I watched an interesting episode of “Chicago Fire” last night. I’m not sure if it was last week’s episode or the week before. I think I had three weeks of shows on my DVR.
It wasn’t the part where Joe Cruz struggled on a rescue because he’s suffering PTSD or where Casey told the son of a close friend how his father died in a fire. It was where Sylvie was rejected for a presentation she made for something called ”paramedicine.”
Sylvie Brett, played by Kara Killmer, was dispatched to a scene with her partner where a young man had been stabbed. As they worked the patient his vital signs crashed and he died. Brett was upset about losing him and was really shaken by the whole incident. She felt that if an ambulance had arrived 15 minutes sooner they could have saved the young man.
The reason they weren’t there sooner was because the original ambulance was tied up with what paramedics call the “frequent flyer.” That’s a patient who calls 911 over and over again for something that doesn’t need emergency care. They call because of any number of reasons: their stomach hurts, a toothache, or they vomited…once. Often the real reason is because they’re lonely or scared. Some people think that if they call the ambulance they’ll be seen sooner at the emergency room. I hate to break it to you….but that’s not how it works. Once at the ER they determine your needs and then either bring you in or have you wait “in chairs,” AKA the lobby with everyone else. It doesn’t matter if you came in an ambulance, a taxi or your own car.
The problem, if an ambulance is tied up playing taxi for you, they are not available when an emergency happens somewhere else in town. That could cause a delay in someone else’s care and in the worst case scenario it prevents a medic from saving a life.
While watching the show with my wife Priscilla, the paramedic, she commented how it’s a real problem.
Is “paramedicine” a real thing or just something they came up with for a TV show? Yes, it’s real.
The website ems1.com says:
“Community paramedicine programs are beginning to grow across the nation, and the potential benefits of such programs are numerous and wide-reaching.
The concept of community paramedicine is quite broad in scope, allowing individual agencies to develop and implement a program that best meets the needs of their constituents. Three potential benefits of a community paramedicine program are:
- Chronic disease management and injury prevention.
- Reduced 911 requests and transports for non-urgent patients.
- The ability to provide appropriate follow-up care for high-risk patients without hospital readmission.
Reducing costs and providing more appropriate care can yield benefits for your agency and staff, as well as for the patients you serve.”
Could this work here in Massachusetts? Probably. However, like a lot of things, it can be expensive to start and some companies may not want to give up contracts they currently have. I definitely think it’s something to be looked at and, from what I understand, it is being used in some parts of the country and here in Massachusetts.
Until then, one thing you and I can do is try to educate our loved ones about not abusing the 911 system. If you have a real emergency, of course, use it. But if it’s something you can go to Urgent Care for, that’s what they’re there for. Maybe it could wait until morning so you can go to your own doctor.
Our emergency rooms are over crowded and many times the paramedics are tied up on calls that could keep them unavailable from someone who is having the worst day of their lives.
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