The Deployment of Alternative Response Units in a High-Volume, Urban EMS System.

The Deployment of Alternative Response Units in a High-Volume, Urban EMS System. Prehosp Emerg Care. 2019 Aug 20;:1-10 Authors: Mechem CC, Yates CA, Rush MS, Alleyne A, Singleton HJ, Boyle TL Abstract Faced with increasing demand for their services, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agencies must find more efficient ways to use their limited resources. This includes moving beyond the traditional response and transport model. Alternative Response Units (ARUs) are one way to meet the prehospital medical needs of some members of the public while reducing ambulance transports. They are non-transport vehicles tasked with very specific medical missions. These can include acute management of low-acuity complaints, ongoing home care for chronic medical conditions, preventive medicine, and post-hospital discharge follow-up visits. Their focus can be tailored to the individual needs of the agency. The Philadelphia Fire Department (PFD) operates one of the busiest EMS systems in the country. It has added additional staff and ambulances in recent years yet continues to face an increasing call volume. In an effort to reduce ambulance transports, the PFD recently introduced two ARUs. The first unit, AR-1, is deployed on a university campus and responds to students with low acuity medical complaints or mild alcohol intoxication. It provides many of these a courtesy ride to one of two university emergency departments for further evaluation, eliminati...
Source: Prehospital Emergency Care - Category: Endocrinology Tags: Prehosp Emerg Care Source Type: research