UW’s Second Chance App Offers Help to Opioid Users
An innovative new app developed by the University of Washington could be a lifesaver
By Beau Iverson July 24, 2019
This article originally appeared in the August 2019 issue of Seattle magazine.
This article appears in print in the August 2019 issue. Click here to subscribe.
Opioid addiction is an issue that hits close to home: In 2017, King County saw 260 opioid-involved overdose deaths, a number that’s on the rise. Shyam Gollakota, an associate professor at the University of Washington’s Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, is working to stop that trend.
With a team of UW researchers, Gollakota has developed the Second Chance app, a smartphone-based intervention intended for people who are using injectable opioids illegally.
Still in the testing phase, the app uses sonar to detect overdose-related breathing irregularities in drug users, and when an irregularity occurs, the app alerts lifesaving services. The team’s goal is for users to activate the app before they inject the drug, enabling the app to monitor their breathing. So far, in tests, Second Chance has been effective about 90 percent of the time.
“I would think that this can really save a lot of lives in places like Seattle that do not have a supervised injection facility,” Gollakota says. The ultimate goal? To make the app easily accessible to all who could benefit, increasing the opportunity for a second chance.
Follow Us
Downtown Seattle Again Draws More Workers, Visitors
The number of visitors approaches pre-pandemic levels
Downtown foot traffic hit yet another milestone last month. The Downtown Seattle Association says March averaged 101,000 daily workers, the highest average since March 2020. The figure is still only 60% of foot traffic in March 2019 as employees continue working remotely, but is a 12% increase from a year ago. More than 2.5 million…
Curvy Cactus, Chub Rub Launch Seattle’s First Fat Mall
The new pop-up marketplace highlights local makers and body-affirming fashion
Seattle Fat Mall — the city’s first-ever — will turn the Curvy Cactus storefront on Fourth Avenue into a monthlong pop-up marketplace for plus-size fashion, art, and gifts from local makers. “We envision Seattle Fat Mall as more than just a retail space. It’s a celebration of our community,” say Amber and Alyss Seelig, sisters…
New Federal Rules Hit Eastside Youth Services
The Kirkland nonprofit is forced to scale back in response to shifting federal policy
In a region already struggling to meet the needs of unhoused youth, one of the Eastside’s most prominent youth service providers is cutting key programs in response to a rash of federal funding restrictions. Friends of Youth will no longer accept certain federal funding, citing recent executive orders and new restrictions tied to U.S. Department…
Would You Go See the Tulips… at Night?
Night Bloom returns with a few new surprises
It’s still cold out. But that’s part of the charm. Throw on a puffer and a beanie and go see the tulips after dark. Tulip Valley Farms in Mount Vernon is running Night Bloom again this year, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: glowing tulip fields lit by lasers, Edison bulbs, and interactive stomp…