the health department’s facility. Nurses who attended left with Narcan supply kits, and the district and health department worked together to update the district’s naloxone administration protocol and identify locations to store doses in schools.
Board members and staff discussed options to expand access: placing Narcan kits with AEDs at each school building, extending training to coaches and recreational staff, and offering optional training to students or families who wish to be certified. Maniaci and a district presenter said law‑enforcement partners in the area already carry naloxone and that police departments make some supply available in vestibules for public pickup; the health department’s vending machines are available free of charge.
The board expressed support for broader training and distribution and asked staff to return with a plan that would include cost, logistics and any legal or personnel considerations. “This is about saving lives,” board member Dale Verbose said. Health‑department staff emphasized Narcan is a short‑acting opioid antagonist that restores breathing after an opioid overdose; it is safe to use on children and pregnant people and cannot produce a high.
