Combatting the Opioid Epidemic: New York Libraries Save Lives
To combat the continuing rise in opioid related deaths in New York State, laws were recently amended to allow New York State’s public libraries to administer opioid antagonists (naloxone) in library facilities by partnering with a New York State Department of Health Registered Opioid Overdose Prevention Program operated by another organization.
As part of a coordinated statewide effort, the New York State Library, the State Education Department, the State Department of Health, the New York Library Association, the Public Library System Directors Organization, and the Harm Reduction Coalition collaborated to create Guidance for Implementing Opioid Overdose Prevention Measures in Public Libraries to help all New York State libraries implement their own opioid overdose prevention programs.
Program Materials
- Opioid Overdose Prevention Training for Public Library Personnel: Recognizing a Life-Threatening Opioid Overdose and Using and Opioid Antagonist (.PPT;
205 MB) - Opioid Overdose Prevention Training Terms to Know (.PDF;
184 KB) - Naloxone Administration Training Videos and Fact Sheets (.PDF; 112 KB)
- Opioid Overdose Prevention Education Resources For Libraries (.PDF; 86.3 KB)
- NYSDOH-NYSED Approved Opioid Overdose Prevention Training: Post-Test and Training Skills Checklist for Libraries (.PDF; 94.4 KB)
- NYSDOH-NYSED Approved Opioid Overdose Prevention Training Answer Key (.PDF; 74.9 KB)
- Opioid Training Certificate of Completion (.PDF; 364 KB)
- Narcan® Quick Start Guide (.PDF; 664 KB)
- Responding to an Opioid Overdose Emergency (.PDF; 174KB)
- How to use Narcan® Nasal Spray for an opioid overdose (.PDF; 2.4 MB)
- Guidance for Implementing Opioid Overdose Prevention Measures in Public Libraries
- Sample policies and procedures
(36k; updated June 2018)
Additional Information and Resources
Links below open in a new window. 
- amfAR: Opioid & Health Database. A tool for finding information about the impact of opioids on a specific zip code or congressional district.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Opioid Overdose. The official CDC site with plenty of statistics, graphics and a good overview of the opioid overdose epidemic.
- Medline Plus:
- National Library of Medicine (NLM):
- Public Libraries Respond to the Opioid Crisis with Their Communities. Drawing on a recent report by PLA and OCLC, here are seven of the ways libraries are combatting the opioid crisis.
- U.S. Department of Health & Human Services: Environmental Health & Toxicology: Opiate Addiction and Treatment
- WebJunction: