County EMS chief proposes dual-certified fire-rescue crew at Pioneer to improve response times

Henry County EMS Chief Amy Stafford told commissioners Aug. 26 she wants to pilot a joint fire‑rescue model in Pioneer that would place two dual‑certified career personnel at the Pioneer station 24 hours a day to reduce response times and provide certified on-scene staff for both medical and fire incidents.

"The average response time in the county is 9 minutes and 30 seconds," Stafford told the board and used that benchmark to explain why faster on-scene staffing matters for medical and fire outcomes. She described current EMS staffing as 13 paramedics and a full complement of EMTs in which many EMTs are completing paramedic training; she said five vacancies were being covered with part‑time staff.

Stafford said year one of the Pioneer plan would place two dual‑certified staff per shift (six people total) and that the department already owns a donated ambulance that can be readied for service. The projected one‑time gear and station upgrade costs she provided for Pioneer were about $263,792, paid from MSBU funds for the unincorporated fire district; she said most ongoing payroll would be charged to EMS, with an incentive stipend paid from fire funds to compensate ALS staff for dual duties. "If they have their Fire II certification, they would receive a $10,000 incentive for the year," Stafford said as one model she presented; she also proposed paying certain part‑time dual‑certified staff an extra $2 per hour for serving on that dual unit.

Stafford described an "adaptive response" or "jump to" model: if the dual unit goes to a medical call they would take the ambulance; for a fire call they would respond in fire apparatus. She said the proposal would not eliminate volunteers or existing mutual aid but would provide certified personnel in the center of the county when volunteers or other units are unavailable.

County Attorney Matt Rollerson advised that the new dual‑certified positions would be newly created county positions and therefore would not automatically fall under the existing collective bargaining listing for current classified positions: "These are newly created positions... the positions would not be covered" by the present petition unless the union sought to amend coverage, he said.

Commissioners asked about operational details, station habitability for 24/7 staffing, and whether the proposal would lead to systemwide conversion of volunteer departments to career staffing. Stafford and county staff said the intent is to keep the combination/volunteer model while gradually expanding dual‑certified coverage where call volumes and growth justify it—Pioneer was presented as the first priority because of daytime coverage gaps and rising call volumes. She said year two could add a third person to the Pioneer shift to improve apparatus staffing.

Stafford said the plan has support from staff and that many of the county—s current EMS employees already have or are pursuing fire certifications; she asked commissioners to fund the one‑time gear costs and to approve ongoing stipend and incentive structures so the Pioneer pilot could begin. Commissioners did not take a final vote at the workshop; staff said they would return with budget adjustments for the September meetings.