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New EMS chief introduced; county reports vacancies, recruits and Mission: Lifeline work
Summary
The board heard an EMS staffing update from Director Jen Utz (vacancies: 2 paramedic supervisors, 5 paramedics, 7 EMTs), met new EMS Chief Ed Moreland, and received an update from Dr. Craig Melville on Mission: Lifeline cardiac and stroke performance and a new QA team.
Director Jen Utz briefed the board on EMS staffing at the April 8 meeting, saying the county currently has two paramedic supervisor vacancies, five paramedic vacancies and seven EMT vacancies. Utz said a class of five EMTs is scheduled to graduate the next evening and that multiple hires are in process; five internal EMTs are enrolled in paramedic training expected to complete later in the year.
"If successful through the background process, that will fill all of our EMT vacancies and we're still working through paramedics," Utz said, noting additional interviews are scheduled for April 15 and April 29 to build an eligibility list.
The board welcomed the new EMS chief, Ed Moreland, who said during his first weeks he has been listening, visiting stations and adopting the guiding principle "one system, one mission, our community" to inform initiatives and improvements.
Dr. Craig Melville, participating online, reported on Mission: Lifeline recognition efforts—county EMS performance on cardiac measures exceeds the recognition cutoffs and stroke-related data points are being finalized ahead of a 2025 award cycle. Melville also described a newly formed QA team that will track actionable data and revise related policies in a way that supports improvement rather than punitive review.
The board did not take formal personnel actions during the meeting; staffing updates and recognition work were presented as ongoing operational matters.
