From WAVE3:
There is a new program in Louisville that could lower the cost of healthcare for insurance companies, emergency services, and patients.
Louisville is only the second place in the country to try this program. It starts with that initial 911 call, where medical professionals are now on-hand to ask the caller more questions and find out if he or she really does need an ambulance.
“Sir, how long have you had your earache?” asked Lt Col. Rick Roller, a nurse with Metro EMS on a practice call.
Metro EMS gets dispatched 130,000 times each year and an estimated 20 percent are what they call low-priority calls.
“Instead of waiting in the emergency department for seven hours to be seen maybe for a twisted ankle, we can get you to a primary provider who can take care of it that much more quickly,” said CEO of Metro EMS Dr. Neal Richmond.
This new system will direct a dozen calls each day to a nurse, who will go through a series of questions to determine if the patient would be better treated at an urgent care center, clinic, or doctor’s office and will even set up an appointment if needed.
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