New program not working as well as planned
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YAKIMA, Wash. -- KIMA discovered a new Yakima program put in place this year is saving you money, but not as much as expected.
The nurse hotline connects 911 callers with medical professionals to talk them through minor issues. It's a way to avoid wasting time and money sending crews to a non-emergency. KIMA learned the program saved more than $100 per call. So far only about one to two percent of the calls qualify for a transfer to the nurse's line.
"We average 14 calls per month for the nurse line so if you times that time the money it cost to run fire trucks the taxpayers are saving quite a bit of money," said 911 dispatcher Jenyne Wells.
Dispatch expects more calls to end up on the nurse line once workers become more familiar with the new system.
The nurse hotline connects 911 callers with medical professionals to talk them through minor issues. It's a way to avoid wasting time and money sending crews to a non-emergency. KIMA learned the program saved more than $100 per call. So far only about one to two percent of the calls qualify for a transfer to the nurse's line.
"We average 14 calls per month for the nurse line so if you times that time the money it cost to run fire trucks the taxpayers are saving quite a bit of money," said 911 dispatcher Jenyne Wells.
Dispatch expects more calls to end up on the nurse line once workers become more familiar with the new system.
