Since adding emergency communication nurses to its 911 protocols five year ago, Niagara EMS says it has fewer ambulances rushing to non-urgent calls.
Marty Mako, commander of Niagara EMS' Mobile Integrated Health Care unit says more than 15,000 requests for paramedics over five years have been redirected to an emergency communications nurse after determined an ambulance response was not necessary. The program has contributed to a 20 per cent shrinkage of paramedics calls since 2019.
Niagara EMS’s Marty Mako says about 20 per cent of the screenings through an ECN lead to a deferral which stops an EMS resource from having to be deployed. At the time, 44 per cent of Niagara 911 calls required an ambulance to rush out with lights and sirens. Nova Scotia’s Emergency Health Services Medical Communications Centre launched a version in November of 2022, taking it a step further by adding not only a nurse, but also a physician and clinical support paramedic.The EHS said its call centre received close to 185,000 calls in 2021, with about a third not needing patient transport.
“Even if we get five per cent or 10 per cent to not go to the hospital it takes that load off the emergency departments and the overall system as well.”
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