Early results of the Lambton EMS Community Paramedic Pilot Project that went live in August are extraordinary.
Four specially trained paramedics have been working with frequent 911 users to improve their care and guide the patients toward other community resources.
Manager Steve Pancino says 911 calls have dropped 64%, emergency department admissions are down 82% and visits to the emergency department went from 327 to 36, which down a staggering 88%.
"We're trying to be proactive in the care that we're providing these frequent users of the system, to provide benefits downstream," says Pancino. "We've had very early success with the program."
Pancino says 42 patients have been through the program in the past three months.
He says work is now underway to try and secure permanent funding for the program, which is set to conclude in March, 2018.
