Utilize former care center building for EMS and Community Paramedicine
September 15, 2022
The Southern Teller County Health Services District would like to inform the public about a proposal that is to come before the Board of Directors on September 20, 2022, regarding a possible use of the Cripple Creek Care Center Building located at 700 N. A. Street.
The Board voted to allow for a task force to be developed to research the possibility of the Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services to be housed at the previous care center.
Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services is currently sharing a building that is owned by the City of Cripple Creek and is shared with the fire department. There is currently no room for growth. The city population is expected to triple in the next few years. Thus, growth and expansion is needed to accommodate this population increase.
The new facility would allow for:
Each Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services staff to have their own living accommodations.
This would recruit and retain employees to work for Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services. They are looking to recruit three new full-time employees in the near future.
3 Training rooms for medical, trauma, and skill stations. At the current time there is no room to leave these bulky and cumbersome training tools out for immediate use. The staff has to set up and break down for each training session.
Walk in exam room would be available.
Have a permanent home for Southwest Emergency Medical Services. The City of Cripple Creek has been kind enough to house Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services for 31 years. This would enable future expansion for the City of Cripple Creek Services.
The proposed design would account for 5 bays opposed to 1. Currently the ambulances are stacked three deep. These extra bays would account for a community paramedic vehicle.
Consideration for a back-up communication system to be used by the police department.
Room for Police Officers to have a place to recuperate when they have court appearance after a night shift. This would give back to the City of Cripple Creek for their years of housing the Southwest Teller County Emergency Medical Services. This arrangement is expected to help with police employee retention.
Host larger trainings or meetings.
The building does not have a prospective buyer, at this time. The property was shown twice with neither party submitting an offer.
The estimated cost to purchase land and build a much smaller facility could be 6 to 7 million dollars.
We believe it could take five to ten years before we could get into a new facility, if this building is not utilized.
Energy Grants are being researched for funding.
2 sustainability studies are being conducted.
The task force is pursuing green energy upgrades.
Ute Pass Regional Health Service District wrote a grant to put a community paramedic in the district for 12 months. The move to the Cripple Creek Care Center building would enable this needed trial to begin and possibly continue.
The Paramedic Advanced Care Team Program (Community Paremedic) or PACT is a group of highly experienced paramedics with special training in the acute and sub-acute care of the chronically ill. This program emphasizes an all-inclusive approach to the assessment, treatment, and navigation of patients. PACT team members are trained to work closely with the patient’s physician, home health agency, public health, DHS, the local hospitals, and behavioral health. The goal of the program is to improve patient outcome and satisfaction by visiting patients in their home to assess their condition in hopes of identifying aberrances before they become a threat to the patient’s health and wellbeing. This program helps the community by preventing re-admission to hospital care.