According to the Minister of Health Arūnas Dulkis, the service that has been organized for the last couple of months has already managed to attract interest – patients have accepted the ride service very favorably. By expanding the circle of its recipients, even more residents of the country will be able to use health services more conveniently.
“The first few months of the pilot ride service have shown that the project is extremely promising, solving a number of both health and social problems. Residents willingly use the ride-hailing service, and its development will bring health services even closer to people, contribute to better health indicators – this is especially relevant for those living in the regions”, says the minister.
The need for a ride will only grow
From August 1 nearly 2.5 thousand people used the ride-hailing service in Lithuania. for patients for whom it is important to ensure the availability of hemodialysis, approximately 280 persons are transported to the treatment facility and back per week, on average 10 in each of the municipalities participating in the project.
Meanwhile, when a new group of low-income, over 75-year-old patients is added to the service in October, their influx is expected to be several times greater, and the volume of planned activities at this stage should increase significantly.
“It is expected that the largest flows of patients will be in small municipalities far from big cities, where relatively elderly people live. Typically, these individuals have lower incomes, which makes them eligible for a ride-hailing service. I think that the flow of patients will stabilize in the coming months, so we will be able to predict what capacities may be needed when this service needs to be expanded to the whole of Lithuania next year,” says Tomas Vasiliauskas, advisor to the Emergency Medical Service coordinating the provision of the service and head of the shuttle project.
The service is being expanded gradually
And although the pilot patient transportation project will continue until June 30, 2024, the phased provision of the service is planned taking into account its scope and the need to adjust the service process based on the received data on the intensity of service use. Each stage will help to feel the importance of the service even more clearly, to understand the real flow of patients, to identify shortcomings, to find solutions to correct them, to improve and expand the information system.
So far, the shuttle service has been available to patients in need of hemodialysis and transplant services since October 1. the pilot project includes low-income people over 75 years of age. The third phase starts on November 1, when the disabled will be added to the already existing groups of patients.
From the beginning of the project, during the entire trial period, the service is provided in 20 municipalities, residents of Kaunas and Tauragė regions can use the ride. Currently involved in the project are Alytus, Alytus district, Birštonas, Jonava district, Jurbarkas, Kaišiadorių district, Kaunas and Kaunas districts, Kazlų ruda, Kėdainiai district, Lazdijai district, Marijampolė, Pagegiai, Prienai district, Raseiniai district, Šakiai district, Šilalė district, Municipalities of Tauragė and Vilkaviškis districts.
At the end of the trial period of the project, it is planned to expand the shuttle service to the whole of Lithuania.
How to order the service?
The shuttle service can be ordered by calling the Hotline with the short phone number 1808 or contacting directly the contacts of each municipality participating in the project, published on the website www.1808.lt. The operator of the shuttle service, after checking whether the patient has the right to receive the service, assigns a vehicle that meets his needs and coordinates the time of the shuttle.
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