Rutherford County’s Public Safety Committee approved a memorandum of agreement on Nov. 24 allowing Vanderbilt University Medical Center EMT students to complete clinical ride‑time with county EMS crews.

EMS Director Gaither told the committee Vanderbilt has started an in‑house EMT program and that Vanderbilt students will do some clinical rides with Rutherford County crews. Gaither said the document had been reviewed by legal teams on both sides for about six months and characterized it as a standard agreement the county already uses with other training programs.

Commission members asked about the county’s liability exposure and who would carry insurance for student clinicians. Gaither replied the schools require students to maintain malpractice or similar student professional insurance while on clinical rotations and characterized the county’s exposure as “really none.” He also described a longstanding practice of precepting students from several local schools and noted preceptors typically receive no additional compensation despite substantial time commitments.

A commissioner suggested the county explore whether training partners should offer compensation, tuition rebates, or other reciprocal benefits because the county provides operational capacity and precepting time. Gaither acknowledged the preceptor burden and said the goal is to gain well‑trained staff from those programs over time.

The committee moved and approved the MOA. The agreement will be processed by county legal and EMS to allow Vanderbilt students to begin clinical rides under the county's existing supervision and credentialing processes.