I am David's mother. This is my response to a question regarding Narcan saving lives....
" Where to begin regarding my David here in Florida. In 2003 David accidentally overdosed on his prescription fentanyl patches when he woke up confused during the night. At least that is what it looked like. I was at work the next day, called home to check on David. I had to call twice to 'force' my husband to take action. Finally, evidently he broke into David's room, found him unresponsive, called 911.
The EMTs did give David Narcan. My husband and his mother tried to reach me at work via phone. My boss, Lee McNealy, at Convergys in Lake Mary, FL DID NOT bother to give me the message that my son was on life support at the ER. I called my mother in law to learn the news. I drove 100 miles an hour on the shoulder of I-4 to get to the ER. When I arrived my husband said they were 'waiting for me' before removing David from life support !!! The nurse said the black, necrotic tissue in the suction container was 'what he (David) had done to himself'. I had a sh*t fit and told them to save him, to do something. They then said, "I guess we will admit him", and gave him Narcan, restarted IV's, took him to ICU.
Everyone wanted me to take him off of life support, except my daughter. Several days later the lawyer David worked for came strutting down the hall with two large male associates and told the doctors to 'treat David more aggressively' to save him. David's friends called everyone they knew. One friend came clear from Cocoa, FL late one night, and oddly David 'woke up' early that morning. He failed extubation later, the hospital called me so I could be there 'in case something happened'. I immediately told them to do an emergency tracheotomy. The doctor hesitated saying, "you want us to do a trach"? DUH, that is what you do, I had learned as a nurses aide in the VA hospital.
David lived. They did surgery to place a stomach feeding tube, but they did not sedate him enough considering his medication tolerance....he was 'awake' during the surgery and told me and the doctor all of the conversation in the operating room !!!! He was afraid of this and we told the doctor prior to surgery. They waited until I was gone before taking David to surgery !! Narcan saved David this time and he lived 6 more years, though now disabled due to a week long coma, stroke, heart attack, seizures, etc. In 2009 David overdosed twice within a month and the EMTs and hospital gave him Narcan and saved him quickly, he was home within a day or two.
The second of these OD's was because the Volusia County Sheriff forced me to turn over a month's supply of Fentynal to David and his 'girlfriend' even though David and his doctor had agreed I should keep and administer the patches, as David was weak and was being robbed, abused, beaten up and manipulated by his girlfriend and others at his apartment. State Adult protective services would NOT help me, they dismissed me saying I just wanted to control David's patches, selling them, keeping his money,...as if... !!!!! That was the influences on David from others, including my sick husband. So, the 'girlfriend' moved out of state, David had been without his Fentynal for a week or so due to doctors appointment date and girl friends selling his medications. On August 27, 2009 I took him to his previously scheduled appointment, got his medications, finished celebrating his 30th birthday.
He took his medication and went to bed. I checked his vitals, as he always did that himself after getting his meds. refilled each month and after taking them. He was fine, finally sleeping after days of pain and wakefulness. Five or ten minutes later I checked on him and he was gasping. We called 911, EMT's arrived in 7 minutes. My sick husband detained them in the front of the house, telling them David was an 'addict' and had OD'd twice the month before. I was screaming for help with David in the back bedroom. No one came to us for 5 minutes. They continued talking to my husband. They finally came back, moved David to the floor in the entry way. I banged on the closet door and told them to 'do something'. They said their defibrillator was 'broke', they did not give oxygen, IV, Narcan, NOTHING. They did finally fake CPR and took him to the ER. I got all medical records.
The hospital ER doctor emphatically noted on the records that NO NARCAN nor intubation had been done prior to reaching the ER. The ER immediately administered Narcan, but it was way too late by then, like 30 minutes after I found David gasping. The hospital restored a heartbeat with medication and machines. They only kept him on those for 3 minutes, "per hospital protocol", then removed all support and David died. the ER would NOT let me go to him, as I had managed to do in 2003. I guess they learned that mothers do not give up on their sons, so they locked the ER room from the lobby. I am sorry this story was so long. It was and is hell for me. If you want to learn of many, many more life saving stories, look at the Harm Reduction thread at www.bluelight.ru . Yes, it is a foreign website drug users frequent, but they are more knowledgeable and compassionate than most US 'professionals', and families."
