The City's innovative initiatives to expand and diversify health and safety outreach and response capacity have gained another arrow in the quiver. The vehicle pictured here is an old ambulance that's been brought out of retirement and refurbished for use as a Mobile Health Unit (MHU).
Strategically, the deployment of this unit will enable the Community Health and Safety Department to deliver important services without utilizing a front-line ambulance, which would remain available for emergency service.
The unit is staffed by Fire Department paramedics, and its first mission is to support the City’s ongoing vaccination campaign. For instance, residents who declare themselves as homebound when they register for vaccinations on the Department of Health website will become candidates for house calls by the MHU. In the future, it could support small-scale vaccination events for other viruses (like the flu), provide medical care at large-scale special events, and treat firefighters on the scene of an emergency.
The MHU joins the recently launched Alternative Response Unit (ARU) on the streets of Santa Fe.
The ARU responds to emergency calls related to social service, behavioral/mental health, and law enforcement needs. As of a couple of days ago, the ARU had already responded to 116 such calls since it began operations in May.
