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Carl Quintilla, NBC NewsIn Miami an innovative new program is underway, aimed at improving the city's ambulance service response time. The results have been dramatic. The solution is as simple as putting paramedics on two wheels instead of four.
Responding to an emergency-in-progress, Miami Dade paramedics in an ambulance and on those motorcycles, weave in and out of rush-hour traffic. But the bikes are much nimbler. By the time the ambulance gets to the scene the "motor-medics" are already at work, having arrived in half the time.
Their mode of transportation is now changing the face of emergency response. Paramedics like Roman Bas now answer calls on souped-up BMW's equipped with defibrillators, oxygen and IV's, weaving through the nation's sixth most-congested city.
Paramedic: "All it takes is for a car to just inch just a little bit to the right and the other car just a little bit to the left and we're through."
It seems obvious, riding on motorcycles is more efficient than on big trucks, but Miami-Dade is the first county in the nation to do it. And the reduction in response time is saving lives. Miami's response time has gone from seven minutes to just three on motorcycles.
Motor-medics can't do everything. They often simply stabilize victims until ambulances arrive. But because they can quickly assess a 'low-priority' call, say the cut finger, they free up larger rescue units for critical emergencies.
Michael Vila, Firefighter, Miami-Dade Fire-Rescue: "We call them off. We put those units back in service, which is important to go on another call."
Miami's program, copied from European models, is now drawing interest from other US cities and could be copied around the country.
