Launched in 2018, the Community Paramedicine Program has since grown to encompass three different branches aimed at frequent users of emergency services — people with chronic medical conditions, substance abuse problems, and mental health issues, among others.
Fire Lt. Alex Jann heads up the program. When it comes to defining paramedicine, he says it covers everything from sending out therapists and social workers to calm situations where a hospital visit may not be ideal to help that may seem modest, but it’s the difference between an easy solution and a 9-1-1 call.
“People sometimes just need a ramp to get up the stairs, or just need a shower chair or just a hospital bed. Simple things that we can provide because people donate it to us, and we can donate it to them. And they will stop calling 9-1-1 because they can’t get back into bed,” he says. “And it’s simple little things that we can change in somebody’s life to prevent these cases.”…