Virtual overdose monitoring may help reduce opioid deaths

Since 1999, more than 932,000 people have died from a drug overdose. In 2020, 91,799 drug overdose deaths occurred. The rate of overdose deaths has increased by 31% from 2019 to 2020.

Virtual overdose monitoring is a concept that has the potential to reduce the risk of death from opioids and other substances by offering timely and anonymous access to emergency care. This study is published in Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Isolation and solitary use of opioids and other substances are the main driver of overdose deaths, as people are unable to seek help. Virtual overdose monitoring using phone lines or smartphone apps can connect people anonymously with people who can develop personalized emergency response plans and supervise substance use. These services operate 24 hours a day and have no restrictions on the type of substances or how they are used.

Virtual overdose monitoring services are novel public health interventions capable of providing timely and accessible harm reduction and overdose prevention services for people who use substances. Evidence suggests that virtual overdose monitoring services have promise as an adjunct to supervised consumption services in the continuum of care for people who use substances.

Reference:

Virtual overdose monitoring may help reduce opioid deaths; CANADIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION JOURNAL, DOI: 10.1503/cmaj.220579.