Impact of Lift Assist Calls on Paramedic Services: A Descriptive Study

The aging population in Canada is steadily increasing and is placing greater demand on paramedic services, especially through the growing number of non-emergent lift assist (LA) calls. A LA occurs when a person calls paramedic services and requests assistance to get up or mobilize, usually after experiencing a fall. The patient refuses transport to the emergency department for further medical attention. LA calls are time consuming and are non-reimbursable. The increase in number of this call type, specifically amongst older adults, is placing strain on paramedic services.

The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of LA calls in patients aged 65 and older and determine their impact on paramedic services.

A dataset of 1,121 LA calls of patients aged 65 and older was extracted from Middlesex-London Emergency Medical Services (MLEMS) database of electronic patient care reports collected over 1 year in 2015. Statistical and qualitative analyses were performed to describe LAs, perform time analysis, and extract dominant themes from the text in report notes written by paramedics.

The LA calls were generated from 611 individuals: 334 women (54.7%) and 275 men (45%), of which 192 (32%) individuals called more than one time. On average, a LA call lasted 43 minutes and ranged from 6 minutes to 2 hours and 23 minutes. In 2015, paramedics spent 801 hours, or the equivalent of 33 days (24 hours/day), solely conducting LAs for older adults. Text analysis determined that the bedroom (24.9%) and bathroom (17.0%) were the most common locations where LAs occurred. Most frequently, LAs were caused by a collapse or drop (28.7%), slide (25.7%), slip (16.7%), or trip (11.7%).

LAs consume the time of paramedics, preventing them from responding to more urgent emergency calls. Alternative solutions are needed to reduce the negative impact of LAs on paramedic services.