Okay.

Good evening.

My name is Andrea Gardner.

I am chair of this ad hoc for the reviewing the collaboration and data use agreement with Cummings Foundation for Behavioral Health, Police Wellness Services.

Included in the ad hoc committee and attending here is Councilman Lou Giordano.

Councilman Mike Henry.

Police Chief Patrick Ridnauer.

And Corporation Council Tracy Norris.

Also in the room, we have ex officio city council members, Ryan Hawley.

President of the Council, Peter Busade.

Deputy Chief Mike Sterk.

Sorry.

Sorry.

See how long I've been around.

She demoted.

And Dr.

King with Danbury Police and also a member of the public, John DeMuller.

Welcome everyone.

So I have I have no questions.

Is that I understand this to be a particular grant from a particular funder that first does research to be to allow an invitation to apply for funding?

And Danbury Police Department had done that.

I also want to know that Kara Prunty from the finance department is here as well.

And so a tour was given, and the Danbury Police Department was applied, uh was invited to apply for the scholarship.

And the scholarship will provide.

The grant will provide 83,625 for comprehensive health assessment for all of the officers, $32,000 for gym equipment, and a $14,000 for peer support training.

This is potentially an opportunity that could get funded every year for five years.

So the cumulative amount of this grant would be around $600,000.

I don't have any questions.

Do any of my ad hoc committee members have any questions?

Sure.

I have a question.

I guess through the chair to uh Chief.

Yes.

Was there anything like this program in the past?

Uh no, no.

And just one clarification.

We did not apply.

What happened was our doctor, our our part-time psychologist, Dr.

Ed Keene, uh, and his travels, he Dr.

Keene's been uh in the business for well, we won't say how long, but a long time.

And uh he um was having a discussion with uh one of the representatives from the uh Cummings Foundation, uh, and who turns out that uh I had done some work with as part of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Wellness Committee, and uh so she actually offered to bring uh the son of the founder of the foundation to Danbury.

He lives in down in Fairfield, uh lower Fairfield County uh to visit our facility and to offer these services.

So uh after the discussion, uh this is uh the plan that they came up with.

Uh this was back in November, I think it was mid-December that I submitted it to uh Corporation Council for review, and uh this is uh where we are right now.

Uh we're very excited about it.

We have a steering committee uh amongst uh our patrol officers in particular and a few supervisors uh that uh have already been in discussions with the representatives of the uh Cummings Foundation, so in anticipation of this, and we're uh hoping to get started.

They're gonna be promoting uh with Dr.

King the wellness fair.

All of the services are voluntary in terms of the uh the health screenings.

Um but uh it would definitely help with the a roadmap and then the uh consultation with the dietitian uh to uh help us all improve our our physical wellness, and then of course uh new gym equipment.

Uh if uh if you remember a few years ago, the Lions Club also donated some money for some gym equipment, uh, and this would uh enhance our our gym uh tremendously.

And then also there's some money in there for peer support training and the um and there's some money in there for uh some family services as well to have uh like family wellness nights so that we can uh uh bring the spouses, significant others, and possibly even some of the uh children in to uh discuss wellness and to um give them strategies to to help their loved ones who are first responders.

Sounds like a great idea, and I hope everyone uh takes advantage of this.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilman Um Councilman Henry.

Yes, uh thank you, Chief, for bringing it forward.

And question to you is is it voluntary?

And looking at this as physical health, mental health evaluations, it stays in house as protected by HIPAA.

Right.

It's all it's everything's all protected by HIPAA.

It's in the it's in the agreement.

Um it's um and the the physical assessments, and and and I'll I'll I'll use an example of several years ago uh prior to becoming here.

I was at a uh training in Quantico for a few weeks, quantico virginia at the FBI Academy.

And they offered us some services.

There was a um, and it included blood work and everything, and they give you a comprehensive report that you can now take back to your doctor because as you know, there you know, unless there's a specific problem, you can't just you know go out and get a test for hey, just test for everything under the sun to see if you see if there's something wrong with me.

So this is you know similar to what they would be able to do.

Uh so and then the officers would take those reports back to their own uh primary uh care physician and review those and and possibly be able to uh avoid some long-term problems.

So uh we're again we're very excited about it.

Uh we we thought it was important to have our steering committee of police officers who understand the benefits of this, and I know that they're promoting it amongst the rank and file.

Follow you, Chair.

Sure.

Does this does this come into play as a down the road as a fit for duty?

No, absolutely not.

Doesn't come into that.

It it has nothing to do with uh fit for duty, nothing.

Uh everything is confidential, um, and there's no reason uh we would have to have a specific reason to do a fit for duty, and that would be coordinated through our corporate our uh human resources department.

And you'll know just so no performance evaluations, reviews, none of that.

So it's strictly for strictly for the benefit of the officers, it's strictly voluntary, uh, and we do not, you know, as as management, we do not see the results.

Okay, so there's no there's no judgment at that point.

No, absolutely.

Okay, thank you.

Okay, welcome.

Um I do have a question for corporation council.

Um, in in your review of the agreement, anything stand out or were there any concerns?

We made some changes to it, which they agreed to.

So as is, it's it's good.

It's it's it's been vetted by internally.

Okay, thank you.

Um any questions from our ex officio members of city council?

No, thank you.

Okay.

Last go around for questions.

No, okay.

Then seeing none, I would entertain a motion to um to accept the collaboration and data use agreement with Cummings Foundation for Behavioral Health and Police Wellness as outlined in the collaboration and data use agreement provided by corporation council.

So moved.

Okay, is there a second?

Second.

Great.

Uh any discussion?

Okay, seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Wonderful.

Um, so that is uh the recommendation is to accept this to the city council.

Motion to adjourn.

Uh so moved.

Seconded, of course.

Okay, we are adjourned at 608.

Thank you, everyone.