Longmont may pay $175,000 to the University of Colorado Denver for a system that links vulnerable adults in the city to a variety of local agencies for more effective help in the case of and in the aftermath of an emergency.
CU Denver would design a middleware information exchange hub to make it easier to share data among city, community service and health care organizations, according to a staff report to city council.
The system would help break down communication barriers across several organizations tasked with caring for community members who heavily depend on city services, the report stated.
“These residents tend to have low incomes and are isolated with little access to care,” the report stated. “The system will address the issues of multiple city division involvement; redundant and/or non-coordinated care; data sharing challenges … and discharge and follow-up care challenges.”
City council tonight will consider a resolution approving spending $175,000 and authorizing an intergovernmental agreement with CU Denver to advance the design of the exchange hub.
The system, called Metrobus, works by allowing members to create events and messages to be shared with service providers, according to the staff report.
If an older adult, who has opted into the information exchange hub, has fallen or gotten ill and received help from Longmont Emergency Medical Services, a message would be sent to Longmont Senior Services, Longmont Meals on Wheels, and even his or her primary care provider, the report stated.
A homeless person who has opted into the system and for whom Longmont Public Safety performs a wellness check, also would get help. A message is sent to HOPE, or Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement, Mental Health Partners or any other agency with which the person is connected and is part of the system, the report stated.
“The goal is to ensure that service providers can coordinate services when participants/residents interact with multiple entities,” the report stated.
City staff members said Metrobus will have privacy features to ensure all applicable laws are followed.
Since 2017, the city has been working with CU Denver and more than 70 representatives from local government, community-based human service and health care providers to explore how to share information to improve care for the city’s most vulnerable residents who are served by multiple entities, the staff report stated.
The city and CU Denver applied for a Colorado Health Foundation grant to fund system development, but did not get the funding. CU Denver in late 2019 also submitted a multi-year funding proposal to the National Science Foundation, but was recently told the proposal would not be funded, according to the staff report.
Longmont decided to move forward with one-time funding of $175,000 from the 2020 general fund to create a prototype within the city, the report stated.
