Minutes Matter –
Mar. 2, 2019 – Izraylov, 41, joins other tinkerers who have tried to attack overdoses with technology. One app, released in 2016 but apparently no longer available, alerted an emergency contact if users didn’t push a button on their smartphones once a timer elapsed.
Another one, still in development, turns a smartphone’s microphone and speaker into a mini-sonar system that can detect a person’s breathing. If respiration appears to slow significantly or stop altogether — hallmarks of an opioid overdose — the phone alerts emergency responders.
Izraylov, who runs an Evanston, Ill.-based addiction and mental health counseling service, isn’t taking such a high-tech approach. His app simply connects drug users with volunteers via phone, email or text chat, and they make arrangements on where to meet (Izraylov said about 90 minutes lead time is necessary).
