'Life-saving' nasal spray rolled out by Herts police

The spray - which will be used to treat those suffering from a suspected drug overdose - was initially trialled in Dacorum, Stevenage, Watford and Welwyn Hatfield.

According to Hertfordshire Constabulary, Naloxone will temporarily reverse the effects of a suspected opiate overdose.

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In February, a woman in Hemel Hempstead had begun to suffer seizures after overdosing on codeine.

After being advised by the Ambulance Service, officers administered the nasal spray.

The patient then stopped fitting and was stabilised.

On another occasion - in January - a man went into cardiac arrest in Hemel Hempstead, following a herion overdose.

A member of the public began CPR, as the man became unresponsive.

The spray will temporarily reverse the effects of a drug overdose. (Image: Hertfordshire Constabulary)

Following a single naloxene dose, the man came around quickly and was taken to hospital.

Finally - in November - a young woman was discovered in an alleyway in Watford town centre.

The nasal spray was administrated and she was taken to hospital for further treatment.

Dacorum Chief Inspector Jason Keane said: “Naloxone is literally saving people’s lives up and down the country and here in Herts officers have saved three lives during our initial six-month pilot, which is fantastic.

“These small, easy to administer nasal sprays are just another tool in our trauma kit which can mean the difference between life and death.

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“The spray, which buys vital time before paramedics arrive on the scene, cannot cause any harm, even if it later transpires that the person was suffering from another medical condition.

“Initially we trained 100 response drivers from our Intervention, Safer Neighbourhood and Scorpion teams.

"Now we are rolling out that training to response drivers across the entire constabulary, which means we’ll be equipped to save more lives.”

Training on the use of naloxone is being delivered to police officers by charity Change Grow Live (CGL).

County Service Manager at Spectrum CGL, Trudy Sealy added: “This ground-breaking project has already saved three lives!

"We are working proactively to raise awareness around opiate overdoses which has resulted in police officers now carrying nasal naloxone.

"This pilot and roll out is a huge step forward in preventing opiate deaths and has already made a difference to the communities we serve and together we will strive to continue to save lives.”