In 2010 the NTA helped 16 pilot sites across England to train the carers and relations of opiate misusers to respond to drug overdoses and use the antidote naloxone.

The project appears to have helped save lives. This was despite difficulties with recruitment, and limited evidence that carers are the most appropriate people to receive the training. While those carers who were trained said they found it valuable, a wider impact may be possible if the training focuses on all service users at risk of opioid overdose.

An overview of the main findings of the project follows, along with advice for local areas interested in setting up their own training programmes for carers. The appendices provide more detail about how the project was run and how the sites were evaluated.