Just weeks after Village officials installed a vending machine at Village Hall to dispense overdose-reversing medication free to the public, a resident administered medication he got from the machine days earlier to save an overdose victim’s life.
Elk Grove Village Police and Fire personnel were dispatched to a residence in response to a 911 call of a possible overdose on July 14. The 911 caller relayed to dispatchers that he had suspected the victim was overdosing and that he administered Narcan, a medication applied via a nasal spray that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose.
Paramedics arrived to find a man unresponsive on the front steps of a residence. The victim regained consciousness as they placed the victim on a stretcher for transport. As he did, the caller, who is the brother of the victim, told paramedics that he wanted to have Narcan readily available given the victim’s history with substance use. He went to Village Hall and got a free Narcan kit from the vending machine, which was installed in early June.
Village officials installed the dispenser this summer in partnership with the Kenneth Young Center as part of Elk Grove Village Cares, the Village’s groundbreaking initiative to address the opioid epidemic.
“There’s no doubt that making Narcan more accessible to the public saves lives. That’s why we’ve taken steps to get the medication closer to those who are in a position to save a family member or loved one when they need help the most,” said Elk Grove Village Mayor Craig Johnson. “We encourage everyone who knows someone that is vulnerable to an opioid overdose to have this lifesaving medication within an arm’s reach at all times. By making Narcan easy to access and at no cost, I have no doubt additional lives will be saved.”
The dispenser, which is very similar to a traditional vending machine, is accessible to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It holds 54 units of Narcan and is maintained and restocked regularly.
Since the machine was installed in the lobby of the Elk Grove Village Police Department, 59 Narcan kits have been taken from the dispensary machine. Village and Kenneth Young Center personnel will ensure that the machine remains fully stocked.
Earlier this summer the Village announced that it was expanding Elk Grove Village Cares so that adolescent youths are able to access the program. The installation of the Narcan dispensing machine was also part of that expansion.
The program’s growth was bolstered this year thanks to $500,000 in Federal Community Project funding which Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi helped secure for Fiscal Year 2023. When this initiative launched five years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice called the approach revolutionary. Elk Grove Village Cares is funded almost completely with state and federal grants and is accessible to everyone regardless of their insurance status or their ability to pay for the treatment.
