Transportation from hospital to home remained a question for many because of the irregular transportation modes and unavailability of the rides when demanded. Yet, there had been changes occurring in the medical transportation industry, and developments of wheelchair transportation services in Charlotte, NC was observed. There were detailed studies conducted across the states to understand how the traveling patterns have become for medical patients, especially the ones belonging to the senior sector of the population.
The disabilities that called in travel limitation had the following statistics:
•3.6 million Americans are homebound because of the disabilities they have incurred.
•13.4 million Americans are 65 and above in age and cannot commute on their own.
Domestic demographical statistics include:
•Only one-fifth of the American population does not work and hence cannot afford private commutation.
•Over half a population have an annual income below $25,000 and cannot afford private transportation.
•Almost 12% of Americans live in zero-vehicle households.
The statistics about trip frequency:
•7 out of 10 disabled patients have reduced their commutation owing to their health issues. As a result, they cannot even attend their medical appointments too.
•The disabled patients have remarkably lowered their commutation; both for medical or non-medical reasons have lessened their public outings and do rely on “wheelchair transportation near me” options on the web browser.
The ride-sharing statistics:
•No matter how elder the patients are, they do not rely on taking ride shares on public transports. They rely on either their vehicles or drop the idea of medical transportation.
•Elder patients do not even feel the need or necessity to share vehicles.
Statistics of their reliance on technology:
•Several cloud platforms or technology-rich NEMT services have come up to boost the medical transportation industry but heavily complicated technologies are mostly avoided by elders, however necessary that might be.
But these are the statistics that came to light owing to the challenges that the patients face while utilizing these services. Those are the few challenges they face and need instant attention and maybe that is why NEMT is slowly yet steadily getting the pace it should get.
Accessible Bus Stops
Might seem very easy, but this is something that governments have yet not planned for. Buses might themselves have ramps or accessibility areas for wheelchair-bound patients, but having stops created to cater to these patients is not in any near possibility. Hence, wheelchair-bound patients, however smooth their journeys can be, cannot utilize the public medium of transport. Accessible bus stops require a whole new level of planning and execution and that is something hard to achieve all over the states. And again, there is no surety of patients using them even after they are constructed all over.
Priority Seating
Buses do have accessible features within them but are not found to be put to complete use because of the lack of compassion and courtesy within the passengers. The seating signs do not get fully utilized without tougher transportation regulations and wheelchair-bound patients boarding the vehicles face issues while completing their journey. Hence, wheelchair transportation services in Charlotte, NC have modified their vehicular transportation services to cater to the wheelchair-bound patients’ needs and worries.
Para-Transit Scheduling
These are a few of the services that are only operational and functional within just a few of the cities across the states to cater to the needs of the patients who are disabled and require transportation from the hospital to home or otherwise. These services do not call for any external assistance and have trained staff to handle the patients and their transportation. However, this too has a few drawbacks. These services cannot under any circumstances be scheduled. If the vehicles are available around you, only then do you get to avail them. You also cannot book them quite spontaneously. A 24-hour prior booking is required.
High Costs
For patients taking para-transits, the cost is impeccably high as compared to normal public transports or finding a NEMT service through the “wheelchair transportation near me” option on your browser. Due to their lower availability and specialized nature of them, they cost such heftily. Hence, not every patient can afford it.
Henceforth, the non-emergency medical transportation services have started coming more in numbers to curb the underlying problem of the elderly mass and help them get to the medical facilities on time, affordably, and without having to miss the appointments.