" Where to begin regarding my David here in Florida. In 2003 David accidentally overdosed on his prescription fentanyl patches when he woke up confused during the night. At least that is what it looked like. I was at work the next day, called home to check on David. I had to call twice to 'force' my husband to take action. Finally, evidently he broke into David's room, found him unresponsive, called 911.
The EMTs did give David Narcan. My husband and his mother tried to reach me at work via phone. My boss, Lee McNealy, at Convergys in Lake Mary, FL DID NOT bother to give me the message that my son was on life support at the ER. I called my mother in law to learn the news. I drove 100 miles an hour on the shoulder of I-4 to get to the ER. When I arrived my husband said they were 'waiting for me' before removing David from life support !!! The nurse said the black, necrotic tissue in the suction container was 'what he (David) had done to himself'. I had a sh*t fit and told them to save him, to do something. They then said, "I guess we will admit him", and gave him Narcan, restarted IV's, took him to ICU.
Everyone wanted me to take him off of life support, except my daughter. Several days later the lawyer David worked for came strutting down the hall with two large male associates and told the doctors to 'treat David more aggressively' to save him. David's friends called everyone they knew. One friend came clear from Cocoa, FL late one night, and oddly David 'woke up' early that morning. He failed extubation later, the hospital called me so I could be there 'in case something happened'. I immediately told them to do an emergency tracheotomy. The doctor hesitated saying, "you want us to do a trach"? DUH, that is what you do, I had learned as a nurses aide in the VA hospital.
David lived. They did surgery to place a stomach feeding tube, but they did not sedate him enough considering his medication tolerance....he was 'awake' during the surgery and told me and the doctor all of the conversation in the operating room !!!! He was afraid of this and we told the doctor prior to surgery. They waited until I was gone before taking David to surgery !! Narcan saved David this time and he lived 6 more years, though now disabled due to a week long coma, stroke, heart attack, seizures, etc. In 2009 David overdosed twice within a month and the EMTs and hospital gave him Narcan and saved him quickly, he was home within a day or two.
The second of these OD's was because the Volusia County Sheriff forced me to turn over a month's supply of Fentynal to David and his 'girlfriend' even though David and his doctor had agreed I should keep and administer the patches, as David was weak and was being robbed, abused, beaten up and manipulated by his girlfriend and others at his apartment. State Adult protective services would NOT help me, they dismissed me saying I just wanted to control David's patches, selling them, keeping his money,...as if... !!!!! That was the influences on David from others, including my sick husband. So, the 'girlfriend' moved out of state, David had been without his Fentynal for a week or so due to doctors appointment date and girl friends selling his medications. On August 27, 2009 I took him to his previously scheduled appointment, got his medications, finished celebrating his 30th birthday.
He took his medication and went to bed. I checked his vitals, as he always did that himself after getting his meds. refilled each month and after taking them. He was fine, finally sleeping after days of pain and wakefulness. Five or ten minutes later I checked on him and he was gasping. We called 911, EMT's arrived in 7 minutes. My sick husband detained them in the front of the house, telling them David was an 'addict' and had OD'd twice the month before. I was screaming for help with David in the back bedroom. No one came to us for 5 minutes. They continued talking to my husband. They finally came back, moved David to the floor in the entry way. I banged on the closet door and told them to 'do something'. They said their defibrillator was 'broke', they did not give oxygen, IV, Narcan, NOTHING. They did finally fake CPR and took him to the ER. I got all medical records.
The hospital ER doctor emphatically noted on the records that NO NARCAN nor intubation had been done prior to reaching the ER. The ER immediately administered Narcan, but it was way too late by then, like 30 minutes after I found David gasping. The hospital restored a heartbeat with medication and machines. They only kept him on those for 3 minutes, "per hospital protocol", then removed all support and David died. the ER would NOT let me go to him, as I had managed to do in 2003. I guess they learned that mothers do not give up on their sons, so they locked the ER room from the lobby. I am sorry this story was so long. It was and is hell for me. If you want to learn of many, many more life saving stories, look at the Harm Reduction thread at www.bluelight.ru . Yes, it is a foreign website drug users frequent, but they are more knowledgeable and compassionate than most US 'professionals', and families."
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Such a powerful story, thank you for sharing 