ArticleEClinicalMedicine2020
Layperson reversal of opioid overdose supported by smartphone alert: A prospective observational cohort study.
Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 29 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Piloting a Naloxone Intervention in an Emergency Response Community to Reduce Opioid Overdoes in Philadelphia
UnityPhilly Response App for Overdose Reversal: Assessing Citywide Effectiveness and Sustainability
Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 47 citations in OpenAlex.
- Scoping evidence review on the prevention and treatment of opioid overdose.Harm reduction journal · 2026Review
- Article
- Policy recommendations for overdose response hotlines and applications as a harm reduction tool: A commentary.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2026Article
- Overdose-Related Cardiac Arrest in the Era of the Opioid Epidemic.Critical care clinics · 2026Review
- "It's something we're connected to": Acceptability and adoption of overdose detection technologies implemented in San Francisco permanent supportive housing.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2025Article
- "Oh, Another Overdose, for the Love of Pete": First Responder Perspectives on Overdose Response Technology.The western journal of emergency medicine · 2025Article
- An evidence-based digital prescription opioid safety toolkit for national dissemination: co-design and user testing.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- Layperson-Administered Naloxone Trends Reported in Emergency Medical Service Activations, 2020-2022.JAMA network open · 2024Article
- Perspectives of Canadian Healthcare and Harm Reduction Workers on Mobile Overdose Response Services: A Qualitative Study.Substance use & addiction journal · 2024Article
- Using qualitative system dynamics modeling to understand overdose bystander behavior in the context of Connecticut's Good Samaritan Laws and identify effective policy options.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- The Feasibility of Using the National PulsePoint Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Responder Network to Facilitate Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2024Article
- Understanding the barriers and facilitators to implementing and sustaining Mobile Overdose Response Services from the perspective of Canadian key interest groups: a qualitative study.Harm reduction journal · 2024Article
- Key Features in Designing an Integrated Recall System for Dispatch in Mass Casualty Incidents; a Systematic Review.Archives of academic emergency medicine · 2024Review
- Predictive Dispatch of Volunteer First Responders: Algorithm Development and Validation.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2023Article
- Experiences Administering Naloxone Among People in Different Social Roles: People Who Use Opioids and Family Members and Friends.Journal of drug issues · 2023Article
- Safety in solitude? Competing risks and drivers of solitary drug use among women who inject drugs and implications for overdose detection.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2023Article
- "It's just a perfect storm": Exploring the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on overdose risk in British Columbia from the perspectives of people who use substances.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Overdose Alert and Response Technologies: State-of-the-art Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Review
- Article
- Overdose Detection Technologies to Reduce Solitary Overdose Deaths: A Literature Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundRapid naloxone administration is crucial in reversing an opioid overdose. We investigated whether equipping community members, including people who use opioids (PWUO), with a smartphone application enabling them to signal and respond to suspected overdose would support naloxone administration in advance of Emrgency Medical Services (EMS).
methodsThis observational cohort study of opioid overdose intervention used a dedicated smartphone app, UnityPhilly, activated by volunteers witnessing an overdose to signal other nearby volunteers in Philadelphia (March 2019 - February 2020). Alerted volunteers chose to respond, or declined to respond, or ignored/missed the alert. Witnessing volunteer was connected to 9-1-1 through a semi-automated telephone call. The primary outcome was layperson-initiated overdose reversal before EMS arrival, and a secondary outcome was hospital transfer. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03305497.
findings112 volunteers, including 57 PWUO and 55 community members, signaled 291 suspected opioid overdose alerts. 89 (30⸱6%) were false alarms. For 202 true alerts, the rate of layperson initiated naloxone use was 36⸱6% (74/202 cases). Most naloxone-use cases occurred in the street (58⸱11% (43/74)) and some in home settings (22⸱98% (17/74)). The first naloxone dose was provided by a nearby volunteer responding to the alert in 29⸱73% (22/74) of cases and by the signaling volunteer in 70⸱27% (52/74) of cases. Successful reversal was reported in 95⸱9% (71/74) of cases. Layperson intervention preceded EMS by 5 min or more in 59⸱5% of cases. Recovery without hospital transport was reported in 52⸱7% (39/74) of cases.
interpretationOur findings support the benefits of equipping community members, potentially witnessing suspected opioid overdose, with naloxone and an emergency response community smartphone app, alerting EMS and nearby laypersons to provide additional naloxone.
fundingFunding provided by NIH through NIDA, grant number: 5R34DA044758.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.