Emergency response startup woos customers

Feb 7, 2010 — North County Times

Bradley J. Fikes

Feb. 7, 2010 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- VISTA -- Recently out of the hospital after having a heart attack late last year, Joe Landfield had reason to be especially concerned about his health.

On Christmas Day, when his blood pressure dropped to 81 over 40, the 70-year-old Landfield, by his own admission, "got freaked out."

But the Laguna Woods resident was quickly reassured by talking with a nurse, who deduced he had been incorrectly prescribed a medication that lowered his blood pressure.

"Long story short, everything went back to normal" after discontinuing the drug, Landfield said.

That nurse advised Landfield through Instant Care, a Vista-based startup that provides emergency response and immediate medical advice. The company's service costs from about $10 to $40 a month -- Landfield went for the high-end plan.

Instant Care subscribers get a two-button device that hooks into their phone line. A big red button contacts an emergency care specialist who determines whether medical care should be sent immediately to the home. That specialist knows the local emergency care contacts for each subscriber.

For non-emergencies, a smaller blue-on-white button puts subscribers in touch with a nurse -- 24 hours a day, seven days a week -- who can answer medical questions.

So instead of having to make an all-or-nothing decision on whether to summon emergency help, a subscriber can quickly get access to an informed professional who can make the call. And for less urgent questions, subscribers can get information that can ease their fears or help them avoid problems down the road.

Higher-end services include extras such as a pendant with the buttons, wirelessly connected to the emergency device. So if a subscriber can't read the phone, he or she can still summon aid.

Big plans

Although Instant Care only has about 100 subscribers, the months-old company has attracted interest from potential big customers such as the state of South Carolina, said Richard Darling, CEO of the privately held company.

The company also is in discussions with major insurers, Darling said.

South Carolina has a far-sighted view of technology as a way to both reduce the cost of health care and improve its quality, Darling said.

"The (Instant Care) product can provide service to the underserved, and it actually saves money," he said.

"Individuals who have no health care show up at the ER because they have no other alternative," Darling said, sketching one scenario. "They may have watched a program about H1N1. And in a panic they show up at the ER, spend six hours there, exposing themselves to God knows what, and it turns out they don't have it. That still costs the taxpayers and the insurance companies money."

With Instant Care, people can get immediate, personal attention over the phone, with professionals who know their medical histories, Darling said. That saves money, saves time and ensures that those who really need emergency attention receive it.

Rising field

Instant Care is one of a roster of companies providing emergency medical help, a field that first caught the public eye two decades ago from the "I've fallen and I can't get up" commercials by a now-defunct company called Life Call.

Today's emergency advice and response companies emphasize their ability to give medical information, not just assistance. They typically provide access to registered nurses, who can quickly walk the subscriber through symptoms or answer questions.

Del Mar-based GreatCall Inc. offers a somewhat similar product as an add-on to its Jitterbug cell phone service, Jitterbug LiveNurse. This gives subscribers access to nurses who provide general medical information, but without the emergency response capability.

Getting advice while in the home is not only convenient, but it is also less risky for those who might be ill, Darling said. Strokes and heart attacks require immediate attention, or the rate of death and permanent injury rises sharply, he said. And it's also good for preventing such major life-threatening events, which Darling said interests the state of South Carolina.

"Many times, you get warning signs in advance, so we've given clients the ability to detect these early warning signs, and talk to a nurse who may be able to give them the right assessment to give them care prior to this catastrophic event," Darling said. "We're preventative, as opposed to everyone in the industry, who's reactive."

Landfield is more than willing to endorse Instant Care's efficiency.

"If I had this before I had the heart attack, I probably wouldn't have had the heart attack," Landfield said. "There were indications that I was not addressing that should have been addressed."

Call staff writer Bradley J. Fikes at 760-739-6641. Read his blogs at bizblogs.nctimes.com.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0059-41862581