Tempe Fire Medical Rescue Department Improves Compliance and Accountability of Controlled Substance Tracking with Vector Solutions

The Challenge

The Tempe Fire Medical Rescue Department (TFMRD) provides services to the residents of Tempe, AZ. The city is located within the Phoenix metropolitan area and has a population of approximately 180,000 residents.

According to the department’s most recent operational report, over 85% of the calls the department responds to are medical in nature. The department’s 220+ EMS providers provide their lifesaving skills from seven stations and six ambulances, resulting in significant complexity when it comes to controlled substance tracking. As time passes, TFMRD expects the demands of its community to continue to grow, especially in the area of medical services.

The Choice

In 2009, the department began using Vector LMS training management system for training. In 2023, the department expanded their partnership with Vector Solutions and began utilizing Vector Check It in the field for asset management and controlled substance tracking.

A management assistant with the department, who was previously a paramedic with the department for eight years, said that prior to their implementation of Vector Check It for controlled substance tracking, an audit revealed opportunities to improve their previous processes.

Since the implementation of Check It, the department has seen a marked improvement in compliance and accountability amongst their EMS providers for controlled substance tracking.

The Change

Through Vector Check It, Tempe Fire Medical Rescue Department has:

• Ensured actions like drug box checks are completed, improving accountability and compliance amongst EMS providers.
• Eliminated paper-based processes for controlled substance tracking via Check It’s mobile app and browser version.
• Increased insight into controlled substance trends over time, including drug waste, drugs exchanged due to expiration, and the associated costs.
• Streamlined reoccurring tasks such as checking expiry dates by accessing that information via Check It instead of checking manually.
• Reduced liability related to controlled substances through comprehensive management and tracking.
• Improved documentation of all actions related to controlled substance tracking.
• Increased peace of mind throughout the department through improved confidence in its controlled substance program.

“It was pretty tedious to have to go through so many different drug boxes to check expiration dates or make sure we had all the medications we needed,” she said. “Now we’re able to pull reports and see when drugs are expiring without having to physically go through every box.”

The department has also made use of Check It’s escalation policies to ensure that drug box checks are completed on time, and if not, the system automatically notifies designated personnel to address the issue promptly.

“We give them until noon and usually it’s done before then. If it isn’t, Check It will alert that it hasn’t been completed so that our battalion chiefs can contact the crews to see why it hasn’t been done. It’s definitely helped with compliance,” she said.

After actions related to controlled substances are completed, they’re documented within Check It, increasing overall peace of mind for EMS providers and department leadership.

“We definitely have more control and ability to tell what has or hasn’t been documented. If there’s a medication missing, we can go back and track what happened. Was it administered, was it lost, do we need to investigate further?” she said.

In addition to tracking controlled substances from cradle-to-grave, the department also tracks and manages other assets with Vector Check It, including PPE and apparatuses.

“Having it all tied together has made it easier to manage,” she said.