Smart watches and wristbands could detect and prevent drug overdoses

People at risk of dying from drugs could be saved by overdose detecting technology.

Using the power of artificial intelligence (AI), a new project is aiming to revolutionise the way drug overdoses are detected and how healthcare services can prevent them.

Scientists are examining ways that wearable technology - such as smartphones, watches and wristbands - can alert users and healthcare services when the wearer experiences a drug overdose. 

Drug-related deaths have reached a record level across England and Wales with the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), showing a rise in deaths for the ninth year in a row. 

The UK government has now announced a new £5 million fund to reduce these rates, as part of Vaccine Taskforce style approach to tackle health challenges. 

The ‘DoseCare’ project - led by Manchester Metropolitan University in partnership with Queen’s University of Belfast, University of Stirling, Drug and Alcohol Research Network (Northern Ireland) and the Salvation Army (Scotland) - will use part of this funding.  

By focusing on two groups of drug users with different levels of awareness of the risks associated with their drug use, researchers will develop wearable technologies and smart phone applications tailored to different needs that will improve patient outcomes and enhance the way care is delivered for people at risk of a drug overdose. 

Dr Li Guo, Senior Lecturer in Artificial Intelligence at Manchester Met, said: “We believe that by using non-medical wearable products such as a smartwatch, wristband or smartphone apps that are already available to everyone, we can create a service that uses AI to not only accurately detect and respond to instances of overdose, but also offer improved care for individuals who use drugs.” 

Although the concept of using wearables and mobile apps to help people manage their own health is not new, the technology is limited in what it can achieve on current devices and platforms.  

Through the project, researchers will build and develop ways around these limitations and design new applications that will be available and accessible for everyone. 

Dr Guo added: “Individuals who have suffered an overdose are vulnerable and frequently unable to manage their own care, particularly during an overdose event and they will rely on the assistance of caregivers. This is why it is vital for this new technology to detect overdose events accurately and effectively, while communicating them to caregivers.”  

The ways that drug overdoses will be detected by technology will differ depending on the needs of the user.  

For those with a high awareness of risks they are taking, easy-to-use communication tools or apps will allow them to report their own drug-taking to their caregivers. If this reporting is interrupted, an overdose alarm will be triggered, and medical assistance will be arranged immediately at the user’s location.  

For those with less awareness and control of their drug use, researchers will develop tools or apps that provide automatic and personalised alarm signals for detecting overdose events.  

The project is part of the Reducing Drug Deaths Innovation Challenge, which includes 12 projects to develop technologies aimed at improving detection, response, or intervention in potential drug-related deaths. 

More widely, the projects will help the government’s objective to improve urgent and emergency care and increase the resources available to healthcare professionals to treat drug overdoses. 

Minister of State for Health Will Quince said: “Drug use has a devastating impact on people’s health, their families and their livelihoods and every year over 4,000 people in the UK die from an avoidable drug overdose. 

“We want to stop people taking these substances and support them to recover from their addictions, while preventing those most at risk from dying from overdoses. 

“This fund forms part of our healthcare mission programme as we take a Vaccine Taskforce style approach to some of the biggest challenges facing our society today, backed by over £200 million.”