Implementing Compassion Fatigue Prevention for Lay Employees Conducting Naloxone Training: An Example from Rural Arizona

ABSTRACT

As the opioid epidemic sweeps the nation, an increasing number of agencies are beginning to provide naloxone kits to the public. A rural county health department in Arizona that distributes naloxone kits realized the hidden consequences associated with distributing naloxone kits. For lay personnel who train lay people on how to administer naloxone kits, there are potential risks of compassion fatigue, secondary trauma, and burnout. Listening to the often trauma-laden stories of about loved ones misuse of opioids can evoke negative emotional feelings. Thus training on self-care to minimize secondary trauma is crucial and should be incorporated into naloxone distribution programs.

KEYWORDS:

• secondary trauma
• compassion fatigue
• self-care
• lay employees
• naloxone training

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Chuck Turney for his assistance with providing awareness on training gaps identified when administering naloxone.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This article was funded by grant number CDC-RFA-CE15-1501 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided by the Prescription Drug Overdose: Prevention for States, awarded to the Arizona Department of Health Services and to Arizona State University per Interagency Service Agreement Number ADHS18-187412.