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Detroit Fire Department outlines nurse-navigation pilot to triage low‑priority 911 calls
Summary
Detroit Fire Department presented a nurse-navigation plan to divert nonemergency 911 calls to nurses, aiming to free ambulance crews for high-priority calls; staff described a Q3–Q1 procurement timeline and a pilot beginning January with translation and telehealth capacity.
The Detroit Fire Department told the Public Health & Safety Committee on June 16 that it plans to pilot a nurse-navigation program to triage and manage low-priority 911 calls so ambulance crews can focus on true emergencies.
Deputy Commissioner Derek Hellman said the department receives about 150,000 calls a year and estimates roughly 25% are low-priority nonemergent requests (examples cited: minor injuries or issues that may be resolved by telehealth or scheduled transport). Under the proposed model, police-operated dispatchers would transfer lower-priority calls to a nurse, who would perform a clinical quality check, offer telehealth or urgent-care referrals, schedule transportation when needed, or return a call to 911 for code-three responses.
“We want to create a health equity program within the city to give our residents the ability to be directed to the proper care,” Hellman said, describing the program as a way to reduce both cumulative crew fatigue and unnecessary emergency-room costs.
Hellman described an implementation timeline that begins with bid review in Q3, vendor selection and contracting by Q4, a January soft pilot to start taking calls off 911, and a broader rollout in spring. He said two vendors had submitted proposals and site visits were underway.
Committee members asked about language access and other operational details. Hellman said one vendor offers phone translation in up to 200 languages and that some vendors provide telehealth connections to physicians. Member Waters and others said they welcomed the approach but asked for vendor details, patient-privacy and quality-control parameters, and assurances about coordination with the health department’s existing nonemergency ride services.
The committee did not take a formal vote on the program at the session, but members asked staff to return with vendors and more operational detail once procurement progressed.
Next steps: Department staff said they will return to the committee when vendor selection and contracting are further along and that a limited soft pilot could begin in January; council staff and members requested follow-up information on vendor identity, language access and coordination with the Department of Health.
