2023-08-29 10:09:58
The Austrian Red Cross (ÖRK) calls for reforms in the rescue service. At a press conference in Vienna, WCC Federal Rescue Commander Gerry Foitik pointed out the increasing demands on rescue services due to demographic development – keyword aging society – and the resulting increasing need for medical care. “The rescue service is currently defined as a carrier in the healthcare sector,” Foitik stated.
However, following calling 144 as an alternative to visiting a resident doctor, transport to an ambulance, which is often already overcrowded, is not always the “best point of service”, according to the WCC representatives. They demanded that the rescue service be understood as an integrated part of the health system and not just as a carrier. For this it is necessary that the rescue service is allowed to define the “best point of service” in the future and not to have to bring every patient to a hospital. “Seeing where the patient is best taken care of,” Foitik described this task.
WCC chief physician Wolfgang Schreiber advocated expanding the use of tele-emergency doctors. In certain situations – such as when an ECG provides unclear data or if the person concerned does not want to be taken to a hospital – this is a good way of replacing the presence of emergency doctors on the scene. Schreiber referred to corresponding experiences in neighboring countries, for example in Germany in Aachen or in Gosslar. In Austria there have been the first promising projects for regarding six months in Lower Austria.
The deputy WCC federal rescue commander Monika Stickler emphasized that the Red Cross is expressly committed to the emergency doctor-supported rescue system. “But we won’t solve the problem with the emergency doctor alone.” For Stickler, telemedicine is advice for emergency and paramedics, who can call in professional support for operations that do not endanger life. This should increase the capacity of the entire system, because a remote emergency doctor can carry out more emergency consultations in a short time than emergency doctors who have to drive to every location. For this, however, the legislature needs appropriate legal and financial options.
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