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New Castle County EMS reports staffing gaps and adopts 'cold' response for many Charlie calls
Summary
Assistant Chief Kelly Star Leach reported 24 paramedic vacancies (authorized strength 159, current 135), highlighted a 40% Utstein cardiac arrest survival rate and a field whole‑blood program with 300+ units given since May 2023, and described a Nov. 20 policy shifting paramedic responses to many 'Charlie' calls to non‑lights/sirens 'cold' response to reduce crash risk while allowing upgrades when needed.
Kelly Star Leach, assistant chief of operations for New Castle County EMS, presented a system update to the council, reporting current paramedic staffing of 135 of an authorized 159 (24 vacancies) and describing ongoing academy recruitment to close the gap.
Leach summarized workforce trends: over the past six years the county certified 62 paramedics and lost 54 to resignations and retirements, yielding a net gain of eight certified paramedics in that period. She said the department is running overlapping academies and planning additional cohorts through DelTech (capacity 12) and Good Fellowship Academy to address vacancies.
Leach highlighted clinical and program outcomes. New Castle County’s Utstein cardiac arrest survival rate is 40 percent, which she said is about 15 percentage points above the national average; the county’s CARES registry report was cited as the source of that metric. She also described the county’s field whole‑blood program and said crews have administered more than 300 units of whole blood to patients since May 2023.
Leach described a November 20 policy change that directs paramedic units to respond “cold” (without lights and sirens) to Charlie‑level calls while BLS units respond hot. Charlie, Delta and Echo determinations still elicit paramedic involvement but Charlie responses are now sent without lights and sirens unless upgraded by BLS assessment, dispatcher notes, or paramedic judgment. Leach said the change is data driven and intended to reduce crash risk: “It is not driven by staffing shortages or anything like that. It was driven by patient safety, responder safety, and national evidence,” she said.
Leach told council her review of 2025 calls found that less than 2 percent of Charlie‑level calls required a time‑sensitive intervention; since the policy change, Charlie response times rose by less than a minute (reported in meeting as a 55% relative increase) and overall response times increased by about 15 seconds.
Council members asked about academy capacity and recruitment timelines; Leach said DelTech’s upcoming academy will carry 12 recruits and a following academy will recruit additional candidates, which together should substantially reduce current vacancies. Councilmembers also relayed concerns from some fire companies about whether conditions might worsen between BLS arrival and an ALS upgrade; Leach said BLS crews are trained to assess and may request an immediate upgrade and described ongoing coordination with fire service partners.
Public participants asked about probation duration for recruits and mental‑health resources for paramedics; Leach said recruits remain on probation during the training period and for about six months after certification and described available peer‑support teams and Critical Incident Stress Management resources.
Next steps: EMS will continue to monitor patient outcomes and safety metrics and report back to council as the policy matures.
