Medics trying wireless weapon for peace of mind

Deepa Bharath

The fire department plans to add a new weapon to its arsenal.

Firefighter paramedics in Newport Beach, for the last four months,

have been using a wireless electronic system called Aculert, a device

that provides a person’s medical history at the touch of a button,

said Vickie Cleary, emergency medical services manager for the

Newport Beach Fire Department.

The service is available in Newport Beach on a trial basis to

about 6,000 residents who are members of Fire Medics, a program the

city introduced in 1993, so residents don’t have to pay out of their

pockets if they end up using ambulance services, she said.

“That way, we only accept what their insurance pays,” Cleary said.

The program costs $49 annually.

Aculert adds value to the Fire Medics program, she said.

Members of the program volunteer information about their medical

history such as allergies, preferred physician, medication they take

and which hospital they would prefer to be taken to in an emergency

situation, Cleary said.

“It’s a great program, especially for seniors,” she said. “They

have been using this service a lot because it’s hard for them to

remember what medication they take.”

The Aculert system is a hand-held computer with a barcode reader.

Members get an identification card with a barcode, which can be read

by the computer when needed. Soon, the department expects to get

smaller versions of these computers, reduced to the size of a Palm

Pilot, Cleary said.

Paramedics are impressed by the Aculert system, Newport Beach Fire

Department Paramedic Ty Lunde said.

“We feel that seniors are getting peace of mind with this system,”

he said. “They take comfort in the fact that we have their

confidential information, so we can take good care of them.”

The department is still using it on a trial basis, and there is no

reason to discontinue its use, Cleary said. Aculert has the potential

for displaying pictures and even scanned documents such as power of

attorney.

“We’re excited about this,” she said. “It has tremendous

potential.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.