NEW SERVICE — Individuals with SELF Discovery and the Jefferson County General Health District held doses of naloxone and stood with SELF Discovery’s new naloxone distribution box. From left are, front, Kerry Sneddon, SELF Discovery director; Kylie Smogonovich, JCGHD nursing director; Rachel Shorac, JCGHD medical assistant, and Jenna Porter, SELF Discovery therapist, and, back, Katie Bush, SELF Discovery administrative assistant, and Gale Kleinedler, SELF Discovery therapist. -- Contributed

MINGO JUNCTION — A large purple box now stands in the entrance hallway of SELF Discovery, a three-phase intensive outpatient program provider for drug and alcohol abuse. Tall with an openable face, the box is reminiscent of a newspaper dispenser, but instead of papers, this box contains free doses of the life-saving drug naloxone.

The box acts like a vending machine members of the general public can use during the organization’s open hours. As soon as they walk inside, individuals can reach into the box and grab a dose of naloxone, which is used to rapidly reverse opioid overdoses.

When the box is getting depleted, SELF Discovery need only let the Jefferson County General Health District know, and staff will arrive with a fresh stock. The box is marked with instructions on how to use naloxone, given in the form of a nasal spray.

Located at 220 E. Murdock Ave., Mingo Junction, SELF Discovery installed its box at the end of October, motivated by the desire to make naloxone more available for the public to access, specifically in a private and judgment-free area.

“We got the box for community members to have access (to naloxone) who might not have access any other way,” said Kerry Sneddon, director at SELF Discovery, which is owned by Florida-based Chrysalis Health.

“For the public, we’re hoping to see fewer overdoses while utilizing more (naloxone.) Even for family members who may know somebody or a neighbor who might know somebody who’s using in the neighborhood, that they might have that easily accessible to them, ready to use, and not have to pay for it,” Sneddon said, adding that doses have always been available for clients or their families in the event of a relapse.

SELF Discovery’s purpose is to bring recovery services to the local community, primarily Mingo Junction, Sneddon said, adding that the organization is “very grateful” for the JCGHD, which made this new service possible.

The box at SELF Discovery is part of an order submitted earlier this year to an Ohio Department of Health regional opioid recovery grant program, for which the JCGHD partners with the Stark County Health Department. Through the grant, the ODH provided the JCGHD with four newspaper box-style naloxone distribution boxes, as well as six wall-mounted emergency kit-style ones.

Local organizations can agree to host a box, which the public can use to obtain naloxone doses. Host organizations will monitor their box’s use and contact the JCGHD when refills are needed.

“(Naloxone use) is important to us,” said Health Commissioner Andrew Henry. “To me, the first step in recovery is getting naloxone out to the community. When somebody’s in need of naloxone, you’re talking about somebody who is really in a bad place. If you give them that second chance through utilizing naloxone to reverse that overdose, it’s the first step they need in their recovery process.”

Two of the new emergency kit-style boxes — which contain about two doses and a CPR kit — have already been claimed for the Jefferson County Tower Building, near existing AEDs. One box now resides on the first floor near the fountain entrance, while the other is on the sixth floor with the JCGHD’s offices.

Another of the four newspaper-style boxes is planned for Trinity Medical Center East. Wendy Ralston, Trinity’s director of behavioral health services, said the health system hopes to increase access to naloxone and save lives at the East campus. Serving a “diverse range of patients and visitors,” Trinity East no longer possesses an emergency room or emergency services, Ralston said, adding that naloxone “can buy life-saving time until emergency transport arrive.”

“Trinity Health System recognizes the vital role that naloxone can play in preventing overdose fatalities, especially given the prevalence of opioid related incidents in our community,” Ralston said. “As part of our commitment to providing comprehensive care and support, we believe that making naloxone easily accessible is an essential step in responding to the current state of overdoses affecting Jefferson County and beyond. … (Hosting a box) aligns with our broader mission to support health and safety in our community by proactively addressing challenges like the opioid crisis.”

That leaves two newspaper-style and four emergency kit-style boxes left to be claimed by willing agencies.

Three pre-existing naloxone distribution boxes are located at Family Recovery Center in Steubenville and in the men’s and women’s restrooms at a rest stop in Jefferson County’s north, by the intersection of state Route 7 and state Route 213. Considering all the locations, Henry said he’d like to see new boxes hosted in the Wintersville area and southern end of the county — Yorkville, Rayland or Tiltonsville, for example.

“We definitely want (organizations) to be a partner and understand that they’re going to have individuals who are in need of naloxone coming up to their property and accessing the (box),” Henry said. “We definitely need a welcoming agency that understands the importance of naloxone and making sure it’s readily available in the community.”

These boxes are not temperature-controlled and must remain inside. Henry said they’re more or less a “pilot” in the community, and once their effectiveness has been observed, the next step will be creating outdoor boxes with 24/7 access. One hope is the implementation of harm-reduction vending machines that, instead of snacks, dispense supplies like naloxone, hygiene kits or condoms — items the health department provides, so people can access them while the office is closed.

Boxes aren’t the health department’s only effort to prevent overdose deaths in the community. The JCGHD participated in the HEALing Communities Study funded by the National Institutes of Help. Running from 2019 to 2023, the study sought to reduce overdose deaths in vulnerable communities through evidence-based strategies, including overdose education and naloxone distribution. Henry said funding allowed the health department to do “boots-on-the-ground community prevention.”

With a bit of stock left from the HEALing Communities Study, the JCGHD provides free naloxone to the public out of its office, Henry said. The department also has a “sustainable relationship” with the ODH, obtaining naloxone through Project DAWN — Deaths Avoided with Naloxone.

Naloxone’s availability for and use by the general public remains controversial, with critics claiming that naloxone could encourage drug use by reducing the risk of death from an overdose or that overdose treatment should be reserved for medical professionals.

Supporters of take-home naloxone claim the drug itself is safe and effective even when used by non-medical personnel. Additionally, supporters say naloxone distribution is a method of “harm reduction” — the mitigation of physical or social consequences associated with drug use — that can prolong opioid users’ lives so they can undergo treatment.

Overdose deaths in Jefferson County saw a roughly 50 percent decline from 2022 to 2023, dropping from 42 to 22. At the end of this year, Henry said, the county is on track to see numbers similar to 2023, adding, “To see the numbers go down 50 percent and sustain that, it shows some progress.”