Poster #32 - What Does Alternative Response Really Cost—and Who Needs the Numbers?

• In Event: Saturday Poster Luncheon

Abstract

Introduction
Alternative response programs, including alternative 911, alternative first response, and alternative crisis response, serve a unique community need and are growing in popularity across the country. In broad terms, an alternative response program uses a call triage system to dispatch non‑traditional responders to non‑violent, non‑life‑threatening situations in a community. With growing federal and state funding constraints and uncertainty, these complex programs—which rely on networks of public programs and supports—need clear, shareable information about costs to inform budgeting, policy, and partnership decisions.A project funded by the AIR Opportunity Fund aims to understand the implementation and associated costs of two peer‑responder alternative response programs, one operating in Atlanta, Georgia, and one in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Research questions from this work include:
What are the key components of the alternative response programs in Atlanta and Albuquerque?
How does implementation vary across these two peer‑responder alternative response programs?
What types of cost information are most useful for alternative response administrators, and who are the key audiences for alternative response cost estimates?
Data
Discussions with program leaders, key informant interviews, community advisory boards, and frontline staff interviews are used to document program components and estimate costs. Administrative indicators (e.g., annual call volume, typical response time, number of individuals served) are used to contextualize these findings and inform recommendations for strengthening data systems to support future cost estimation. Additional discussions with program leaders highlight the types of cost information most needed and the specific audiences that can use this information to inform decisions.
Research Design
Comprehensive logic models developed for the Atlanta and Albuquerque alternative response programs help document core program components and identify the personnel and non‑personnel resources used for each component. Using these logic models, we apply the ingredients approach (Levin et al., 2018), where feasible, to systematically identify, quantify, and assign prices to all resources required to implement each program based on resource characteristics. Administrative data are used to assess program scale, including call volume and the number of individuals served (as available), while discussions with program leaders clarify key cost inputs, data gaps, cost information needs, and the audiences most likely to use cost information.
Findings
Preliminary findings indicate that, although the Atlanta and Albuquerque programs differ in design and context, both rely on complex networks of community partners to deliver services and supports. Across both sites, program leaders emphasize the need for cost information to support future budgeting, planning, and funding requests. They also highlight the importance of presenting cost information in clear, accessible formats that can be tailored to the needs of different audiences, allowing specific cost elements to be easily extracted for decision‑making, communication, and advocacy.
Implications
With the rapid expansion of alternative response programs and ongoing funding constraints, programs need accurate cost information that can be clearly communicated to diverse audiences. This work estimates costs, identifies key cost information needs, and illustrates practical ways to present cost data for different stakeholders.

Author

• Amanda E Danks, American Institutes for Research
  Presenting Author