EMS staff raise advocacy concerns; committee appoints county administrator as acting EMS director

An EMS employee spoke during public comment on June 23 to say department members felt a recent event resulted in “a loss of advocacy” and urged the committee to consult EMS personnel when making leadership appointments. The committee later moved into closed session for personnel matters related to the ambulance service and, on returning to open session, appointed the county administrator to serve as acting EMS director until a contracted provider is secured.

During public comment, Matthew O'Bourd identified himself as “a member of the EMS department,” said he had come “to just speak on behalf of some of our service partners in regards to events that occurred last Friday,” and described “a loss of advocacy that we feel for the service and for the community.” He asked that EMS service members be consulted when leadership appointments are made and that the committee “take that into consideration.”

Later in the agenda the committee entered a closed session under Wisconsin Statutes §19.85(1)(c) to review employment and performance matters relating to the ambulance department. After the closed discussion, the committee returned to open session and approved an appointment: the county administrator (Trish) will serve as acting EMS director until a contracted EMS provider is put in place. The motion was approved by voice vote.

Why it matters: committee members noted the need for immediate coverage of EMS leadership and for contact information to be available for 24‑hour reach. The appointment is temporary and the committee directed staff to proceed with securing a contracted provider. No disciplinary or personnel specifics from the closed session were disclosed in open session.

Next steps: committee members asked staff to provide contact information for the acting director and to continue work to secure a contracted EMS provider. The action was announced to take effect immediately.