The service is available at www.emergency-finder.ch from 21 October 2025 and is free of charge. The online application was developed by POLARIS HEALTH AG and JAXForms AG in collaboration with hospitals in the metropolitan area. The project, led by the Bern Cantonal Health Directorate, is funded by the Canton and three Bernese health insurers: Atupri, KPT and V⁠i⁠s⁠a⁠n⁠a. Through the project, the Canton, insurers and participating service providers aim to improve the efficiency of care delivery to the Bernese population and thus reduce healthcare costs.

Many people often find themselves unsure how exactly to react when a medical problem suddenly arises: How do they assess the situation? Is it an emergency? Who should they contact? Do they really need to go to hospital? The online application Emergency-Finder for the city and metropolitan area of Bern provides answers to such questions.

The online application includes an integrated symptom checker from the Bernese medical software manufacturer in4medicine, which helps patients to assess the urgency of their complaints as a first step. In cases of uncertainty or clear emergencies, the application immediately displays the nearest emergency wards, including their current capacity. In life-threatening situations, a direct call to the ambulance service (144) can be made. 

“Emergency-Finder not only helps us by showing people in Bern where to go in emergencies, but another advantage is that it can guide the public in cases of uncertainty,” explains Prof. Thomas Sauter, Head Physician at the University Emergency Centre at Inselspital and Endowed Professor of Emergency Telemedicine at the University of Bern. “We are impressed by this use of digital innovation and are happy to play our part in improving healthcare provision in Bern.”

The healthcare sector is changing dramatically. People often no longer have a general practitioner. When something happens or a sudden illness strikes, many feel uncertain. The symptom checker integrated into the application helps to assess whether the complaints in question constitute a genuine medical emergency, or whether it would be more appropriate to visit a doctor’s surgery or pharmacy. “It is not only patients who benefit from the new platform,” says Pierre Alain Schnegg, Director of Health for the Canton of Bern. “The Bernese healthcare system also benefits, as the platform can reduce both staff workload and waiting times at emergency wards. We also hope that, in the medium term, hospitals will see fewer minor cases in their emergency wards, which will have a positive effect on healthcare costs.”

The Emergency-Finder project is supported by the Canton of Bern and three Bernese health insurers: Atupri, KPT and V⁠i⁠s⁠a⁠n⁠a. The participating insurers are thus actively helping to improve medical care and reduce healthcare costs. Digital support during initial assessment of medical complaints enables patients to be directed to the right place more quickly – which is directly beneficial not only for the insured persons, but also for the efficiency of care delivery. The participants in the first phase are: the Insel Group, the Hirslanden Bern hospitals, the Lindenhof Group, UPD AG, the City Notfall emergency practices, Medbase Bern Bahnhof and Siloah. Notfall-Finder will to be rolled out across the entire canton of Bern starting in spring 2026.

Health insurers: 

• Atupri
• KPT
• V⁠i⁠s⁠a⁠n⁠a 

Healthcare service providers: 

• Insel Group 
• Hirslanden Bern hospitals 
• Lindenhof Group 
• UPD AG 
• City Notfall emergency practices 
• Medbase Bern Bahnhof 
• Siloah in4medicine

Canton of Bern:

Gundekar Giebel

Head of the Directorate of Communications, Health, Social Affairs and Integration

Information about the application:

Xaver Weibel

Co-CEO, JAXForms AG, Biel/Bienne

Tel.: 079 614 81 33

And all partners of notfall-finder.ch