Ambulance director reports steady staffing, unusual overnight call peaks and Bonnaroo coverage plans

Rescue Director Michael Bonner told the Coffee County Ambulance Authority on March 20 that February had a generally steady workload but featured an unusual overnight spike in calls, and he reported staffing remains strong though the authority still seeks two medics and two advanced EMTs to reach full staffing.

Bonner said the authority is running “about 30 calls a day” overall. He said the busiest hour—normally in the afternoon—was during the 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. hour for the month, and the second-busiest hour was approximately 2 a.m. He said staff levels have been “predominantly green” over the last two to three months with five crews a day on duty, but on one recent day three people called out sick and the authority had difficulty filling shifts despite using its paging system to ask for volunteers.

Bonner also said two employees have been out on workers’ compensation for more than a year; one of those positions is now terminated and the authority will be able to hire a replacement. He said hiring will focus on medics and advanced EMTs and that the authority “needs 2 medics and 2 AEMTs” to be fully staffed.

On planned event coverage, Bonner said the authority received a letter of intent and intends to cover the Bonnaroo festival again this year. He said the authority has staffed the event for years, that the county’s expenses for coverage are still covered by the event organizers, and that he does not anticipate staffing problems this year now that the authority is regularly running five crews a day. He added that disaster response needs would take priority if both an event and a local disaster required resources.

No formal votes were associated with the director’s report; the remarks were informational. The authority adjourned after confirming meeting business and the next meeting date.

Ending: The authority confirmed the next meeting for April 17 and adjourned.