The Winnipeg Free Press
WINNIPEG, Canada — The H1N1 outbreak hasn’t been bad enough yet to trigger the launch of a new crew of community paramedics slated to roam the city in station wagons.
The one-man units, tentatively called the primary treatment and referral service (PTRS), will be more like nurses who make house calls. They’ll be able to triage and treat some of the thousands of non-life-threatening cases called in to 911 every year -- everything from worrisome flu to sprained ankles, diabetes and seizures.
But the city’s deal with the province says the new cars can’t be launched until call volumes get high.
For about the last two weeks, call volumes have been about normal, despite H1N1. There are about 200 to 225 medical calls a day. The trigger to launch the PTRS medics is 300 calls a day for three days in a row.
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