Fla. Nurse Dispatcher Program Reduces Non-Emergent Transports

[DrParasite]

Personally, I think this is a waste of a nurse, and a competent EMS provider could do the same task, but.....

To prevent ambulances from being dispatched to non-emergency calls, Volusia County created the E-911 Redirect Nurse Triage Program.

"We want to optimize the systems," said Peter Springer, Volusia County EMS director. "We want to make sure we have ambulances for these serious 911 calls."

The program is staffed with seven part-time nurses from Halifax Health and AdventHealth in addition to one full time-nurse. They have all been trained as 911 operators and work in the same room as the full-time county 911 operators.

If a 911 operator determines the call isn't serious enough to send an ambulance, they will transfer the call to the nurses. The nurses will then ask a list of questions based on the injury or illness and either give caller home-care instructions, refer them to a doctor or, in some cases, dispatch an ambulance.

Fla. Nurse Dispatcher Program Reduces Non-Emergent Transports

www.emsworld.com

 

[SandpitMedic]

Interesting to see this is becoming more main stream. Las Vegas started rolling this out in 2017; we would get nurse line alpha calls all the time which meant only a private ambulance responded in North and County areas (everything above alpha is dual response).

Better yet, if they deemed it even below an alpha- they would send an UBER to pick up the patient!

I concur a paramedic could do it and be trained further for any deficiencies, but I think the nurse is there for liability purposes.

Nurses answer 911 calls, freeing up resources in Las Vegas

A nurse hotline through Las Vegas Fire and Rescue has been working to handle urgent but less serious 911 calls.

www.fox5vegas.com

 

[DrParasite]

I concur a paramedic could do it and be trained further for any deficiencies, but I think the nurse is there for liability purposes.

Considering the nurse is reading from a script, I'm pretty sure even an EMT could do this..... as long as the scripted questions and answers were approved from the medical director.... I don't see any additional liability, provided they all follow the same directions.

 

[EMDispatch]

IAED made the canned scripts about 5-6 years ago. Interestingly enough, Salt Lake City tried it and abandoned it.

I think there are around 10 or so agencies using it or a version of it. The problem with using nurses is it prices small overtaxed systems right out of their markets...

Personnally I’ve pushed for it here as a state or regional resource. We’re the clearinghouse at 911 for any problem or issue. We should be better recognizing ad diverting to appropriate alternative resources when we can.

 

[Peak]

From what I'm reading the nurses aren't providing any kind of EMS care, callers are transferred to them by a dispatcher when they don't meet EMS criteria. It's an ask a nurse line.

 

[EMDispatch]

From what I'm reading the nurses aren't providing any kind of EMS care, callers are transferred to them by a dispatcher when they don't meet EMS criteria. It's an ask a nurse line.

Yeah essentially how it works most places is that once a call is determined to be omega or even alpha level (completely non emergent) they are transferred to a nurse line, which refers them to urgent care, arranges doctor appointments, and provide general care instructions. If they determine in a much longer triage process that it may actually be emergent, the call is dumped back into the 911 system.

 

[SandpitMedic]

Yeah essentially how it works most places is that once a call is determined to be omega or even alpha level (completely non emergent) they are transferred to a nurse line, which refers them to urgent care, arranges doctor appointments, and provide general care instructions. If they determine in a much longer triage process that it may actually be emergent, the call is dumped back into the 911 system.

This is how it works in my experience.
When you see the Omega::Nurse Line on your MDT you know it’s complete bs.
Dual medic CCT rig still isn’t immune.

 

[Tigger]

Yeah essentially how it works most places is that once a call is determined to be omega or even alpha level (completely non emergent) they are transferred to a nurse line, which refers them to urgent care, arranges doctor appointments, and provide general care instructions. If they determine in a much longer triage process that it may actually be emergent, the call is dumped back into the 911 system.

This seems like every other PCP and Urgent Care's nurse line out there, so I am happy to leave this to nursing. They already have this down. REMSA in Reno has also had some great success with a nurse line as well.