Item 2- Presentation- ATCEMS FY26 Q1 Public Safety Commission Quarterly Report — original pdf

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Public Safety Commission Austin-Travis County EMS | FY26 Q1 Wesley Hopkins | Chief of Staff Current EMS Department Staffing Authorized Strength Filled Sworn Sworn Vacancies Medic Openings 714 609 105 33 Field 2 Communications December 31, 2025 Rank EMS Assistant Chief EMS Captain - Communications EMS Captain - Field EMS Clinical Spec - Comm EMS Clinical Spec - Field EMS Commander - Communications EMS Commander - Field EMS Division Chief EMS Medic - Communications EMS Medic - Field EMS Chief Paramedic Practitioner EMS Paramedic Practitioner TOTAL Q1 AVERAGE Authorized Sworn Staffing Vacancies Vacancy Rate 4 11 83 35 302 5 40 10 8 211 1 4 714 0 0 1 10 59 0 0 0 2 33 0 0 105 0.00 0.00 1.20 28.57 19.54 0.00 0.00 0.00 25.00 15.64 0.00 0.00 14.71 15.17 2 Sworn Separations 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Sworn Separations by Type 12 2 1 1 1 3 2 1 EMS Assistant Chief EMS Captain - Comm EMS Captain - Field EMS Clinical Spec - Comm EMS Clinical Spec - Field EMS Commander - Comm EMS Commander - Field EMS Division Chief EMS Medic - Comm EMS Medic - Field Resigned Retired 3 Sworn Tenure at Separation Sworn Tenure at Separation 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 7 5 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired Resigned Retired EMS Assistant Chief EMS Captain - Comm EMS Captain - Field EMS Clinical Spec - Comm EMS Clinical Spec - Field EMS Commander - Comm EMS Commander - Field EMS Division Chief EMS Medic - Comm EMS Medic - Field Less than 1 year 1-5 years 5-10 years 10-15 years 15-20 years more than 20 years 4 Vacancy Rates Sworn & Civilian Vacancy Rate 15.83 14.99 14.71 10.05 9.14 8.12 18.00 16.00 14.00 12.00 10.00 8.00 6.00 4.00 2.00 0.00 Oct 2025 Nov 2025 Dec 2025 Jan 2026 Feb 2026 March 2026 April 2026 May 2026 June 2026 July 2026 August 2026 Sept 2026 Sworn Vacancy Rate Civilian Vacancy Rate 5 EMS Turnover Rate Turnover Rate 1.65 1.80 1.60 1.40 1.20 1.00 0.80 0.60 0.40 0.20 0.00 1.15 1.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 Oct 2025 Nov 2025 Dec 2025 Jan 2026 Feb 2026 March 2026 April 2026 May 2026 June 2026 July 2026 August 2026 Sept 2026 Sworn Turnover Rate Civilian Turnover Rate 6 Historical Vacancy Rate Vacancy Rate (vacancies divided by authorized staff as a %) 20.42 21.68 12/2022 (Peak) 25.4% 20.48 17.62 15.11 8.88 FY 19-20 FY 20-21 FY 21-22 FY 22-23 FY 23-24 FY 24-25 Vacancy Rate% 7 Turnover & Growth Turnover (Separations divided by Filled Sworn positions as a %) 15.39% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 7.37% 8.46% 8.85% 8.03% 8.75% 5.00% 0.00% 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 Total Authorized Sworn Staffing 643 664 665 689 714 576 FY 19-20 FY 20-21 FY 21-22 FY 22-23 FY 23-24 FY24-25 Jan-19 Jan-20 Jan-21 Jan-22 Jan-23 Jan-24 Total Turnover Rate for FY • Turnover continues to remain below EMS industry averages of 30% • Primary drivers: retirements and non-preventable life events • COVID-related impacts peaked in FY22 • FY25: Nearly 30% of separations are retirements FY20: Addition of 67 Positions FY21: Addition of 21 Positions FY23: Addition of 24 Positions FY24: Addition of 25 Positions 8 Looking Back: 2022 Vacancy Plan Highlights Leadership & Process Improvements • Appoint new EMS Chief and Executive Leadership Team • Reduced hiring timeline to 4.5 months: simplified application process • Updated disqualifiers and streamlined Academy content Recruiting & Hiring Initiatives • Launched Vacancy Plan and Direct Hire process • Expanded to 4 Academies annually; multiple hiring cycles completed • Secured additional recruiting funds; grew team with Manager +2 Coordinators • Maintained 4 Academies and 2 Direct Hire processes in FY24 Operational Enhancements • Added stipends for Clinical Specialists as Training Officers and Captains • Communications Division aligned schedules with Field (24/72) 9 Hiring and Separations 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 109 53 86 46 71 49 76 60 50 49 60 52 18.97 24.06 10.99 16.34 16.9 15.13 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 Vacancy Rate Hires Separations 10 Continued Challenges Recruiting Challenges • Reduced Pipeline in 2025: The reduced academy count in 2025 resulted in individuals seeking other employment • Recruitment Decline: The reduction in national recruiting efforts reduced the number of qualified applicants Retention Challenges • • Competitive Marketplace: Surrounding agencies and communities are growing or starting EMS Increased workload on