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Naloxone & Fentanyl Testing Strips Distribution

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 How does SHOP provide Harm Reduction services with this program?

SHOP's Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Program focuses on strategies and programs to help students reduce their risk of harms associated with substance use. Our Party Like a Slug Peer Education Program is based on the philosophy that you can “party” and have a fun social life in college without putting yourself or others in danger. 

party-safe-team
Party Like a Slug Peer Education Team

One of the major causes of opioid overdose on college campuses nationwide is the unintentional ingestion of opiates. In recent years popular recreational drugs like cocaine, Xanax and Adderall have become risks for opioid overdose, as lethal traces of the synthetic opioid fentanyl have been found in the US drug supply. Our Harm Reduction strategies are intended to address the risks of potential fentanyl contamination. 

As part of our harm reduction plan at UCSC Student Health Services, SHOP and the Cove have partnered to provide Naloxone and Fentanyl Testing Strips (FTS) to our students. Our aim is to keep students safe and reduce the risk of overdose death. Naloxone and Fentanyl Test Strips are available confidentially and at no cost.

  • Naloxone (brand name Narcan) is a medication that can reverse opioid overdoses. 
  • Fentanyl Testing Strips are a tool to identify the presence of Fentanyl in unregulated drugs.

How do I obtain naloxone and testing strips?

Campus Distribution Sites 
Drop-in after you have viewed the video and taken the quiz. Please have your proof of completion screenshot ready. 

Quick pick up hours at SHOP/Student Health Outreach and Promotion @ Student Health Center (next to the Pharmacy.) Free naloxone is available at SHOP @ the Student Health Center and the Cove, our Collegiate Harm Reduction and Recovery Program, through the CDPH Naloxone Distribution Project.

Prefer a confidential in-person session with a peer educator?
SHOP has drop-in info sessions at the Student Health Center with the Party Safe Team. Drop-in for a 15 minute session to learn how to use Narcan & Fentanyl Test Strips and get your questions answered. 

Kits can include both Narcan and two Fentanyl Test Strips. We give one kit per person and cannot give out large quantities to individuals. 

How to respond to an opioid overdose

It may be hard to tell if someone is experiencing an overdose. If you are not sure, treat it like an overdose - you could save a life. With a fentanyl overdose, two or more doses of naloxone may need to be given.
  • Call 911 and give naloxone
  • Keep the person awake and breathing
  • Lay the person on their side to prevent choking
  • Stay with the person until 911 responders arrive

How to test drugs for Fentanyl to prevent overdose

Fentanyl test strips (‘FTS’) are a form of inexpensive drug testing technology that was originally developed fords_fentanyl-strip-instructions.png
urinalysis, but which have been shown to be effective at detecting the presence of fentanyl and fentanyl-analogs in drug samples prior to ingestion. In order to use the strips, testers dissolve a small amount of substance in water, and then dip the test strip into the liquid for 15 seconds. Because the test strips are highly sensitive, a minimal amount of drug residue is sufficient to obtain a result. The test strip is then set on a flat surface until results appear, typically within 5 minutes. One line indicates fentanyl is present in the sample; two lines indicate a negative result. 

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