The University of North Texas is the first public college in Texas to get a free naloxone vending machine, and Regan Browne, director of the Recovery and Intervention Support and Education Center — called RISE — considers it a win.
Browne is new to the director’s chair at RISE, and she was among locals who attended the unveiling of a naloxone vending machine at Rubber Gloves Rehearsal Studios, a storied Denton music venue, in June. A teen survived an overdose there in April because a quick-thinking patron knew the signs and administered naloxone, the generic form of the brand-name drug Narcan. Naloxone is a nasal spray that can reverse the effects of opioids, even a potentially lethal dose.
“I wanted to show support,” Browne said, thinking back to the event at Rubber Gloves, which brought the free vending machine to the venue through a partnership with the local nonprofit Reacting to Opioid Overdose, UT Health San Antonio and Be Well Texas, which oversees the statewide initiative Naloxone Texas.
“To be honest, I was like, ‘This is incredible.’ [At] UNT, we already have naloxone on campus, because they push that initiative as well for harm reduction.”
UT Health San Antonio and Be Well Texas were also both part of the installation at UNT.
Browne said the naloxone vending machine is a step toward educating students, staff and the public about reducing the considerable harm that opioids pose.
But for Browne, the vending machine is another step toward lowering the stigma of substance dependency and addiction. The addiction and recovery community asserts that reducing stigma lowers barriers to help that might otherwise keep people locked in substance abuse disorders longer, which makes recovery more arduous.
“I was like, ‘This is just new,’” Browne said. “It’s creative. And also it’s 24/7 access. You know, it is also for community members, as well. There is no card swiping.”
The vending machine project is relatively new, with about 112 locations operating so far.
Browne said UNT is the first campus to get a vending machine because of the “huge recovery community within Denton.”
But she also gives credit to UNT leadership and their understanding of harm and stigma reduction and interest in recovery education that is integrated, with students, faculty and staff knowing how to plug people into RISE services and programs. Browne said she has already made presentations on campus and found staff and faculty who might feel out of their depth when it comes to recovery and intervention, but know how to link students and colleagues to programs at RISE.
The machines are another way to make it easier to plug in. The vending machine stocks roughly 300 boxes of naloxone. Each box contains two spray bottles. Anyone who wants to carry naloxone simply enters the number of a dispensing row and then can keep the naloxone for four years, which is the shelf life of the product, Browne said.
What if you’re not sure if someone has overdosed? Browne said using the nasal sprays won’t hurt someone who is having a different medical emergency. Like the machine, each box has instructions: Call 911, administer the spray and wait for help.
It can take a few minutes for the spray to reverse an overdose, Browne said, and in the event the person in need is having a crisis not related to overdose, first responders can step in.
After it was delivered, Browne sat near the vending machine, which is located just outside Chestnut Hall, to see if anyone noticed it.
“I was just sitting there with my earbuds in, and I watched people walk up and get it,” Browne said.
The vending machine has already been emptied several times in just a few weeks. That’s shouldn’t make people worried that consumption means that each box dispensed correlates to an active user.
“What we’re trying to do is create more allies,” Browne said. “I think this is a step in the right direction, and I’m excited for what comes next.”
LUCINDA BREEDING-GONZALES can be reached at 940-566-6877 and cbreeding@dentonrc.com.
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