Santa Clara County launched its Nurse Navigator pilot program on Wednesday to help 911 dispatchers determine if a call requires help from a first responder or nurse.
The Nurse Navigator initiative has been implemented across the county to give dispatchers more time to handle calls that require emergency services than provide a caller with advice.
"We answer about 1,100 calls a day and, on average, 50% or more of them are medical in nature," said Trisha Adcock, 911 communications director.
When a call comes in, a dispatcher can determine if the caller needs to speak to speak with expertise and transfer them to a nurse who will then assist.
"As a call comes into the 911 Call Center, they have a pre-scripted series of questions things that get them to either providing cardiac arrest CPR lifesaving techniques all the way down to stubbed toes and toothaches, and we're looking more at the lower acuity calls," said Nick Clay, Santa Clara County's Emergency Medical Services director. "So if [a caller] has chest pains, choking or have a serious medical condition, these are not the calls that are given to a nurse navigator."
The nurses are based at a national call center in Dallas, Texas, but all those involved in the pilot program are licensed in California. According to Darryl McClanahan, the regional director of Global Medical Response, the nurses can handle calls in numerous languages and are familiar with Santa Clara County resources.
"So they are dedicated specifically to California and these areas," McClanahan said. "They were a part of the development of this program, so they are very aware of the needs and what we're trying to accomplish locally."
Officials plan to collect and analyze data over a three—to six-month period, and if the program meets the response and efficiency standards, it could be set up permanently.
"We're hoping that the dispatchers will have more time to answer more emergent calls that truly need fire department resources and an ambulance," Adcock said.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. >Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
