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Following Massillon Incident, National Nurses Union Develops Protocols For Opioid Exposure

Cincinnati Police say the new cocktail, labeled "Gray Death", is seven times more potent than morphine and is gray in appearance.
ShutterShock
/
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU
Cincinnati Police say the new cocktail, labeled "Gray Death", is seven times more potent than morphine and is gray in appearance.
Cincinnati Police say the new cocktail, labeled "Gray Death", is seven times more potent than morphine and is gray in appearance.
Credit ShutterShock / STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU
/
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU
The three nurses passed out after cleaning the room.

A national nurses union is developing protocols for treating opioid patients after three Massillon nurses they represent were treated for fentanyl exposure.

The nurses from Affinity Medical Center were treated with Narcan after cleaning a patient’s room last week.

Michelle Mahon is with National Nurses United.

“People who are paying attention will see that this epidemic is really turning into a much more widespread problem, affecting emergency responders, nurses, as well as police officers out in the field and paramedics. We encourage hospitals to examine their policies and practices immediately.”

The protocol will be used to raise awareness of contamination in healthcare workplaces, as well as suggesting additional protections.

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Mitch Felan is a news intern for WKSU. He is a multimedia journalist with experience in print, television, radio and visual journalism. Felan is a junior at Kent State University, working towards a Bachelor's Degree in Multimedia Journalism. During the school year, Felan works for Kent State Student Media in TV2, The Kent Stater, and KentWired. He will be serving as the Digital Director for Kent State University's Student Media Newsroom in the Fall.