upper waypoint

Pilot Program Uses Paramedics to Cut ER Overcrowding

Save ArticleSave Article
Failed to save article

Please try again

Emergency medical technician Ivan Ufimtsev of AmeriCare Ambulance brings a patient into UCLA Medical Center and Orthopedic Hospital in Santa Monica. (Maya Sugarman/KPCC)

The call comes in late on a recent afternoon: A 48-year-old woman is complaining of shortness of breath and a pain in her chest. Firefighters and paramedics from Santa Monica Fire Station Number One jump in their rig, navigating the traffic-filled city streets with sirens blaring and horn honking until they reach their destination several blocks away.

It’s a fairly routine case. Santa Monica’s first responders handle up to 40 medical 911 calls each day, says Capt. Matthew Hill, the Fire Department’s head of paramedic training.

In most instances — this call included — patients require follow-up care by emergency room doctors. But for others, it’s not necessary. And for them, some experts say, transport to an urgent care clinic may provide quicker care and a much smaller bill.

“For minor and non life-threatening types of problems, they really are a good option for the consumer,” says Baxter Larmon, a professor of medicine and director of UCLA’s Center for Prehospital Care.

Sponsored

Larmon will be testing out that theory starting this month in parts of Santa Monica and Glendale. Under the pilot programs he’s heading in those cities — and in similar pilot projects happening in three other regions of the state — paramedics will be allowed to offer qualified patients a trip to an urgent care clinic instead of an ER (a state law requiring transport to an ER was waived for the pilot projects).

Read the full story via KPCC

lower waypoint
next waypoint