TUCSON, Ariz. — The Tucson Collaborative Community Care, or TC3 Program through the Tucson Fire Department and TMC is marking 10 years of helping people get the extra help they need, going beyond the emergency call.
"Fire crews identify somebody that is misusing the system, or perhaps calling 911 for the wrong reason, and they refer them to our program," explained Jason Patrick, a firefighter and lead navigator for the TC3 team. Their navigators make daily house calls to people who have been referred to their program by first responders or employees at Tucson Medical Center.
When the program first started in 2015, their whole goal was just to stop people from calling 911 over and over again. Now, they connect people with resources to help fill the gaps beyond their emergencies. They have a team of 10, that visits around 20 people a day.
Claire Graham hit the road with Natalie Larson, a resource navigator in the program. She was recently hired as the group grows.
"We're just like the guiding hand," she explained, "helping lead them in the direction we want to go."
They're almost like short term social workers, helping people find a doctor, pay bills, fix up their house, or even put food on the table.
"There's a lot of really good resources within the Tucson community that just need to be accessed," Larson said. "And that's the trickiest part, knowing how to find resources and then get started with those organizations."
We went to see JP Bruce, who is in his second stint with the program.
The first time, TMC brought him in, around the time when he started using a wheelchair, and was moving into his home.
"They went through the house and pointed out some things that they might be able to help me make it a little easier to live," Bruce explained. "They got me a temporary ramp for the front, because I was trapped in my house for a while."
Connecting Bruce with a local nonprofit that does home repairs, they were also able to known down walls so he could actually get into his closet.
The second time he was referred into the program though, it started as an emergency.
"This time I did get down on the floor and couldn't get back up on the bed to transfer. So I called 911, they had to break in, and that's why we get in the lock box," he said. "They recommended having them come out again, and we've come up with a couple of things."
One of their next steps will be working with a nonprofit to build a ramp from Bruce's living room to his backyard.
"There is a lot of help out there, it's just finding it," Bruce said. "They're one of the good groups. I can't thank them enough."
The Community Risk Reduction Manager at Tucson Fire Department, Oscar Durazo, who runs the Fire Department's side of the TC3 program, says one of the best things about the program, is that the navigators are able to spend time with the people who are enrolled, so they can actually understand the challenges people are facing.
"Normally, our crews on scene, they're trying to get as much information as possible, and start treatment on this patient within five to 10 minutes, and get them going to the hospital," explained Durazo, talking about firefighters and paramedics. "When we visit a client, we can be with them for an hour, two hours. We really try to get to know the client, and really get down to the root cause of what's going on in their situation. To better then come up with a care plan, and connect them to the right resources that they need and help them through that process."
Joyce Drozd, the nursing manager for the TC3 program says based on the way each person comes into the program, they'll continue working them for a stretch of time.
"If the referral comes in for a medical reason, we follow them for a minimum of three months. If they have a behavioral health component, we also follow them for six months," she said. "We do follow people for longer as their need arises, the team will collaborate with them. Our long term goal is to connect them with resources."
Sometimes the resources the TC3 program helps to connect people to, are free through funding from grants and the TMC Foundation. Sometimes individuals do have to pay for the services, but the program always tries to work with the person to make the costs feasible.
A lot of the resources the TC3 program helps with, are what you're supposed to call 311 for. 311 is a non-emergency service you can call, designed by the City of Tucson to connect people with resources.
Claire Graham is an anchor and reporter for KGUN 9. She grew up in Tucson and graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in musical theatre. Claire spent a decade in Washington state, where she worked in journalism, met her husband and welcomed their baby boy, before moving back home. Share your story ideas and important issues with Claire by emailing claire.graham@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook and Twitter.
