A new pilot program in Maine will feature ambulatory paramedics making house calls to assist individuals in nonemergency home visits starting November 1, Franklin Sun Journal reports.
Ambulance service company NorthStar’s three-year pilot program, dubbed House Call, joins 11 other pilots across the state that aim to determine whether the program is effective in reducing health care costs for hospital admissions/readmissions, ambulance calls and emergency room care.
At the start of the program, an initial 20 paramedics will be trained to provide house calls for patients referred by their physicians when they are not responding to emergency calls.
The House Call program was recently approved by the Maine Emergency Medical Services, which allows the 12 total pilot programs in the state to provide non-emergency care.
The in-home services provided by NorthStar paramedics could include vital signs, wound care, hypertension monitoring, diabetes management, medication management, as well as potential fall assessments.
Costs for the program are minimal, according to NorthStar, and will be absorbed by the company’s budget.
Written by Jason Oliva
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