Wellness at Penn’s Substance Use, Prevention, Education, and Recovery Program has implemented several safety measures ahead of Spring Fling weekend and “4/20.”
Members of the SUPER team — a program that reduces harm related to substance use at Penn — will be present at the Spring Fling Concert on Friday to promote harm reduction and help students get into the concert. During the concert, SUPER will have a tent set up, staffed by volunteers who are available to help students in need of medical attention.
SUPER has also created social media posts to share harm reduction tips for Spring Fling. Trainor Macrone, Wellness at Penn's substance use specialist, emphasized the importance of staying safe from dehydration, as drinking alcohol, increased physical activity such as dancing, and additional substance use can all result in dehydration.
Macrone advises that students drink water before, during, and after the concert to remain hydrated, eat something before using substances, know how substances could potentially interact with any prescription medicines that students take, and stay well rested.
“Mindset has a lot to do with how substances act with your body, so it is important to be well-rested,” Macrone said.
Macrone also recommended that students have a plan for how they are going to go to and leave the concert and organize in a buddy system.
In preparation for April 20 — a day that is colloquially associated with the smoking of marijuana — the SUPER program will also use social media to educate students about the effects of mixing cannabis with other substances.
Jackie Recktenwald, Wellness at Penn's director of wellbeing initiatives, emphasized the importance of Penn’s medical amnesty policy. She encouraged that students call Penn's Medical Emergency Response Team if they need medical attention.
“Penn has a medical amnesty policy, so students will not be in trouble with the University if they call for help from MERT or the public safety number 215-573-3333 if they have used substances,” she said.
On April 17, SUPER and MERT hosted an event on Locust Walk to train students, faculty, and staff on how to administer Narcan nasal spray. Narcan is an overdose reversal drug that is used to combat overdoses from opioids like fentanyl, heroin, or morphine.
Macrone told The Daily Pennsylvanian that the SUPER team trained approximately 60 students and was “very successful for the hour that the event lasted.” She added that the Narcan administration training was similar to the training event held leading up to St. Patrick’s Day weekend.
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