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So I am confused - are they going to introduce a new fleet or is it asking their existing drivers to do this? If they are going to introduce a new fleet - how i

So I am confused - are they going to introduce a new fleet or is it asking their existing drivers to do this? If they are going to introduce a new fleet - how is it different from a normal ambulance service?

FireBeyond 9y ago
I saw no explicit mention of any healthcare training on this. I realize it's more "cabulance" than ambulance (BLS - basic life support, or ALS - advanced), but still... there's probably at least an implicit assumption that there's a modicum of first aid or other training with the drivers. A whole host of potential liability issues, Uber's favorite thing to avoid.
jtmcmc 9y ago
I think this is aimed not at ambulances but at like all those assisted care ridership services that exist. I assume they are going to need a large fleet of improved accessibility cars though (for wheel chairs, walkers, etc..)
GavinMcG 9y ago
Ambulances are necessary for a few reasons. The obvious ones are acute illness or trauma, where a life threat could develop emergently. Another significant segment of ambulance traffic is psychiatric, where direct monitoring is needed even if there's no likely medical intervention. And another segment is for bariatric or non-ambulatory people. But this service doesn't seem to be for people who need to be transported so much as for people who need transportation. That is, the target for this service isn't the person who has a medical issue that needs to be addressed in transport. It's for people who need a transport and whose destination happens to be medical in nature. That's why it seems to be marketed primarily to medical providers rather than patients, with the benefit of a reduction in missed appointments and an increase in efficiency. If there is a new fleet, then, it's likely that the vehicles would have none of the medical equipment that ambulances do. (Though maybe they'd have more leg room, or a stool to help people in, or other minor accessibility considerations.) I'd also expect that drivers would be specially trained in HIPAA, and probably in recognizing imminent life threats so that they could call 911 in case someone was trying to use them as an ambulance.
- ghaff 9y ago
  I agree with that. This service also doesn't seem to cover the situation where you don't need an ambulance but you do need to be met by a specified adult (e.g. out-patient surgery).
- Tyrek 9y ago
  Given our current understanding of Uber's business model, do you really think that 'specially trained' drivers are going to be subject to more than a powerpoint presentation or two?
  - GavinMcG 9y ago
    To be honest, it doesn't take much training to understand those two things.
- FireBeyond 9y ago
  > If there is a new fleet, then, it's likely that the vehicles would have none of the medical equipment that ambulances do. Apropos of anything else, most if not all states require ambulances to be individually licensed as such, and have a specified minimum complement of equipment including but not limited to oxygen, defibrillators, etc. They also require the company/agency to have a overarching license to transport patients. Something tells me, as an EMS provider, that state Departments of Health would likely come down hard on attempts to use (or indeed advertise) this service as such. > and probably in recognizing imminent life threats If you're looking at that, you're probably getting to 80 hours of training (most Basic Life Support courses are around 160-200 of practical and classroom training). I can't imagine Uber doing this, or the liability nightmare that could ensue.
  - GavinMcG 9y ago
    You hardly need half an EMT course to learn when to call 911. Those 160 hours include a lot of anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, etc.
    - 9y ago
L_Rahman 9y ago
It's not for urgent transit. They're probably trying to take a cut of the transportation voucher program available to seniors and those with disabilities to access subsidized rides from existing services. http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Rural_Voucher_Programs.pdf http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Rur...
- joecool1029 9y ago
  It's considered non-emergency transportation (NEMT). The voucher program actually goes direct through hospitals, the hospitals negotiate with transportation providers like Uber (or local taxi companies). Unfortunately, shit doesn't work like this anymore. Hospitals don't always dispatch transportation out to local taxi companies. For Medicaid, most states have Logisticare which is very much a rent-seeking company paid based on the number of Medicaid subscribers (not runs). This company finds local transportation providers (or ride share services) and dispatches out the patients to them. Their job is to get the taxi companies to blind bid in a race to the bottom. How do I know this? I part-time drove a couple nights a week for a tiny family owned taxi company that sometimes did voucher runs for a local hospital. They also considered Logisticare but backed off when I told them what it would require and how they'd get pushed into accepting below their usual mileage rate. Also, Logisticare doesn't give a shit about inspecting the transportation providers, so noncompliance is common since they'll contract with any rando that'll work for dirt. [1][2] [1] https://www.myajc.com/news/state--regional/pressure-drivers-puts-medicaid-passengers-peril/LakcugaxPzJQaxaYyfm6rK/ https://www.myajc.com/news/state--regional/pressure-drivers-... [2] https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region2/21401001.asp https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region2/21401001.asp
jojhuang 9y ago
It's a dispatching dashboard/service that enables Medical care facilities to call an Uber on behalf of the patient

FireBeyond 9y ago

I saw no explicit mention of any healthcare training on this. I realize it's more "cabulance" than ambulance (BLS - basic life support, or ALS - advanced), but still... there's probably at least an implicit assumption that there's a modicum of first aid or other training with the drivers. A whole host of potential liability issues, Uber's favorite thing to avoid.

jtmcmc 9y ago

I think this is aimed not at ambulances but at like all those assisted care ridership services that exist. I assume they are going to need a large fleet of improved accessibility cars though (for wheel chairs, walkers, etc..)

