CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Big changes are coming to how emergency vehicles will respond in Mecklenburg County.
Mecklenburg Emergency Medical Services Agency (Medic) is now holding public meetings to discuss its planned “reevaluation” of incoming calls for help, and in some cases, the response will take longer.
"We are here really just to engage in conversation with community members," Jon Studnek, deputy director at MEDIC, told WCNC Charlotte. "To make sure everyone knows what it is that gonna change."
The big questions to answer are "who, what, where, and why." We know it’s happening in Mecklenburg county, which leads to the "why."
"Ten years we started using nurse advise lines on very low acuity calls," Studnek said. "And then the pandemic hit bringing this all to a head and we had noticed a large increase in sick patients and patients that were not very sick at all."
And that brings us to the "who" is impacted?
"We are going to have a set of mid-level low acuity calls with 30-minute responses, some will receive first responders," Studnek said. "And then we will have and retain a 60-minute target time for low acuity patients so paramedics can asset a situation and help them navigate the health care system."
The most important thing for people to remember is that the highest-risk patients with life-threatening injuries or symptoms are going to receive the same 10 min and 59-second response time with lights and sirens.
For the 60-minute target time for low-risk patients, no lights and sirens will be used. Paramedics can assess a situation and help a patient navigate alternative healthcare options.
So what’s the change?
"We are going to have a safer response in our community because we are going to turn our red lights and sirens off in those 15-minute response times unless a paramedic really feels the call needs lights and sirens," Studnek said.
That then removes the 12-minute and 59-second response time to mid-level calls with the hopes of getting resources to the apport patient at the much-needed valuable time.
You can provide input by attending the next community meeting on April 5 at the North Regional Recreation Center.
Contact Austin Walker at awalker@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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