Coming from a country where ambulance usage is free for citizens, it would be interesting to see the stats in Uber cities. The only reason not to call an ambulance here is if you feel it would be unethical (e.g. if you broke your arm and your partner could drive you).
EDIT: That is, I imagine you might be able to see whether Uber provides a better alternative than the local cabs. This still holds in US cities though, why is Uber specifically good? Why don't people consider calling their local cab company, which will still be much cheaper than a $250 ride.
In most places in the US, the local cab companies are terrible. They might answer the phone, they might show up, and they might try to scam you.
Imagine you call a taxicab for a medical emergency, and they never show up, or only after an hour.
Uber and Lyft are extremely popular because the apps always tell you if a driver will come, the drivers almost always arrive very quickly, and the price is set in advance.
I'd bet that most people younger than 25 years have never used a traditional taxi, and they never will. They don't even see them as an option.
Not to mention that there are consequences if an Uber/Lyft driver blows off a confirmed ride, and even if they do, you can request another one immediately.
In the case of taxi dispatch, a car may never show up, and you won't know until you get tired of waiting, and there are no consequences for the taxi company or driver if they do this. Pre-Uber, in SF, the normal quoted wait from a taxi dispatcher was on the order of 20 minutes, which if anything was usually understated. If you're in a lot of pain you probably don't want to wait that long.
I would probably still call an ambulance for something I thought might be life-threatening, but for anything else I'd take a Lyft.
> In the case of taxi dispatch, a car may never show up, and you won't know until you get tired of waiting, and there are no consequences for the taxi company or driver if they do this.
depends on the country and the taxi company. England has a reasonably effective regulatory regime for taxis and cabs.
Sure, but both the article and my comment are both about the US, where there are no consequences for no-shows. I'm not sure our government(s) here are the best places to regulate that sort of thing. Uber/Lyft-style accountability seems to be working really well, though, and the mode of operation eliminates the possibility that a driver will cancel on you and you won't know about it.
I also come from a country where ambulance usage is free but I can tell you from experience that getting one of these ambulances isn't as simple as one might think.
I imagine, maybe, there are keywords or phrases that result in instant dispatch but the default behaviour seems to be to frustrate you as much as possible to the point where you just hang up and drive yourself to the nearest hospital accident and emergency department.
This is, I suppose, a result of the service being costed and allocated to different departments who are all under pressure to manage their own budgets?
Accident and emergency departments obviously get the brunt of all this because they don't have anyone to pass the buck to.
So, yeah, maybe utilising a service such as Uber is actually going to be a way around this problem?
Free ambulances are always going to come with the problem of abuse, followed by a reluctance to send an ambulance.
Resulting in news stories of how some people call of help and don't get any. But these stories are rare, it's seem better than letting poor people die.
This said, we probably should add a tiny ambulance fee ($50), and apply a fine for inappropriate use.
'This said, we probably should add a tiny ambulance fee ($50), and apply a fine for inappropriate use.'
I agree although reclaiming this fee from those who abuse the system is likely to prove difficult?
I can remember a time in the UK when ambulance and, IIRC, fire service would bill you after the event for attendance.
Not sure if this was every case or just where they deemed it appropriate? But, I do remember, it was common knowledge there was no penalty or follow-up if you didn't pay.
> I agree although reclaiming this fee from those who abuse the system is likely to prove difficult?
You assume everybody that abuses free services are broke. We need data to tell whether that's the case. I would assume that a significant portion of the abusers mostly just lack manners.
Anyways, the point isn't to kick the ones who are down (poor). It's only to limit abuse... But first maybe it should be assessed of abuse is a problem.
And maybe, having a deal with taxi company is a better solution...
Also UK, and the problem is basically that there aren't enough ambulances, so they're triaged. It's the same as when you go to A&E and you have to wait hours if they don't think you're an urgent case. Unless you're going to die if they don't get you to the hospital now, they'll put you down the queue (which is fair enough).
As you point out above, the decision to dispatch an ambulance is ultimately the emergency operator's. Typically you tell them what's wrong, and they send out what they think is necessary (which might also be police and fire).
Strange, my family has had need of 3 ambulances in the past 3 years. Never had any issues, other than them taking around 30 mins to arrive, and 2 of the 3 were on Saturday nights.
> The only reason not to call an ambulance here is if you feel it would be unethical
I dunno, maybe you just want to avoid the psychological feeling of urgency and gravity that comes with an ambulance. I think there's something to be said for staying calm and keeping self-control and dignity when facing an emergency situation.
If you're bleeding profusely or are in-and-out of consciousness or have a deadly virus, obviously that's different. But what about a broken bone? Or a laceration or burn for which you've already successfully applied first aid?
Might you not prefer to stay out of an ambulance in those situations, even if it's free?
There’s also the question of control. No matter how badly injured, if I’m driving myself or taking a cab, I am still “the boss.” But as soon as EMTs and doctors become involved, that control is lost.
In an increasingly authoritarian country/world, where we are expected to give up all rights upon first interaction with persons in a position of power or authority, be it the policeman that graduated yesterday but has the full might of “the boys in blue,” the TSA agent at the check in line, the EMT responding to the call, or the nurse checking you in, it is easy to understand why some people have an aversion to willfully surrendering themselves and their free will so long as an alternative is present.
I prefer to not cede what little control I have until I have to. If I want the driver to take the highway and not the local roads, it’s my call. If I want to text while I’m being driven through traffic, it’s my call. If I change my mind and want to go back home to die, well, it’s my call.
I've done nursing work, and my brother is an EMT in paramedic training. From the discussions we've had, you can always leave nursing/hospital care if physically able to express that desire and mentally stable, and the only EMT care you can't decline is if you tell them you're going to kill yourself or are physically unable to decline.
>Might you not prefer to stay out of an ambulance in those situations, even if it's free?
Ambulance ride here in Finland has a symbolic fee (10 eur if it's deemed necessary), but still, for a non life threatening issue it feels much more sensible to get a taxi. Since the situation is not life threatening you'd be put in a pretty low priority for the ambulance and have to wait for an hour or so. Taking a taxi is even incentivized - taxi to the hospital is going to cost the same 10 euros even if it's from further away, but even without that system I'd probably still use a taxi for broken bones etc.
EDIT: That is, I imagine you might be able to see whether Uber provides a better alternative than the local cabs. This still holds in US cities though, why is Uber specifically good? Why don't people consider calling their local cab company, which will still be much cheaper than a $250 ride.