The Schenectady Fire Department is the first fire department in the region to move some emergency care to virtual care.

Paramedics recently started using telemedicine technology to handle emergency calls that can be treated without a trip to the emergency room. Instead of transferring the patient, paramedics can now use an iPad to connect them with an emergency room doctor.

What You Need To Know

  • The Schenectady Fire Department began its telemedicine program in November

  • Instead of taking each patient to the emergency room, some are treated virtually by ER doctors

  • The department says the wait time is a little over three minutes to speak to a doctor

  • The hope is this will help keep emergency rooms from getting too busy

The department said the process is easier, cheaper, and will keep emergency rooms from filling up with patients. Right now, the average wait time is just over three minutes.

"I don't think any of us could ever imagine walking into an emergency department and seeing a physician face-to-face in three minutes and four seconds," EMS Captain Stanley Wilgocki said.

The department began its telemedicine program in November and has treated about 40 patients. Paramedics say the process has been smooth.

"A lot of the younger generation is already aware of it, or a lot of them have already done it before with their own insurance companies," said Nate Kuhl, a Schenectady paramedic. “Sometimes, with the older population, it takes a little bit of explaining, or they don't know how to use it."

The department says it will continue to assess its calls, and will transfer patients that require in-person emergency care.