Consultants tell Pella council ambulance staffing shortfall will require major investment; council pauses hiring pending partner funding

A consultant hired to study the city ambulance service told the Pella City Council the department faces structural staffing and funding shortfalls that likely require a multi-year hiring plan and higher pay to retain crews.

"This is the time to take the EMS department you have and make it a beacon on the hill," consultant Robert Hall said, urging the council to consider the study's recommended Option 3, a phased plan that could ultimately add about a dozen new full-time positions.

Hall laid out the service's financial pressures: the city pays roughly $780 every time the ambulance responds and Medicare/Medicaid reimbursements do not cover that cost. He also flagged pay-rate gaps: critical-care paramedics in nearby comparables earn in the high-$20s per hour while the city's starting critical-care paramedic pay was reported in the low-$20s.

The report described operational strains that led the city to take over the ambulance service in July 2022 (increasing call volumes, fewer volunteers and rising costs). It also noted facility maintenance needs, including cracks in the apparatus floor that represent a safety and liability risk.

Consultants sketched short- and long-term options: doing nothing until outside funding is secured (option 1); adding some full-time staff and an ambulance with an estimated combined shortfall of roughly $700,000 (option 2); or a multi-year program to build a fully staffed service (option 3). Consultants estimated the ambulance division could run roughly $258,000 over budget this fiscal year under the current staffing model; adding four employees alone could raise personnel costs substantially.

The consultants further recommended the city consider not providing ambulance coverage outside its corporate limits unless those townships contribute funding: "That population at this point contributes no money to your ambulance service,” Hall said, recommending a period of public notice if coverage were to be changed.

Council members pressed for clarity about hospital and regional funding. Mayor (presiding) acknowledged the report's urgency and thanked consultants for their frank assessment: "We are gonna have to have an extensive discussion about what we just heard and make some decisions about staffing," the mayor said.

City staff and the consultants told the council they are negotiating with the regional health center about transfer coverage and expect a proposal soon. Council consensus at the meeting was to delay adding staff until the city has clearer commitments from the hospital and any intergovernmental funding mechanism. The council asked staff to return with more detailed cost implications and options at a subsequent meeting.

The council did not adopt any staffing action at the meeting; next steps are contingent on outside funding discussions and further council review.