BRYAN, Texas — Abusing 911 may sound like a deliberate act, but officials with the Bryan Fire Department say most frequent callers are simply looking for help and don’t know where else to turn.
Kevin Farmer, director of the department’s community paramedic program, said these callers often use 911 as a fail-safe to get whatever help and care they need, even though an emergency room visit or ambulance ride isn’t always the best solution.
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To bridge that gap, the department launched its mobile integrated healthcare (MIH) unit, sending dedicated community paramedics to handle non-emergency, tailored assessments, KBTX reported.
According to Farmer, the program handles the workload of an entire ambulance crew, fielding 1,200 to 1,500 calls each year. Paramedics evaluate patients’ physical needs and connect them with long-term resources, while an in-house medical director conducts in-home evaluations and consults with primary care physicians to build care plans. Though the visits are meant to be routine, responders sometimes uncover critical situations behind closed doors, including elder abuse.
Beyond providing vital care, the program delivers significant savings for local taxpayers. Operating a fully equipped ambulance costs nearly $1 million annually, on top of an initial purchase price exceeding $500,000. By diverting non-emergency calls away from frontline emergency rigs, the MIH unit helps curb those operational expenses.
