Free Fentanyl Test Strip Kits Now Available at the Emergency Department, 24/7

Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center (PVHMC) now offers community members fentanyl test strips. The test strips will be provided 24/7 in the Emergency Department in a free kit that also contains naloxone, a lifesaving medicine that temporarily reverses opioid overdose.

Fentanyl is an extremely powerful synthetic opioid that can be abused and added to other drugs, often leading to a life-threatening or fatal overdose event. Accidental fentanyl deaths in Los Angeles County increased 1,652% between 2016 and 2022, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Health.

The all-in-one kits streamline the process of testing a drug for the presence of fentanyl by packaging together a measuring scoop, the fentanyl test strip, a water pouch and test instructions. Users will simply dissolve a small sample of the drug in water, insert the test strip and can read the results in just five minutes.

“Opioid misuse is a growing public health problem that has continued to grow over the last decade and is wreaking havoc among families and our community,” says Sherrie Cisneros, Substance Use Nurse Navigator at PVHMC. “The fentanyl test strips are a valuable and effective harm reduction tool, as they allow individuals to make safer, informed decisions about their drug use, and will save lives.”

PVHMC receives the fentanyl test strips as part of the California Department of Health Care Services’ Naloxone Distribution Project, which also provides the hospital with free naloxone.

The hospital developed and implemented a substance use program in 2020, when its Emergency Department began distributing the naloxone at no cost to community members. Since then, PVHMC has become a leader in substance use best practices and is heavily involved in community education.

Signs and symptoms of a suspected fentanyl overdose include:

• Small, constricted “pinpoint” pupils
• Falling asleep or losing consciousness
• Slow, weak or not breathing
• Choking or gurgling sounds
• Limp body
• Cold and/or clammy skin
• Discolored skin (especially in lips and nails)

For more information on PVHMC’s Substance Use Program, click here. Learn more about the fentanyl test strips here.