Lerner Studies 911 Calls During Pandemic

Emergency 911 calls for medical help plummeted by more than 25 percent nationwide during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study by first author E. Brooke Lerner, PhD, professor of emergency medicine. Lerner notes that when people make fewer 911 calls but those calls involve more serious issues, “it means that people with urgent conditions are likely not getting the emergency care they need in a timely way. The result is increased morbidity and mortality resulting from conditions not directly related to exposure to SARS-CoV2.”