An Apple Valley woman called 911 because she ran out of blood-pressure medicine. A nurse directed her to a nearby medical clinic.
The wife of an 84-year-old man rang up 911 because she wasn’t sure if he took his insulin. Enduring the couple’s bickering, a nurse arranged for a telehealth visit.
And the mother of a 12-year-old boy who slept on his neck wrong called 911, too, with a nurse providing a consultation.
Since last December, San Bernardino County’s Emergency Communication Nurse System has taken pressure off of 911, allowing first responders to help those in greater need. “We’ve done a very good job at teaching people to call 911 for an emergency,” said Art Andres, Confire’s director who oversees the program. “But there’s an overutilization of the 911 system.”