staff: Staffing shortages result in an increased workload on staff services with lower workloads • Changing Workforce: Changes in experiences and expectations of the incoming workforce have resulted in a higher-than-expected early departure rate Infrastructure and Capacity Challenges • Limited Training Capacity: The current availability of training staff and academy infrastructure has created a bottleneck and limited our ability to clear individuals for full duty quickly • Long Onboarding Process: The current hiring and onboarding process can exceed 1-2 years and creates an excess number of non-productive employees that exceeds budgetary capacity 11 Action Plan: Next Steps 01 02 03 Recruiting Revamp Capacity and Infrastructure Growth Improved Retention Strategies • Resume targeted nationwide recruiting • Review EMS academy schedule and • Address provider mental health needs campaign and outreach curriculum for efficiency opportunities through a revitalized peer support program. • Restore national EMS recruiting to without degrading quality or standards • Continue Retirement Attainability Committee strengthen frontline public safety staffing • Rehire key recruiting positions to ensure • • Expand cadet capacity and frequency of dedicated to ensuring employees have the academies financial resources and education necessary In collaboration with the Medical Director, to reach a secure and timely retirement. consistent, in-person candidate evaluate credentialing process for • Provide open access portal to organizational engagement opportunities to improve throughput of metrics and performance data for all Expand the qualified applicant pool by candidates stakeholders to foster trust and informed reviewing and optimizing prerequisites • Expand or Refine Scale Training Officer decision-making. Streamline hiring process and academy programs to align with increased trainee • Continue efforts and strategies to redirect • • timing to improve candidate retention volume non-critical 911 requests for service to alternative channels, reducing overall frontline workload. 12 Regional Training Empowering Health Through Innovation New Hire Academy- Mobile sim-labs deployed at the Public Safety Training Center On Duty Ambulance Crew Training- Mobile sim-labs strategically placed in command districts for scenario-based training. Joint Training with Partner Agencies- Allows opportunities for joint trainings with our partner agencies. Community Outreach & Education- Mobile sim-labs will be used at Community Events. Addition of UE Scope Video Laryngoscope- enhances airway management by combining portability with high-definition visualization. 13 NASCAR Recruiting Event • First Responder Appreciation Weekend hosted during NASCAR race weekend at Circuit of the Americas February 27th – March 1st. • Recruiting Drive with a dedicated section within the Fan Zone to showcase career opportunities with EMS, Fire, & Police. • Visitors can explore static displays, connect with recruiting staff including ATCEMS ambassadors. • Honoring Heroes celebrating 2025 award- winning first responders, including Captain Amber Price, National Community Health Paramedic of the year. 14 Opioid Overdoses – ATCEMS Data FY26 Q1 • FY26 Q1, 82 people enrolled in the Buprenorphine Bridge Program • FY26 Q1, 929 OUD interventions were administered. • FY26 Q1, 44% of all Opiate Alerts were persons experiencing homelessness. 15 FY26 Q1 Opioid Interventions OUD-Support Program Interventions: 708 • Overdose Rescue Kits Distributed: 320 • Administered Buprenorphine doses: 179 • Patients connected to MAT: 36 • Provide OUD Education: 116 • Connected to Substance Abuse Treatment (not MAT): 3 • Enrolled in Alcohol Bridge: 5 • Connected w/ Peer Support: 1 16 EMS Ambulance Automatic Aid • Lead agency for connecting dispatch software in a cloud-environment for Austin-Travis County EMS, Travis County ESD #1 (Lago Vista FD), Travis County ESD #2 (Pflugerville FD), and Williamson County EMS. • Dispatches the closest Ambulance & District Commander to 911 calls, regardless of jurisdictional boundary. • Improves response times and adds resources for large-scale incidents. Timeline: • February 2026: Develop policies, procedures, and training. • March - April 2026: Extensive Testing • May - August 2026: Tentative Go-Live 17 Austin Travis County EMS is 50 Years Old • January 1st , 2026 marked our 50th anniversary as a department. • Please join us for the Grand Re-opening of ATCEMS Station #1 on Saturday, March 7th at 2:00pm. • Look for us performing Acts of Service throughout the community all year. 18 emsrecruiting@austintexas.gov Thank you 19