DES MOINES, Iowa — Last August the Des Moines Fire Department launched a new program to try to reduce the number of ambulance calls to some addresses in the city.

“The year 2024 was a record number for responses for the fire department, but not as big of an increase as we normally see,” said Des Moines Fire Chief John TeKippe. “This past year it was 1.45% increase, and normally we see 3 to 5% but some of our efforts in 2024 definitely slowed our growth and we actually had one fewer EMS call in 2024 versus 2023.”

The Chief credits some of the reduced call volume to a new program called the Mobile Integrated Health Clinic. Two members of the department were sent out to meet with individuals who have needed numerous ambulance calls for various reasons.

“They do outreach to camps and other places, they also do home visits and their focus is our high volume users,” said TeKippe. “Those people that call us 10 or more times a year and so they’re helping them get connected to social services and medical services transportation.”

Using that same philosophy, an outreach team is put to use when it comes to reducing fire calls as well.

“We can use that in our fire prevention and education messages and so a couple of specific kinds of fire calls that we go on, that we’ve recognized we need to do that kind of outreach and so that is,” said TeKippe. “It can blunt the need for some of our responses.”

Simple advice can help change the amount of calls from some residents.

“An increase in the number of people who have alarm systems in their home and they’re just learning how to use them, and us recognizing that and reaching out saying do you need some help?” said TeKippe. “Some people who regularly burn food on their stove that results in smoke and a fire response, seeing if they have, if they need some fire safety tips that can help them cook more efficiently so they don’t end up with smoke that causes a fire alarm.”

Fire calls for the year 2024 were down 16% from the year 2023.

Metro News: