Non-emergency medical rides, 24/7

A trip begins well before the pickup window. The checks below happen whether or not anyone is watching.

• A walkaround at the start of every shift — tires, lights, brakes, horn, wipers and seat belts.
• On accessible vehicles the ramp or lift is cycled, and the tie-down tracks, straps and occupant belts are inspected rather than glanced at.
• The route, the building entrance and the drop-off point are confirmed ahead of time — the door the rider actually uses, not just the street address.
• Winter is planned for rather than reacted to. Snow and ice come off the vehicle and it is warmed before the rider comes out, the path from the door is checked underfoot, and we add time to the schedule instead of hurrying a route in bad weather.
• Any defect that affects safety takes the vehicle out of service the moment it is found. We would rather send a different vehicle than a compromised one.

Securement is the part of this work with the least room for improvisation, so it is the part we are strictest about.

• Mobility devices are secured with a four-point system, and the rider wears a separate occupant belt. Both, on every trip, including the short ones.
• No trip starts until the rider is secured and the driver has checked the securement — not while pulling away from the entrance.
• Drivers assist from the door rather than the curb, and help with a reasonable amount of personal belongings.
• Drivers do not provide medical care and do not lift a rider by hand. Where a trip needs more than we can safely provide, we say so at booking rather than at the curb.
• Service animals travel with their handler at no additional charge — tell us when you book so we send a vehicle with room for one.

These are our requirements of an applicant, in writing, so that nobody has to take a driver's suitability on trust.

• Before a first passenger: a valid Wisconsin driver license, a driving record we have reviewed, a criminal background check and a drug screen. All four cleared — not in progress, not pending.
• Training is a condition of driving for us, not an optional extra: passenger assistance and mobility-device securement before any trip involving a wheelchair, defensive driving, and the privacy rules we hold drivers to.
• Screening is not a one-time event. We re-check driving records on a set schedule, and drivers are required to tell us straight away if their license or insurance status changes.
• Our disqualifiers are written down rather than judged case by case. A DUI, a serious moving violation, an offense involving violence, or a positive drug screen ends the arrangement.

A safety standard is only worth as much as what happens the day it is not met.

• Every concern is written down with the date, the trip and what was reported — including the ones raised by phone. Nothing rests on someone remembering it later.
• Where passenger safety is involved, the driver comes off the route while we review it, rather than after.
• We come back to the person who raised it with what we found and what we changed as a result.
• You are always free to escalate to the health plan, agency or facility that arranged the trip. We will provide the records they ask us for.