SUBJECT/RECOMMENDATION:
Title
Approve a Purchase Order and agreement between the City of Clearwater and Tampa Bay Psychology Associates, LLC, of Clearwater, Florida, for psychological and educational services, in a not to exceed amount of $250,000.00, during the contract period of October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2025, pursuant to Clearwater Code of Ordinances Section 2.563(1)(f), Professional services not subject to CCNA, and authorize the appropriate officials to execute same. (consent)
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SUMMARY:
The mental health of law enforcement officers and telecommunicators continues to be a concern and a priority for the Clearwater Police Department (CPD). Law enforcement officers have a 54% increase in suicide risk when compared to the civilian population (McAward, 2022). Additionally, empirical research has demonstrated that occupational stress has directly attributed to higher rates of heart disease, divorce, alcohol abuse, and other psychological disorders such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Beginning in 2019, CPD sought to proactively provide additional mental health resources to all CPD employees, sworn and professional staff, through an agreement with Tampa Bay Psychology Associates, LLC, which specializes in the mental health treatment of public safety employees and is utilized by several law enforcement agencies and fire departments within the Tampa Bay region.
The existing agreement provides for the maintenance of a 24/7 resource telephone number for continual employee access, if needed for a mental health concern, individual counseling services, post-critical event evaluations, fitness for duty evaluations, pre-employment evaluations, employee wellness and safety training, additional tailored training modules, new-hire training for CPD communications personnel, and post-academy training for recruit officers.
The current two-year agreement expired in July 2023. A two-month extension was approved by the city manager, which expires September 30, 2023. Based upon the success of this partnership, CPD has negotiated a renewal of the agreement. The new agreement would expire in September 2025 with the option to renew up to three additional one-year terms with a pricing increase up to 5% each renewal year.
The new agreement would be a 39% increase from the existing agreement. While this new agreement covers the same services as outlined in the existing agreement, the increase is attributed to several items to include pricing increases for individual services, the added benefit for CPD employees to attend unlimited counseling sessions (previously limited to three per year), they are now the exclusive provider for sworn applicant pre-employment evaluations, initiated training for new-hire telecommunicators, and increased training sessions for the agency’s newly formed peer support team program.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
Budgeted funds for FY24 are available in CPD cost code 0101156-530100 - Professional Services.