Gibson’s charitable branch Gibson Gives has launched its all-new TEMPO initiative – a program that seeks to combat cases of opioid overdoses in the music industry and educate individuals on how to save lives in the event they discover someone in the midst of an overdose.
According to its mission statement, TEMPO – an acronym for Training and Empowering Musicians to Prevent Overdose – trains and empowers individuals to use and administer Narcan's naloxone, a nasal spray designed to alleviate and prevent overdoses.
With over 56% of opioid overdoses occurring in private homes beyond the immediate reach of hospitals, TEMPO hopes to stimulate widespread naloxone distribution to musicians, music venues and the industries that support musicians, making them more accessible where needed.
The program also provides resources for counseling aimed at supporting opioid users, as well as those who have lost loved ones or bandmates to overdoses.
In a dedicated training segment on TEMPO’s website, the main signs of an opioid overdose are listed as “not breathing, blue lips and fingernails” and “doesn’t respond to attempts to rouse,” with an eight-minute video informing viewers how naloxone can be administered in emergencies.
“Losing even one musician to overdose is too many. Opiod abuse is real,” reads a statement on TEMPO’s website. “Someone you know right now is abusing opioids and you probably don’t even know it.
“TEMPO is a program where our mission is to create a network where we can train musicians and anyone tethered to the music industry to use naloxone so they will be empowered to save lives in the event they discover someone in the midst of an overdose.”
So far, Gibson Gives has partnered with nine non-profits for the cause – founding members Harbor Path, MusiCares, Musicians for Overdose Prevention and Solace For Hope, as well as four additional organizations including National Harm Reduction Coalition, The Roadie Clinic, The SCARS Foundation and Life By Music Foundation.
Together, they form the TEMPO Member Network, which works to administer the potentially life-saving training that could save musicians from opioid overdoses in the future.
In summer 2021, a series of "powered by TEMPO" programs will appear at a number of concert venues, clubs and recording studios, in a bid to raise awareness for the cause.
To find out more about its mission, or to donate, visit TEMPO.
