The Health District is required by the Washington State Department of Health to maintain after-hours availability for emergent public health needs. The Washington Poison Center (WPC) has provided answering-service support for after-hours and weekend/holiday emergency calls since September 2017.
WPC answers calls from health care providers, hospitals, laboratories, and local emergency agency personnel regarding public health issues that are immediately reportable or need urgent attention and cannot wait until the next business day. They triage calls according to scripts provided by the District and route calls to the appropriate District staff. They document all calls in their electronic medical record system, send weekly reports to the District, and provide clinical expertise as needed upon agreement with District staff, allowing us to draw upon the expertise of WPC’s physicians and nurses. WPC’s management team maintains consistent communication with the Prevention Services Division Director, reporting questions or issues that arise.
In emergencies, calls from the public and service providers can overwhelm our response system. WPC can support these service needs by setting up a call center with qualified staff and infrastructure to provide surge capacity during emergent events. This agreement will be used only during an emergent event in Snohomish County. In the current COVID-19 pandemic, WPC is providing call center support for all counties, with costs paid by the WA State Department of Health.
The District’s professional services agreements with WPC allow extension of a professional services agreement in increments of one-year periods up to a total of three years. The current contract is in year three and is due to expire on October 1, 2020.
WPC has provided consistently thorough and accurate after-hours services. Their expert staff is experienced at call triage and decision-making for response. They also provide after-hours services for several other local health jurisdictions and for the Department of Health during emergency events, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic. WPC charges $75.00 per case reported to them, with an annual cost of $10-$12,000.
Based on WPC’s service to the District over the past three years and the current high demand for calls due to the pandemic, staff requests a one-year extension of the contracts with WPC. Additionally, Health Officer Order 20-056 declaring a public health emergency due to COVID-19 also suspended formal purchasing and bidding requirements during the duration of the emergency. This one-year waiver would allow the District to renew the agreements with WPC for the period of October 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021.