Milwaukee launches community paramedics

MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Fire Department has started a community paramedic program to cut down the number of emergency calls the department receives because of chronic illnesses.

The program will focus on treating asthma, COPD, diabetes and hypertension, Fox 6 Now reported.

MFD dispatch records show that 24 percent of the calls they receive are from individuals experiencing "difficulty breathing." The same patients could call as many as 40 times in six months.

"They call 911, and we go back and go through the same process again – taking them to the ER. It's very expensive, very time-consuming," said MFD Assistance Chief Daniel Berendt.

With the program, those patients will schedule a visit with the paramedics, who will treat them before the situation becomes a medical emergency.

"We reach out to those and sign them up for the program," Berendt said.

The program, which will start Oct. 1, aims to make MFD more efficient and save patients thousands of dollars in health care costs.

The community paramedics will also do environmental assessments, identifying the triggers in a home that can cause asthma or COPD.

"Milwaukee has some of the highest rates of asthma in the country," said Sarah Brundidge, manager of lung health services with the American Lung Association in Wisconsin.

The paramedics are training with the American Lung Association, thanks to a grant from the United Health Foundation.