Community Partnerships

   I'm not really good at making up new names for numbers, but if I had to, I think "kuhdillion" is the number I'd use to describe how many times I've seen organizations claim to "partner with their community" or be "community partners" in an effort to follow their mission statement. In fact, the biggest number of claims to be "community partners" I've seen seem to exist only within those mission statements.

   It seems everyone wants to be a "community partner" these days, and that's a good thing...if it is actively pursued and actually accomplished. Otherwise, it's just another claim on some company's mission statement that exists solely to help refashion the words "utilize synergy" to actual words that mean something.

   What does "partnering with our community" really mean? First, it takes a noun and twists it into a verb, which is something I dislike from a purely grammatical sense (ever heard of "dialoging" with someone?), but beyond that, it means the organization claiming to be a "community partner" needs the community's support in order to better fulfill its mission as much as the community needs the mission to be fulfilled. A bus company "partners with its community" to provide mass transportation service, but needs the community to help by allowing them to run their routes, standing in designated spots for pick-up and delivery, and paying the fares. A police department provides law enforcement and crime deterrence, but needs citizens to act as witnesses, report crimes and follow up with the prosecution. Similarly, a fire department responds to fire and rescue incidents to mitigate hazards and effect rescue, but needs citizens to report fires, practice fire safety and stay out of the way of firefighting operations.

   But how does an EMS and ambulance service "partner with the community"? And what would be the advantages for an ambulance agency to do so?

   The answer to the second question is pretty easy and represents great advantage to the EMS services that truly choose to pursue a community partnership. Here are several examples:

   • More appropriate use of the 9-1-1 system

   • More citizens calling for true emergencies and knowing what other resources to use when 9-1-1 isn't needed

   • Better marking of addresses on residences and businesses

   • Increased bystander CPR and first aid

   • Better pay, reimbursement and funding

   • Improved health of the community as a whole

   • Increased crew safety.

   If your ambulance service wants to partner with the community, how would you go about it? Well, you could do what some organizations do and just include the phrase "We will partner with our community to..." at the beginning of your mission statement, but that doesn't accomplish much other than giving some administrative types a warm feeling. To really get to the nuts and bolts of doing this takes a plan. It takes buy-in (yet another buzzword) from street-level providers, and it takes a lot of administrative support and giving crews leeway to make decisions.

   First, you need a plan and objectives. What do you need from your community to better serve your service's mission? What community organizations should you engage with to establish your partnership? What can you offer the community that you currently do not?

   That last question is important because, even though we may perceive the inherent value in our services, the community may not when they're asked to increase their contributions to us. Don't expect to get something for nothing. You need to offer the community something in return for their increased support. A good example of this is touting the vast increase in saves for cardiac arrest patients with bystander CPR. Sure, your community members probably know that, but you're their local provider. You need to show them the real benefits of learning CPR and providing it if necessary. You also need to look at the true benefits of the partnership. It costs money to train lots of people in CPR. Can those costs be covered by another community partner? Can another community organization step in to train citizens in CPR with your support? Would someone donate money to your service to cover the additional costs you will incur?

   The above benefits work pretty well when seen as objectives to be met for your own efforts in community partnership. While your service will probably come up with its own unique objectives, the path to attaining them must follow a few common steps.

Determine what you want

   Determine what you want out of the partnership and the benefits you hope to gain from it. Every EMS provider finds it easy to prattle on in vague generalities about problems they see, but most have trouble finding specific things that can be fixed to improve the situation. Think hard about the exact issues, and focus the goal into something that can generally be summed up in one sentence. The simpler the issue, the better your results will be and the easier it will be to ask the community to partner with you to achieve success.

Set benchmark goals to keep on track

   How will you measure success? How will you know if your efforts are paying off or when you need to try harder? You can't change what you can't measure, and setting measurable goals makes your progress a lot easier. When you measure your outcomes, you can see if what you are doing is moving you toward your goal. Make the goals questions as close to "yes" or "no" as you can. When you get a "no" answer, try a different approach.

Identify individuals and organizations that might help you achieve your goals

   Let's say your community has a problem with bedridden patients who are stuck in houses that are hard to access because of exterior steps. It's killing your providers, because they have to carry these people out of the most inaccessible back bedrooms, it usually takes more than one crew to accomplish the task, and it always causes aggravation. Whom would you want to help solve this problem? If it were me, I'd see if there is a community group with volunteers available to build ramps or better steps for these houses, to help remodel for accessibility of cots, or to make a better place for the patient inside the house. Perhaps the city or local building code enforcement could be brought in to expedite permitting, waive fees and/or provide technical consulting. I'd also contact local building material suppliers to see if they would offer a discount, or even donate some materials to the cause. Senior services agencies could be a big help in bringing in resources as well. Look for people with complementary missions and engage their help. Remember to scratch their back if they scratch yours.

Plan the project and identify the steps you need to take

   How will you do what you need to do? Will you engage a philanthropic community group to pay a percentage of your unrecoverable debt from 9-1-1 patients who can't pay? Develop a mathematical formula to determine the percentage of the cost multiplied by the number of calls meeting determined "unrecoverable" criteria. Set the benefit patients will receive and the criteria they will have to meet to receive funds. Will you seek community donations to cover the cost? Where and how will you solicit donations? What are your accounting controls? Plan out the steps and try to identify problems before they happen. The better you plan, the better the project will run. However, always remember that "the 'perfect' is the enemy of the 'good enough'," meaning if you wait until things are absolutely perfect before proceeding, you'll never move forward toward your goal.

Communication is key!

   Be sure to keep a constant stream of information going; that's what partners do. Don't play the game that "knowledge is power." Keep information flowing to everyone involved, including the community. Involve the media to spread the word, and give them positive information to report for a change. Don't play political games; participate equally in the project and do your share.

   This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it's a good start for your organization. All of the above steps are necessary to achieve success. Tailor them to meet your specific goals.

   When people feel that they have a "friend at the ambulance service," they'll be more comfortable seeking help when they need it and will call you earlier when they have that twinge of chest pain from a heart attack. They'll also be more accepting when your crew tells them that alternative transportation might be indicated for their stubbed toe at 3 a.m. Partner with your community so every resident has a "friend" at your agency, and you'll reap the benefits across all aspects of your service. Get out in your community and show them what you can do for them. You'll probably be amazed at what they'll be willing to do for you.

   Chris Kaiser has been a paramedic since the last millennium and currently works the cornfields of northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. He writes mainly about advancing EMS and is on a personal quest to make EMS the profession it deserves to be. Read more from Chris at www.LifeUnderTheLights.com.