B.C. marks two years of overdose prevention through mobile app

It’s been two years since a drug poisoning prevention app has been operational in B.C.

B.C. launched the Lifeguard Digital Health App in May 2020, which can be activated by a user before taking their dose and, after 50 seconds, an alarm will sound. If the user does not hit a button to stop the alarm, it will increase in volume. If the individual still hasn’t responded to indicate they are okay, then the app will trigger medical assistance with a call to ambulance services.

In the first two years of operation, the app has been downloaded by more than 9,000 people in B.C. and has been activated for 104,783 sessions. Through the use of the app, there have been 132 cases where an ambulance needed to be called, 96 of which resulted in the individual being okay, and 28 cases where drug poisonings were reversed.

There have been no deaths in B.C. where a person was using the Lifeguard Digital Health App.

In the Interior, the app has been activated for 12,084 sessions between May 2020 and May 2022, including 422 sessions in April of 2022 alone. However, in the entire two years, there have only been 14 cases that needed an ambulance response in the Interior.

“The Lifeguard Digital Health App has a proven track record of keeping people safe and is an important part of our government’s response to the toxic, unpredictable illicit drug supply,” said Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson.

The app has evolved since its launch to now include access to additional crisis lines, substance use supports, drug alerts, and guides to perform CPR and deliver Naloxone.

More information on the Lifeguard Digital Health App can be found here.

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