Of ficers ‘should be able to treat overdoses’ on front line

Police leader calls on staff to dispense chemical that can resuscitate victims

ALL frontline officers should be equipped with overdose kits to help tackle the soaring numbers of drug addicts who are dying on Britain’s streets, a police leader has suggested.

More than 2,300 people died from overdoses last year and there are increasing calls for street police to provide emergency treatment.

Hardyal Dhindsa, the police and crime commissioner for Derbyshire, has said officers should routinely carry supplies of naloxone, a chemical that can quickly reverse the effects of an opiate overdose.

But frontline officers have expressed concern about the suggestion, insisting they have to draw a line and say “it’s not our job”.

The Police Federation, which represents rank-andfile officers, has warned that its members cannot be expected to continue taking on roles that trained medical professionals ought to be doing.

Mr Dhindsa, who is the national lead on substance misuse for the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said more people were dying from heroin and other drugs than in road accidents.

But he said many of the fatalities were preventable and intervention by police on the street could make a huge difference.

He said: “We should be doing everything we can to make sure we don’t get to the stage where people are suffering overdoses, but we also need to make sure that the first person who finds them is able to administer that emergency response which can save their life.

“Police officers have always been on the frontline of public crises, and policymakers need to make sure they have the tools to protect the public.”

Naloxone is increasingly being used by the police and other emergency workers in the United States, where there has been an epidemic of opioid related overdoses, with more than 72,000 fatalities last year.

Mr Dhindsa, who has said in the past that the war on drugs is not working, urged more research into the effectiveness of supplying naloxone nasal sprays to police.

But Simon Kempton, the drugs lead at the federation, expressed reservations about the proposals.

He said that, while he could see the benefit of officers carrying life-saving drugs, he was concerned the police would end up replacing medical professionals.

“If naloxone is needed, there is clearly a medical emergency which requires the immediate attendance of paramedics or a healthcare professional and not a police officer,” he said.

“The police are becoming a service that do all, and there has to become a point when we draw a line and we say it’s not our job.

“We can see the benefits of having the ability to administer a life-saving drug but this should not be an alternative to a properly funded ambulance service.”