Page last updated on December 13, 2022 at 11:57 am
Each week, Mayor Hamilton and Deputy Mayor Griffin provide video updates on recent news and key initiatives. Access all of the weekly video updates at bloomington.in.gov/videoupdates.
Join Mayor Hamilton and Bloomington Fire Department (BFD) Community Care Coordinators McKenna Terry and Shelby Wood as they discuss BFD’s new Mobile Integrated Healthcare program. The new program, first piloted in 2022, focuses on providing healthcare services directly to patients on location, continuity of care, and potentially reducing non-emergency calls to 911. In 2023, two more community care coordinator positions will be added.
BFD is the largest and only fully paid fire service provider in Monroe County and, as such, has earned an Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating of 1/1X, placing the department in the top 0.5% of rated departments in the U.S. and the top 0.2% of rated departments in Indiana.
The Bloomington Fire Department serves the community with more than 100 employees, located among five stations, responding to over 5,000 emergencies per year. BFD provides fire suppression, technical rescue, integrated healthcare, and emergency medical response capabilities to City residents and visitors, Indiana University, and surrounding communities through aid agreements. They also provide outreach and education, supporting children, families, and schools in the community.
If you’d like to learn more about this program, contact BFD at 812-332-9763, or email McKenna at mckenna.terry@bloomington.in.gov or Shelby at shelby.wood@bloomington.in.gov.
Transcript
John Hamilton:
Hi. This is Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton, back with you. Thanks so much for being with us. And today, we have a really exciting update about what's going on in the Bloomington Fire Department. And we have McKenna Terry and Shelby Wood with us today. Two pretty recent employees with the fire department. And we're going to be talking about the Mobile Integrated Health Program. So first of all, let's remember mostly what firefighters do is respond to 911 calls and emergencies.
Shelby Wood:
Correct.
John Hamilton:
They do some fire prevention work a lot. But also, 911 calls are basically responding to fires or health emergencies. And you're new, and you're doing things a little differently. So why don't you just tell us a little bit about what's different when you guys respond to a 911 call?
Shelby Wood:
Yeah. So our program is Mobile Integrated Health, and we are a patient-centered care model where we get to meet our patients where they are. So sometimes that's at home, sometimes that's in a facility, and sometimes that's on the street. But we get to meet them where they need to be met. And then help coordinate the care that they're going to need further to prevent further 911 calls that are maybe non-emergent, but also help gap that continuity of care.
John Hamilton:
So I think of firefighters, the bell goes off, 911, they run out, they fix a problem, they put out a fire, they help somebody in crisis. But you guys, you still do respond to 911 calls sometimes, is it? Or do you mostly do things before or after? McKenna?
Mckenna Terry:
It's the before and after.
John Hamilton:
Before and after.
Mckenna Terry:
Yeah.
John Hamilton:
And what do you do?
Mckenna Terry:
We will go out to their house and visit with them, see where those gaps are, and see what they need as far as how their needs need to be met.
John Hamilton:
So this might be people who have frequent 911 responses, is that right? Often?
Mckenna Terry:
Yes. Yes.
John Hamilton:
Okay. Many people don't know that 911 calls; the Fire Department often responds to health calls anyway, right?
Shelby Wood:
Absolutely.
John Hamilton:
Not just fires. Fire is a little piece of what they do. So tell me about what you were doing before, and then what made you apply for this job if you would. Maybe Shelby, let's start with you.
Shelby Wood:
Yeah. So I got my EMT in 2020, but I have spent the last five years working as a victim's advocate for a prosecutor. So I applied for this job because it really had my name written all over it. I not only get to utilize my EMT here, but I get to utilize my human services degree. So a big part with EMS is that you're responding to a call, and then not maybe necessarily seeing what happens afterward.
John Hamilton:
Yeah, it's an emergency call.
Shelby Wood:
Right, it's an emergency. Right. So here we not only get to do health assessments and that sort of thing, but we get to see it through, and we make sure that they get the help they need long-term instead of just responding to emergencies. So it's fantastic. I love it.
John Hamilton:
And since October?
Shelby Wood:
Oh yes, I've been doing it since October.
John Hamilton:
Just a couple of months. And McKenna, you, what were you doing?
Mckenna Terry:
I was an EMT for six years prior, both inner city and rural EMS.
John Hamilton:
Riding an ambulance?
Mckenna Terry:
Yes. Loved it. I came from a 24-hour on, 48-hour off service. I have a little girl, so the scheduling was not really there for me to be home with my family like I wanted it to be. So I saw this job posting, and it was like, "Okay. This is a different avenue of what I'm doing. I could really love it." And so I kind of jumped in full force and been here.
John Hamilton:
How's it going?
