LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Some local high school students watched a reenactment of an overdose death of a former graduate as part of a tough lesson on Monday.
The session was part of an overdose simulation at Central Hardin High School.
It was a disturbing scene witnessed by students at the school on Monday afternoon.
"It was very emotional," said Kiris Ray,a student.
The first responders, the coroner and the body bag were real.
"It was just very impactful for me," Ray said.
But the grieving mother and patient were actors.
"It was a simulation of a fatal fentanyl overdose," said Erin Priddy, BSN, RN. "We took the kids from the home scene to the emergency departments, to the ICU and then to the morgue."
It was a scene and storyline that hits close to home for the Central Hardin High School community. 18-year-old Central Hardin graduate Andrew Mykytiuk died from an overdose.
"He was just at a friend's house," Priddy said. "He had spent the night, his parents got a call at 6 a.m. that he had overdosed."
Mykytiuk's sister shared the story to students on Monday.
"We got to the point where he was brain dead, he had gone too long without oxygen," she said to students.
Baptist Health Hardin did a reenactment of his death in front of the entire student body.
"The young lady that was on the video and my daughter were very, very good friends," said principal Tim Isaacs. "I watched Andrew grow up."
Although it is painful to watch, Isaacs hopes it got students' attention.
"If it gets through to even just a few that it's just not worth it, then it was well worth everybody's time," Isaacs said.
Ray admitted that she sees a lot of people here age using drugs. It was also a powerful wakeup call for students who didn't know Mykytiuk.
"Thinking about what I would do if my brother was the one who passed away was very difficult for me," Ray said.
It was the second time Baptist Health has done the reenactment. It plans to continue showing it at schools around the region.
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