GavinMcG 9y ago

Ambulances are necessary for a few reasons. The obvious ones are acute illness or trauma, where a life threat could develop emergently. Another significant segment of ambulance traffic is psychiatric, where direct monitoring is needed even if there's no likely medical intervention. And another segment is for bariatric or non-ambulatory people. But this service doesn't seem to be for people who need to be transported so much as for people who need transportation. That is, the target for this service isn't the person who has a medical issue that needs to be addressed in transport. It's for people who need a transport and whose destination happens to be medical in nature. That's why it seems to be marketed primarily to medical providers rather than patients, with the benefit of a reduction in missed appointments and an increase in efficiency. If there is a new fleet, then, it's likely that the vehicles would have none of the medical equipment that ambulances do. (Though maybe they'd have more leg room, or a stool to help people in, or other minor accessibility considerations.) I'd also expect that drivers would be specially trained in HIPAA, and probably in recognizing imminent life threats so that they could call 911 in case someone was trying to use them as an ambulance.

ghaff 9y ago
I agree with that. This service also doesn't seem to cover the situation where you don't need an ambulance but you do need to be met by a specified adult (e.g. out-patient surgery).
Tyrek 9y ago
Given our current understanding of Uber's business model, do you really think that 'specially trained' drivers are going to be subject to more than a powerpoint presentation or two?
- GavinMcG 9y ago
  To be honest, it doesn't take much training to understand those two things.
FireBeyond 9y ago
> If there is a new fleet, then, it's likely that the vehicles would have none of the medical equipment that ambulances do. Apropos of anything else, most if not all states require ambulances to be individually licensed as such, and have a specified minimum complement of equipment including but not limited to oxygen, defibrillators, etc. They also require the company/agency to have a overarching license to transport patients. Something tells me, as an EMS provider, that state Departments of Health would likely come down hard on attempts to use (or indeed advertise) this service as such. > and probably in recognizing imminent life threats If you're looking at that, you're probably getting to 80 hours of training (most Basic Life Support courses are around 160-200 of practical and classroom training). I can't imagine Uber doing this, or the liability nightmare that could ensue.
- GavinMcG 9y ago
  You hardly need half an EMT course to learn when to call 911. Those 160 hours include a lot of anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, etc.
  - 9y ago

L_Rahman 9y ago

It's not for urgent transit. They're probably trying to take a cut of the transportation voucher program available to seniors and those with disabilities to access subsidized rides from existing services. http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Rural_Voucher_Programs.pdf http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Rur...

joecool1029 9y ago
It's considered non-emergency transportation (NEMT). The voucher program actually goes direct through hospitals, the hospitals negotiate with transportation providers like Uber (or local taxi companies). Unfortunately, shit doesn't work like this anymore. Hospitals don't always dispatch transportation out to local taxi companies. For Medicaid, most states have Logisticare which is very much a rent-seeking company paid based on the number of Medicaid subscribers (not runs). This company finds local transportation providers (or ride share services) and dispatches out the patients to them. Their job is to get the taxi companies to blind bid in a race to the bottom. How do I know this? I part-time drove a couple nights a week for a tiny family owned taxi company that sometimes did voucher runs for a local hospital. They also considered Logisticare but backed off when I told them what it would require and how they'd get pushed into accepting below their usual mileage rate. Also, Logisticare doesn't give a shit about inspecting the transportation providers, so noncompliance is common since they'll contract with any rando that'll work for dirt. [1][2] [1] https://www.myajc.com/news/state--regional/pressure-drivers-puts-medicaid-passengers-peril/LakcugaxPzJQaxaYyfm6rK/ https://www.myajc.com/news/state--regional/pressure-drivers-... [2] https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region2/21401001.asp https://oig.hhs.gov/oas/reports/region2/21401001.asp

jojhuang 9y ago

It's a dispatching dashboard/service that enables Medical care facilities to call an Uber on behalf of the patient