Progress Celebrated for Worthington SAFER

The Worthington’s Division of Fire and EMS recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of its Social Assistance for Emergency Reduction (SAFER) program. SAFER originated as a means of addressing the high volume of recurring emergency calls received by the department for preventive issues.

CSW alumnus Nate Hall (BSSW ’23, MSW ’24) currently heads the initiative as its community risk reduction service coordinator. As a licensed social worker, Hall works to connect at-risk residents with accessible community resources and conducts follow-up visits to strategize preventative measures in case of future incidents.

“We can go out and look at ways to keep their home safe,” says Hall. “For instance, we can add things like grab bars, medical equipment and bring in other resources. We can also get emergency response service devices, the buttons they press if they fall.”

Jennifer Cochran, assistant chief of EMS and community risk reduction in Worthington, has remarked that the program has already made an impact. “Connecting them [residents] to those resources naturally decreased the 911 calls,” she said.

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