Seattle City Wire

The recent announcement of a second Health One unit, this one serving the University District and Ballard, is only the beginning, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said in a recent news release.

“Seattle has pioneered community safety initiatives like Health One," Durkan said in the news release issued the same day the second Health One unit was announced. "As we continue to reimagine public safety, we will expand civilian public safety alternatives like Health One that send a firefighter and social worker to a 911 call."

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan | Facebook

The rest of this year will see the expansion of Health One to neighborhoods across the city, Durkan said.

"Our Seattle Fire Department has led the way in serving our community in new ways, and their work is connecting more people to the right resources in our community," she said, according to Seattle.gov.

The news release followed a joint announcement at the University District's Fire Station 17 of Health One's expansion. The joint announcement was attended by Durkan and city government, fire and safety officials on April 13.

The second unit began operating two days later, staffed with a team of two specially trained firefighter/EMTs and a case manager from the Human Services Department's Aging and Disability Services Division.  

In addition to answering 911 calls, the team also will respond to nonemergency calls from people suffering from issues such as substance abuse, nonemergency medical issues and a need to access services.

The city's first Health One unit began operation in 2019.

"Between both units, the city will now have full weekday coverage," Durkan said during the joint announcement. "Both Health One units will have the same staffing and equipment, two specially trained firefighter/EMTs, an Aging and Disability Services case manager with the Human Services Department and an SUV equipped with all the necessary medical equipment -- plus outreach resources such as food, drinks and clothing."

Also present at the joint announcement were Seattle Fire Chief Harold Scoggins, Seattle Fire Fighters Union Local 27 Vice President Jeff Miller, Seattle Fire Mobile Integrated Health Program Manager Jon Ehrenfeld and Seattle City Council members Alex Pedersen, Dan Strauss and Teresa Mosqueda.

"I want to thank Mayor Durkan for her leadership in prioritizing public safety in Seattle in support of the Health One program," Miller said during his remarks. "I want to thank Fire Chief Scoggins and Jon Ehrenfeld for their management of this critical program. But most of all, I want to thank what we call 'boots on the ground,' and that's our firefighters and social workers who are responding to a vulnerable population and delivering, hooking up with the services they need. Health One is a solid commonsense program, and the reason it's effective is because of our firefighters, who, from day one, have been on the streets responding to our homeless, our mentally ill and drug-addicted population."