It's 'confidential.' Alberta won't say if overdose response app is saving lives

Nearly two years after the launch of an overdose prevention app, the Alberta government refuses to say whether the Digital Overdose Response System (DORS) is saving lives.

A spokesperson for the minister of mental health and addiction would only say the app has been downloaded 3,700 times and has nearly 1,100 registered users.

But has it saved lives?

The government won't say.

"DORS is a confidential and anonymous service," Colin Aitchison wrote in an email to CBC News.

"Our goal is to save lives while still protecting the privacy of Albertans. In an effort to ensure people feel safe using the app, we will not be releasing any additional information on the EMS responses or any data that could potentially identify a specific person," he said.

Shortly after its launch, the app came under fire from a Calgary-based app developer, harm reduction advocates and a group of mothers who have lost children to overdoses.

Petra Schulz, whose son died of an overdose in 2014 and has since become a harm-reduction advocate, refuses to recommend the app to people who use drugs.

She's concerned people who use the app could have their drug use added to their personal health profile or face criminal charges. Schulz says her other concern is the lack of transparency and accountability regarding the app's efficacy.

"I think a lot of people would have concerns about having a record of their substance use on their health file," she said.

"Frankly, the other concern I have since the app was launched is that we don't have data on it," Schulz said.

The government spokesperson says DORS is confidential and anonymous and personal health information is not collected. 

"The app was designed to save lives while still protecting a person's privacy," Aitchison said.

Alberta's DORS app requires the person using drugs to anonymously enter their phone number and location. They'll start a timer, which automatically alerts emergency responders if they become unresponsive after the timer ends and an alarm is sounded. An attempt to connect with the user would be made to determine whether emergency medical services need to be dispatched.