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ARE CALLING UBER INSTEAD. THAT’S RIGHT. UBER. >> YOU MAKE THE CALL AND THEY COME RUNNING. THEY ARE MEN AND WOMEN SPECIALLY TRAINED TO SAVE YOUR LIFE. >> I HADN’T EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT TAKING AN AMBULANCE BECAUSE IT WAS NOT THAT BAD. >> BUT THE PAIN GOT THAT BAD FOR BRIAN SHALTON DURING A GALLBLADDER ATTACK TWO YEARS AGO. IT WENT FROM A SEVEN TO 810. >> HE CALLED A COUPLE OF FRIENDS BUT THERE WAS NO ANSWER. LUCKILY MENORAH MEDICAL CENTER WASN’T FAR AWAY. SO HE CALLED 911? RIGHT, WRONG. . >> HE SAID, ARE YOU VISITING SOMEBODY? I SAID, NO. >> A QUICK CHE ONLINE AND WE FOUND HE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE. THEY’RE MOSTLY PEOPLE WHO WOULD RATHER SPEND A FEW BUCKS ON A RIDE THAN A FEW THOUSAND IN AN AMBULANCE. DIG A LITTLE DEEPER AND YOU’LL FIND A K.U. STUDY FROM 2-YEARS AGO REVEALING AMBULANCE USAGE IN CITIES WITH UBER FELL 7%. THE BEST ADVICE FROM THE KCFD. IF WE FEEL YOU ARE IN A LIFE-THREATENING SITUATION, WE CAN SKIP THROUGH TRAFFIC FASTER THAN AN UBER CAN. >> THE WHOLE TIME YOU’RE HOOKED TO A MOINITOR PARAMEDICS ARE TALKING TO THE HOSPITAL THE CRITICAL CARE YOU MIGHT NEED HAS ALREADY BEGUN. AS FOR SHALTON’S RIDE THAT DAY. >> I THINK HE RAN SOME LIGHTS,

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You make the call, and they come running – men and women specially trained to save your life, complete with an ambulance to rush you to the hospital.Brian Shalton’s pain got that bad two years ago during a gallbladder attack. “It went from a seven, and by the time I left to go to the hospital, it was a 10,” Shalton said.He called friends for help, but didn’t get an answer. Menorah Medical Center wasn’t far away. So, Shalton picked up his phone again, and instead of calling 911, he ordered an Uber.“I get in and he says, ‘You want to go to the emergency room at Menorah?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah.’ And he said, ‘Are you visiting someone?’ and I said ‘Nope,’” Shalton said.It’s part of a growing trend. A quick check online and KMBC 9 News found Shalton’s not the only one who has turned to Uber instead of 911. The ones reaching for their apps instead of calling 911 said they would rather spend a few bucks on an Uber ride than a few thousand dollars on an ambulance.A study from the University of Kansas published two years ago reveals ambulance usage fell 7 percent in cities with Uber.Does the choice make sense? Or cents? The Kansas City Fire Department has its own advice.“If we feel you are in a life-threatening situation, we can turn on our lights and sirens and kind of skip through traffic faster than, let’s say, an Uber can,” said KCFD Deputy Chief Jimmy Walker. The whole time you’re in the ambulance, you’re hooked to a monitor while paramedics are speaking with the hospital – the critical care you might need is already underway. That’s not the case in a rideshare. Shalton’s ride that day got him safely to the hospital. He said he didn’t want to bother anyone, and he wouldn’t have hesitated to call 911 if things had gotten worse. “I think he ran some red lights,” Shalton said. “I know he drove fast, and I gave him 5 stars. He did a great job.”But it turns out, in an emergency, Uber doesn’t think calling one of its drivers is a great idea either.A company spokesperson said Uber is not a substitute for law enforcement or medical professionals – call 911 instead.