The problems of addiction and mental issues have myriad impacts on society and public resources, as well as the individual. This News & Observer story addresses the population referred to as “familiar faces” or “frequent fliers,” which means people who repeatedly access ER, police, shelters, etc. It is a revolving door that must be addressed.
In 2012, 25 people accounted for 423 calls to Durham County Emergency Medical Services and 326 EMS transports to emergency rooms at Duke and Durham Regional hospitals.
Over the year, the cost to serve those 25 people totaled more than $275,000 – for EMS alone.
“That’s a pretty significant impact on the system,” said Brandon Mitchell, special operations coordinator with Durham County EMS.
“The fact of the matter is, if we add up everything that all of our health and human services and all our nonprofits … are spending, we’re often spending four or five times … on the same individuals but not getting the outcomes that they deserve and not getting the outcomes we want for them,” said Michelle Lyn, community health director at Duke Medical Center.
There has to be innovative thinking about how to address this with an eye toward saving the vulnerable who truly need help, and thus saving scarce public resources.
