Daejeon Fire Department "Strengthening Refusal of Non-Emergency Patient Transport Requests"

Provided by Daejeon City

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] The refusal of 119 ambulance transport requests for non-emergency patients within Daejeon is being strengthened.

The Daejeon Fire Headquarters announced on the 26th that it will strengthen the refusal of 119 ambulance transport for non-emergency patients in order to secure the golden time for emergency patients and ensure rapid transport.

According to the Fire Headquarters, Article 20 of the Enforcement Decree of the Act on 119 Rescue and Ambulance Services provides legal grounds to refuse transport requests for patients with simple colds, simple toothaches, intoxicated persons, minor abrasions, and contusions.

Also, Article 30 of the same law allows imposing a fine of up to 2 million won from the first offense for false reports, in cases where an ambulance is used to transport a patient to the emergency room under false pretenses, but the patient does not receive treatment at the transported medical institution.

Nevertheless, some users, due to misunderstandings, use 119 ambulances even in non-emergency situations, which often hinders emergency patients who are in critical condition from using 119 ambulance services.

Accordingly, the Fire Headquarters plans to strengthen refusal of transport requests for cases judged as non-emergency patients on site starting this year, to enhance the proper functioning of emergency services.

A Fire Headquarters official said, “We ask for the public’s interest and cooperation so that emergency patients can quickly use 119 ambulances, and we urge non-emergency patients to refrain from using ambulances.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.