Elizabeth Preston

I am honored to receive an APhA Foundation Incentive Grant to further explore the best and most effective strategies to inform and educate the college community on where to obtain, when to use, and how to use naloxone in the setting of an overdose. This grant will allow me to increase engagement with my community pertaining to opioid overdose education, as well as inform others on how best to engage their community. The more people who know how to use naloxone, the more people are empowered to save the lives of their friends, family, and peers in the case of a deadly emergency.

My motivation behind my project proposal is the opportunity to save the college community from experiencing a death due to an opioid overdose by empowering members of the community to feel comfortable and confident using naloxone. College is a time when individuals may experiment with illicit substances that can be unknowingly cut or contaminated with powerful opioids like fentanyl, which can be lethal even in small doses. This project will not only hopefully increase knowledge, awareness, and accessibility of naloxone, but also develop strategies and teaching methods for others to utilize in engaging their communities on naloxone education.

I am most excited that this opportunity will enable me to engage a larger portion of my community! This grant will allow me to offer incentive rewards for participation, enabling me to capture more information on naloxone educational strategies and likely increase participation and engagement from the college community. I am grateful and honored to have been awarded this APhA Foundation Incentive Grant to help me invest in my community.