Emergency services no substitute for medical care

Many jurisdictions find they visit specific homes four or five times a week that utilize 911 more than 90 times a month. First responders know the route to those homes well.

Some elderly residents press their medical alert buttons often, knowing they will not be transported but will have people visiting them in the form of emergency responders. In some cases, residents will have diseases that affect muscle coordination and balance and need help standing, changing and eating. Some of them are completely wheelchair-bound and difficult to understand, since their conditions often hinder their ability to speak and write.

Emergency services are not appropriate for use in a majority of these cases and, many times, are instrumental in opening up this difficult subject with family, friends and service providers. Like many others with serious disabilities, these citizens are unable to work and live on a fixed income, despite having advanced college degrees and full cognitive function. They can’t afford expensive in-home care or a facility that could better help with their needs other than a state-designated nursing home.

Most of the time independence is their most prized possession, and first responders are often the catalyst to bring public services and social service providers together in a call to action. As the population continues to age, we know that more individuals will need wraparound services to keep them living independently.

There are a few models of care that are reimbursable through Medicare and Medicaid. That’s because if someone can live independently, it costs the government less money than paying for a bed in a nursing home. Without help from some type of a model of care, the cost of caring for aging and disabled adults gets passed on to local communities. It costs the average fire department to respond to each call, and unlike an ambulance ride to the hospital, that cost cannot be billed or reimbursed, in most of these cases.

Oct. 31. Welfare check: The caller is difficult to understand and may be having medical issues at 2:16 a.m. in the area of Jeri Lane and Darlene Way.

Trespass: A subject is causing a disturbance and making threats at 2:15 p.m. in the 900 block of Adams Boulevard.

Thought for the day: It appears several people have gotten started early on the celebration part of the day and won’t be feeling any pain by evening time (until tomorrow).

Nov. 1. Recovered stolen vehicle: The motor home has been destroyed by fire and is too hot to be examined immediately at 3:08 a.m. in the area of mile marker 51 on U.S. Highway 95.

Wanted: The caller reports someone selling drugs, and when none are located the outstanding warrant seals the deal at 8:13 p.m. in the 800 block of Nevada Way.

Thought for the day: Good job, folks, keeping your eyes peeled for nefarious activities.

Nov. 2. Drugs: The trusty nose of the K-9 and his handler nab another rolling pharmacy at 12:09 a.m. in the area of mile marker 46 on U.S. 95.

Drug paraphernalia: The suspicious vehicle has lingered just a little too long in a remote area at 7:10 a.m. near the end of Lakeview Drive.

Thought for the day: Note to self: When on probation, it’s probably not real smart to hang with the homeboys who are doing things to violate your conditions.

Nov. 3. Parking: It’s hard to say what drew the officer’s attention first: the parking in a red zone, on a sidewalk or blocking a driveway at 12:32 a.m. in the 600 block of Utah Street.

Suspicious persons: The two subjects in the unfamiliar vehicle are out of place, and their car is overflowing with items spilling out when the doors open at 10:14 a.m. in the 700 block of Nevada Way.

Thought for the day: The suspicious subjects complete a low-speed relocation tactic and enter a room across the road, climb out a back window and are located several blocks away.

Nov. 4. Trespass: The disheveled fellow has lots of bags and a bucket and won’t leave the area at 7:19 a.m. in the 1600 block of Boulder City Parkway.

Destruction of property: The driver reports a subject throwing rocks that hit his vehicle at 6:20 p.m. in the 1100 block of Boulder City Parkway.

Thought for the day: The disgruntled customer states he was mad and threw a “petrified roll” out into the roadway and only inadvertently hit a vehicle (and points out the bread to prove it).

Nov. 5. Property lost: The subject reports losing a wallet full of cash and IDs along with a distinctive looking bicycle at 2:11 p.m. in the 1000 block of Arizona Street.

Animal: The resident comes to the station to report a big pink(ish) bird with its legs hinged backward visiting the cemetery while they were there at 4:02 p.m. in the 500 block of Adams Boulevard.

Thought for the day: The officer isn’t hopeful, but then a subject rides by on the “lost” bicycle and it is recovered (but not the rest of the items).

Nov. 6. Suspicious person: The caller reports a person passed out on the bike path between Railroad Pass and Boulder City at 8:46 a.m. in the area of the overpass.

Reckless driver: The road-rage situation brewed on the way in from Henderson and culminated with one person following the other one home and a weapon coming into play at 3:42 p.m. in the 1300 block of Georgia Avenue.

Thought for the day: It’s best to let us locate and confront a suspect and you concentrate on being a good witness.

Call of the week: Animal: The officer responds to the wildcat that has been contained and needs transport to animal jail. As the officer attempts to take the feisty feline into custody, a diversionary wound is successful, with the escape swift, and the officer is not about to give chase at 5:41 p.m. Nov. 3 in the 1500 block of Mancha Drive.

Tina Ransom is a dispatcher with the Boulder City Police Department. She is coordinator of the Boulder City Citizens’ Academy.