BART hires standby paramedics to minimize train delays

[MMiz]

BART hires standby paramedics to minimize train delays

BART is hiring paramedics to be on standby at its busiest stations so sick riders can get help faster and trains can get moving again faster.

The transit board agreed Thursday to pay $403,500 to King American Ambulance Company over three years to station paramedics at the Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell and Civic Center stations during rush hours to respond to passenger medical emergencies.

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Do you think this could catch on in other cities?

 

[Airwaygoddess]

It is going to be interesting to see how they will get reimbursements.........

 

[VentMedic]

I wonder if SFFD EMS is still going to respond?

Usually the response from SFFD EMS is within 4 - 6 minutes which is good considering the elevators rarely work. It is the on scene working time in the trains that takes another 20 - 30 minutes and then the packaging/moving time. BART police usually arrives several minutes after EMS to secure the area. Their delay also slows the process greatly.

King-American is probably welcoming this contract after losing another huge one.

Hopefully the Paramedics have gotten their intubations, IVs and ALS knowledge up to par for 911 calls.

 

[mycrofft]

Catch on in other cities

Not in Sacramento. We barely have transit police.

 

[VentMedic]

It is going to be interesting to see how they will get reimbursements.........

BART is better known as a long distance commuter train. The stations mentioned are in the heart of the business district in SF. The riders on BART may be more likely to have insurance and credit cards. MUNI, SF's local commuter railway, is also in those stations one level above BART. I would be curious if King-American will have to leave their assigned posts to cover those trains also if there is an 911 emergency. The MUNI trains are cheaper and you can use the transfers on other buses for extended periods of time. They usually have more medical emergencies than the BART because the homeless and the "not so well" or aging locals use MUNI for transportation to their doctors' appointments and just everyday commutes or errands.

 

[karaya]

It is going to be interesting to see how they will get reimbursements.........

They won't. BART is paying for the medics to standby just like standing by at an event. If there is a transport then the EMS provider would bill the patient for the transport just like any other patient in the city.

 

[JPINFV]

Do you think this could catch on in other cities?

After riding the subway in Boston (MBTA, AKA "The T") almost daily for almost a year, I don't think it will matter. At least out here, there is much more likely to be a delay because of a train that broke down or a "signaling problem" than a medical emergency. In fact, I think I can count on one hand the amount of times I've heard medical emergencies being used as a reason for a delay (serious delays get a PA message that includes a reason for the delay in that line's stations).

 

[firecoins]

It is going to be interesting to see how they will get reimbursements.........

not all EMS agencies ask for reimbursment. The agreement that the local response medics have, they don't get reimbursed by medicare/insurance. the towns are paying for the service so reimbursment is considered double charging.

 

[mikeylikesit]

Sounds like a pretty good idea...of coarse i have never lived in an area with a transit system of that caliber.

 

[Jon]

Sounds cool. I would think the idea would almost be for these guys to have a "first aid station" or similar, so they can pull the patient off the train and work them up in private until local EMS arrives to transport. This gets them rapid care, and also gets them off the train. There should be almost no reason the patient can't be moved somewhere else to assess them, as long as there aren't obvious immanent life threats.

 

[imsquishy]

Not a bad idea, now if they can just get BART to run to the north bay, (ie Santa Rosa), I'll be happy.

/me gets down off soap box and walks away.

 

[WuLabsWuTecH]

I'm wondering how bgof an issue medical emergencies are on trains. In St. Louis, our school hsa contracted with the Metro to provide most of our campus transit including a stretch of the train/subway from main campus to the medical campus. I took that about 4 times a week and never heard of any delays due to medical issues (actually since the trains never follow their schedule anyway, i wouldn't know, but no train was running 20-30 minutes late!)