Mckenna Terry:
It's going really well.
John Hamilton:
So you are a team?
Mckenna Terry:
Yes.
John Hamilton:
Do you generally go together?
Shelby Wood:
She has the best partner there is.
Mckenna Terry:
Yes.
Shelby Wood:
I'm just kidding. I have the best partner there is.
John Hamilton:
It's really interesting our fire department and our public safety overall keeps evolving. We added police social workers, and community service specialists.
Shelby Wood:
Which are fantastic, by the way.
John Hamilton:
Do you interact with them?
Shelby Wood:
Yeah, they're great.
Mckenna Terry:
We do.
John Hamilton:
Yeah. So it's kind of this sense that in between the sworn officers of police and the sworn firefighters, there's a lot of work that can be done, and you're really focused on that healthcare side, I guess. Is there an example of what you've done on a typical day? Maybe they aren't typical days, but just some stories of what you've done since you've been here.
Shelby Wood:
So we actually spent our day yesterday responding to calls that were initially with our fire department lift assist.
John Hamilton:
Okay. Lift assist.
Shelby Wood:
Lift assist.
John Hamilton:
Somebody fell.
Shelby Wood:
Someone who fell but they don't necessarily need EMS. They just need help being picked up. So our firefighters ran several times to this residence.
John Hamilton:
To the same place with them?
Shelby Wood:
Right. Right. And when we got there, obviously, our initial thought was, "Okay. How can we prevent falls?" We're here for a lift assist. But when we got there, we realized that this couple really needed much more than just fall prevention. So they needed some basic needs like help bathing help with food. So we are getting to actually help coordinate that care so that we're not just going to help pick them up, we're helping with their quality of life. So we love it.
John Hamilton:
And you follow up with them. And also, the goal I suppose, is that they have to call less often to 911, right?
Shelby Wood:
Yes. And we already are seeing that. So on our-
John Hamilton:
You track that kind of thing
Shelby Wood:
Yeah. And it's actually our fire system, we get to see how many times we've run on somebody, and then it's very clear when we've got to step in. And we're not running as often. We never want to detour someone from calling 911 if they need it. But if it's a non-emergency situation where we really don't necessarily need 911, we want to try to help step in to prevent those calls.
John Hamilton:
They can reach out directly to with not a 911. Maybe we can let people know how to do that.
Shelby Wood:
Yes.
John Hamilton:
McKenna, do you have any surprises or things that struck you that people might be interested in the job?
Mckenna Terry:
I was really happy to be able to support the sworn service members that are in there because this whole program, another big thing for it, is to lessen the burnout. The less they are going to the same addresses, hopefully, the more they want to stay and do the job.
John Hamilton:
You know, that's really interesting because I know firefighters are in this line of work to help.
Shelby Wood:
Absolutely.
John Hamilton:
And it probably is kind of frustrating if you feel like you're going over and over. And while you're helping the emergency, maybe they're not advancing the way. And you guys can help do that.
Shelby Wood:
Right.
Mckenna Terry:
Yeah.
Shelby Wood:
And they do a great job of doing their job. It's not their job to do the human service work, right?
John Hamilton:
That's right.
Shelby Wood:
That's why we exist.
John Hamilton:
It's like the police, social workers, and community service specialists, kind of that integration of stuff. You mentioned I know you've worked with the Stride Center and other places from that group. So that's really important. I think it's useful for people to know too. This is healthcare work, and we're figuring out how to get funding. I know there's a grant application pending, but also it's just thinking about how do we get integrated into the health system a little better too.
Mckenna Terry:
Right. Yeah.
Shelby Wood:
Right. So the ultimate goal at this point we want to work on helping with things like help prevent readmit to hospitals. We want to help people that are dealing with some chronic disease and overall healthy living. So the goal is to eventually help mitigate that financial burden on maybe the healthcare system because we're already stepping in and working on preventative programs. So eventually, we're hoping to get to the point where we get to work with health insurance and that sort of thing so that we have a sustainability plan.
John Hamilton:
That's all that bureaucracy stuff, paperwork and all. But listen, I'm looking at your shirts. I'm so proud you're both wearing the City of Bloomington Fire Department shirts. It is so great to have you as part of the department–the top-ranked ISO 1 ranked fire department in our city of Bloomington. And it's just really refreshing to hear about how it's continuing to evolve and improve and help our community live better lives. We thank you so much for what you do.
Shelby Wood:
Yeah, thank you.
John Hamilton:
And good luck. And if you want more information, we'll share that on the screen. Look for McKenna and Shelby out in the field sometime. And thanks so much for what you do.
Shelby Wood:
Thank you.
Mckenna Terry:
Thank you.