Overhaul will let dispatchers screen out 'frivolous' requests

George Hunter / The Detroit News

Detroit — The city has overhauled its troubled EMS system with sweeping changes that gives dispatchers the discretion over what type of unit to send to emergencies, and is working on a plan that would allow 911 operators to refuse ambulance service to callers deemed frivolous.

Other changes under way include purchasing new ambulances, scheduling extra training to fill vacancies faster, revamping personnel policies and improving the city's bill collection practices. Currently, the city only collects a fraction of the money it's owed from residents, Medicaid and Medicare recipients and insurance companies for services rendered.

The first phase of the restructuring began in December, when EMS dispatchers underwent training in the new system.

In January, the city replaced eight of its older advanced life support ambulances with new, lesser-equipped basic life support units.

Deputy Mayor Saul Green said the changes soon will allow the city's EMS system to improve its average response time by 15 percent to about 10 minutes, with an ultimate goal of meeting or exceeding the national average of eight minutes. According to a 2004 audit, Detroit's response time was more than 12 minutes, which the city said is still the case.

The union that represents emergency dispatchers has filed a grievance challenging the changes.

Detroit's EMS system has come under fire for slow response times, broken equipment, and in some cases, not showing up to calls in emergencies that resulted in death. In August, a man died of a heart attack after relatives repeatedly called 911 but got no ambulance. In other instances, city-owned Crown Victorias were used to transport patients because no ambulances were available.

"There have been problems," Green said. "It's something we clearly need to address. We're going to do that in a number of different ways."

Green said the city's EMS system, which has a fleet of 22 ambulances, receives between 120,000 and 130,000 calls per year, most of which are considered Priority 3 — or nonemergency. Other cities, including St. Louis and Cleveland, don't respond to such calls. Detroit sends ambulances to every run, Green said.

"When you look at those calls, more than 60 percent are nonemergency calls," he said. "People will call us because they can't sleep. We got one person who couldn't get a ring off [[her) finger. We get people calling with migraine headaches.

We need to focus our efforts on those who are truly in need of medical care."


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