UKIAH, CA., 2/20/25 — The MCAHVN Care and Prevention Network, a nonprofit harm reduction center that helps those struggling with mental illness or substance use disorder, will lead an informational workshop at the Ukiah Branch Library on Tuesday on administering Narcan, the life-saving medication that can help reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
Narcan, the brand name for naloxone, blocks the impact of opioids on the brain and helps restore breathing to someone suffering from an overdose. The medication can restore normal breathing within two to three minutes of administration. Narcan can be given as a nasal spray or injected into the skin.
MCAHVN, formerly the Mendocino County AIDS and Viral Hepatitis Network, has provided harm reduction resources since its founding as an AIDS support services provider in 1987. In 2020, MCAHVN lost funding to provide AIDS resources, but the organization kept its name due to its historical significance in the community.
“MCAVHN has expertise in supported housing, working with those who are mentally ill, substance-using; have chronic illness and health conditions, including those chronically unhoused,” the organization’s website reads. “Our specialty and strength is making connections with persons experiencing co-occurring disorders.”
Megan Wolf, a library assistant at the Ukiah Branch Library and the organizer of the event, said workshops like MCAHVN’s allow the Mendocino County community to learn about how to help those who are struggling.
“I believe that MCAHVN’s goal is to try to get as much Narcan into the community as possible, because the more you have the better chance of saving someone,” Wolf said in an interview. “People will feel more empowered to use it if they know how to use it. I’ve had Narcan for a bit but haven’t gone through training on how to use it, so I am excited to have a formal training to ask questions.”
Wolf added that the Narcan workshop will bring much-needed education to the region, specifically for locals who may not know where to get Narcan or how to use it on someone experiencing an overdose. She noted that MCAHVN also provides free materials to the library to aid community members who need support.
“We have a great partnership with MCAHVN where they have been supplying materials to a free pantry we have outside the library. They have been giving us hygiene kits, period kits, Narcan and safe sex supplies,” she stated. “Since we are giving out Narcan, I was thinking let’s make a place for people to come together and learn how to use it.”
The MCAHVN Narcan workshop is free and open to the public, with no registration required. The training will be held on Tuesday at the Ukiah Branch Library at 5:30 p.m. All attendees will receive free Narcan medication.
For more information on the workshop, visit www.mendolibrary.org or call the Ukiah Branch Library at (707) 463-4490.