Williamson County, Texas

A call comes in–robbery in progress–deputy sheriff car 22 is closest but is on a collision call with injuries. Car 33 is available but it’s on the north side of the river and the bridge is closed due to the accident. Car 22 is on–wait, a second call is coming in, baby has stopped breathing–must send EMS; back to robbery–officer 11 has just returned from taking an arrest to jail. The robbery needs two units to respond. I’ll dispatch 11 and pull 33 from their lunch break to respond. 

Now what happens if I get another call for law enforcement and I have no free officers to dispatch? Does the medical emergency need an officer to first arrive and ensure that the environment is safe for the EMS crew? Picture this same scenario repeatedly during a 12-hour shift. You can just imagine the intricacies of different real-life scenarios. It takes a special person to remain calm, poised and quick to assess and react appropriately...

We often publicly laud a firefighter who rescues someone from a burning building or a police officer who nabs a dangerous criminal. And rightly so! However, we have some Williamson County government employees whose heroic and life-saving acts often go unnoticed. One such group is the Mobile Outreach Team (MOT).

MOT provides emergency and short-term mental health services for patients who are suicidal, homicidal, psychotic or otherwise need immediate psychiatric care. This program operates under the Williamson County Emergency Services Outreach Department.

The future of manufacturing is here! Gone are the analog dial and knob systems from long ago. Gone are the human monitors with clipboards in hand recording data and “phoning in” issues. The facilities of the 21st century consist of networked digital monitors continuously recording the state of the machines and production lines.