Date of Award

Spring 2025

Document Type

Project – Full Written

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Committee Chair

Nicole Waters

Abstract

Introduction: The opioid crisis remains a significant public health concern, with opioid-related overdoses continuing to rise. Naloxone (Narcan) is a life-saving medication that can reverse opioid overdoses, yet many community members lack awareness and training on its use. This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project aimed to implement and evaluate a community-based Narcan education program to improve knowledge, accessibility, and confidence in administering Narcan.

Method: Using a quality improvement framework, the project targeted community members servicing the homeless population. Pre- and post-education surveys assessed changes in participants' knowledge and attitudes toward opioid overdose response.

Results: Findings demonstrated a significant increase in knowledge and confidence in administering Narcan, highlighting the effectiveness of community education initiatives.

Conclusion: This project underscores the importance of empowering communities with evidence-based interventions to combat the opioid crisis. Future recommendations include expanding education efforts, increasing Narcan availability, and advocating for policy changes to enhance opioid harm reduction strategies.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

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