11.C.
City Council Meeting - FINAL
- Meeting Date:
- 07/01/2025
- Co-Submitter:
- Shannon Anderson
- From:
- Seth Gregar, Fire Captain
TITLE
2024 CARE unit annual update
STAFF RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Discussion and yearly update of 2024 CARE unit.
Executive Summary:
The City of Flagstaff has been in partnership with Terros Health since October 2021 to implement a unit that would assist in a reduction of non-emergent type calls to the Flagstaff Fire Department and Flagstaff Police. The CARE unit officially went into service in March 2022. Every year, we take the opportunity to provide the Council with updates on the progress of the CARE unit. This will be a brief overview of the last year, looking at comparable data from previous years.
Information:
The City has partnered with Terros Health on the CARE unit for over three years now. The outcome of that partnership, coupled with numerous partnerships within the community, has allowed for a re-distribution of non-emergent calls (averaging over 1000 calls per year) from our public safety providers.
This year we are again seeing increased call volumes through the 911 Dispatch center for public safety and the CARE unit. In previous years the City experienced a dip in call volume due to inclement weather. Given the additional facilities avialable in the community the call volume has stayed more steady and increased over prior years. By re-directing the non-emergent type calls through the CARE unit, we are keeping our limited resources within public safety more readily available for more emergent calls for service. It is important to note that many of these 911 Dispatch calls for service are being generated from passerby community members (known as 3rd party callers) who do not have any information on the issue or condition of the person they are calling in reference to. The CARE unit continues their proactive outreach in an attempt to reduce the number of these third-party calls. This proactive outreach also allows us the opporutnity to build a rapport with clients which better supports any future interactions. The proactive outreach and response to calls for service for substance use, trauma informed, mental or behavioral health related events have continued to meet the primary objectives of engaging those in need with the most appropriate services and keeping them safe and out of the justice system and emergency room.
The Flagstaff Fire Department (specifically the EMS Battalion Chief) will continue to be the City program manager and work to ensure the scope of the unit is maintained as designed.
This year we are again seeing increased call volumes through the 911 Dispatch center for public safety and the CARE unit. In previous years the City experienced a dip in call volume due to inclement weather. Given the additional facilities avialable in the community the call volume has stayed more steady and increased over prior years. By re-directing the non-emergent type calls through the CARE unit, we are keeping our limited resources within public safety more readily available for more emergent calls for service. It is important to note that many of these 911 Dispatch calls for service are being generated from passerby community members (known as 3rd party callers) who do not have any information on the issue or condition of the person they are calling in reference to. The CARE unit continues their proactive outreach in an attempt to reduce the number of these third-party calls. This proactive outreach also allows us the opporutnity to build a rapport with clients which better supports any future interactions. The proactive outreach and response to calls for service for substance use, trauma informed, mental or behavioral health related events have continued to meet the primary objectives of engaging those in need with the most appropriate services and keeping them safe and out of the justice system and emergency room.
The Flagstaff Fire Department (specifically the EMS Battalion Chief) will continue to be the City program manager and work to ensure the scope of the unit is maintained as designed.