Columnists

Sound The Alarm… Not All Medical Alarm Companies Are The Same!

Issue 25.14

Did you know that we have 2 EMD (Emergency Medical Dispatcher) certified Response Centers?  One is located in South Jordan, Utah and the other is located in St. George, Utah.

What this means to you is that Rescue Alert dispatchers provide that calming voice to reassure callers in an emergency armed with the medical instructions available in the Medical Priority Dispatch System™ (MPDS®).

“Our dispatchers can do more than just wait on the line and tell customers help is on its way.  We have the ability to give medical assistance which is a moral imperative, and that’s why we chose the MPDS.”  Said Michael Bangerter Response Center Director.

Rescue Alert undertook the initiative to be EMD Certified for much the same reason as 9-1-1 center administrators.

Within one week of becoming EMD certified, Bangerter gave a caller instructions for the Heimlich maneuver.

“If we hadn’t been using the MPDS, the outcome for this caller, and the others we have helped since then, could have been much different,” he said.

Rescue Alert subscribers wear a small lightweight waterproof button on a pendant or wristband that they can push in an emergency.

Although 95% of the calls involve non-emergencies, the company’s dispatchers have assisted in many medical emergencies, including childbirth-delivery and shortness of breath and heart related problems, and have alerted appropriate agencies in situations involving domestic violence, strokes, and fires.

The two centers combined receive an average of 24,000 alarms each week, although volumes can double and triple during a critical mass incident. The busiest hours are between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

What sets Rescue Alert apart!

Rather than sitting back and waiting for the calls to come in during a bad stretch of weather or disaster, dispatchers provide welfare checks.

A bedridden female subscriber in Baltimore (Md.) was able to receive needed help from a Rescue Alert dispatcher making the phone rounds during Hurricane Sandy.

“We were able to contact a pastor of her local church who, in turn, sent [church] missionaries over to check on her and found that she had one can of tuna left to wait out the storm,” Bangerter said. “That’s how we’re different from 9-1-1, and why our subscribers stay with us.”

Lisa Wolfley, a supervisor in the St. George center, said the personal contact and the potential for knowing subscribers fuel her passion for the job.

“We can provide medical help, but a lot of our callers just need someone to talk to,” she said. “A subscriber had fallen hard on the floor and she was crying from fear. A friend of hers had been dead on the floor for almost two days after a fall, and she was very scared of the same happening to her. We talked to her for the whole time it took for response to arrive and help her.”

Medical alarms are about the “what ifs” in life!  So don’t wait to get one.

 

The first fall is often devastating. Sometimes it takes an initial fall for someone to realize that they really do need help contacting their family in an emergency situation. Unfortunately, falling down and breaking a hip and then waiting several hours to be discovered takes a tremendous physical and emotional toll. Often the general health and resilience of the person is never the same after the experience. When an accident happens, responding quickly makes all the difference.

The subscriber’s loved ones benefit too. Family members frequently worry about the health and welfare of a loved one who may be at risk. Knowing that help can be summoned with the touch of a button provides peace of mind to these family members too.

It is not just calling for help. Rescue Alert’s response center doesn’t just call public emergency services for you. Calls are placed to any family member on your list who has asked to be notified of an incident. The peace of mind and comfort that these systems provide to subscribers and their families is priceless.

Don’t delay, get the best system and service right now.  Call (435) 986-1735 for a free consultation.

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