HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Waiving Purchasing Policies and Procedures for Competitive Bidding of Professional Services and Approving a Single-Source Contract for Medical Dispatch Quality Assurance Software RESOLUTION NO. 21-546
RESOLUTION WAIVING PURCHASING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR
COMPETITIVE BIDDING OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
AND APPROVING A SINGLE-SOURCE CONTRACT FOR
MEDICAL DISPATCH QUALITY ASSURANCE SOFTWARE
FOR THE CITY OF AMES,IOWA
WHEREAS, the Ames Police Department Communications Center provides Emergency
Medical Dispatching (EMD), which provides a critical lifeline support by using predetermined
medical protocols to both dispatch correct resources to an emergency scene and to give instructions
to victims and bystanders before the arrival of first responders; and,
WHEREAS,dispatchers utilize ProQA to provide the EMD service,and ProQA is a service
from Priority Dispatch that uses adaptive software to provide the dispatcher a script that best assists
the caller/patient, and the script utilizes International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED)
protocols; and,
WHEREAS, Priority Dispatch also provides a quality assurance service, and the City
currently utilizes this service to perform quality assurance review on emergency medical and fire
dispatch calls; and,
WHEREAS,this review ensures dispatchers are providing the highest quality service to the
community; and,
WHEREAS, the quality assurance service is currently contracted six months at a time, and
a pre-determined number of calls are reviewed at a cost of$19 per call; and,
WHEREAS,Priority Dispatch determines the number of calls to review based on the agency
size and the number of medical calls received each year; and,
WHEREAS,the cost-per-call has increased with each contract period,and City staff is now
proposing to enter into a multi-year Subscription Agreement,which would lock in the cost-per-call
review to $19 for the next five years and either party may terminate the Agreement with a 60-day
notice; and,
WHEREAS, the Medical ProQA service used by dispatchers is proprietary, and Priority
Dispatch is the only company that is able to provide quality assurance review of the calls;therefore,
awarding a contract to Priority Dispatch for quality assurance must be done as a single-source
purchase rather than through soliciting competitive bids.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Ames, Iowa,
that the waiver of the City's Purchasing Policies and Procedures for competitive bidding of
professional services and approving a single-source contract for the Medical Dispatch Quality
Assurance Software is hereby approved.
ADOPTED THIS 26`h day of October, 2021.
Diane R. Voss, City Clerk John A. Haila, Mayor
Introduced by: Betcher
Seconded by: Beatty-Hansen
Voting aye: Beatty-Hansen, Betcher, Corrieri, Gartin, Junck, Martin
Voting nay: None Absent: None
Resolution declared adopted and signed by the Mayor this 26t'day of October, 2021.