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Emergency services director says ambulance run times stretched by staffing and training needs
Summary
Mister Frum, the county's emergency services lead, reported more EMTs in training but said ambulance run times are longer when single crews are available; he urged measured onboarding and mutual-aid use while building capacity.
Mister Frum, who leads Sawyer County emergency services, introduced a new staff member and said the county has moved from critical shortages to a larger pool of EMTs but still faces coverage gaps that lengthen ambulance response times.
"The minimum requirement is 129 hours of observation, and I require 160," Mister Frum said, explaining why recently hired staff remain in orientation and are not immediately assigned to cover high-risk shifts. He said reported ambulance run times in some areas have been around 20–23 minutes when crews are thin.
Frum highlighted mutual-aid arrangements with neighboring services during heavy call periods and said cooperation with Birch and other regional responders has worked well during major incidents. He also described training collaborations with LCO and Northwood-area programs and noted an advanced EMT class scheduled for September.
Committee members asked for details about the longer runs and whether part-time staff could fill gaps; Frum said the department is building training and scheduling systems to expand reliable coverage rather than placing inexperienced personnel into solo shifts.
No formal action was taken; members thanked staff and asked for updates on staffing and response metrics at future meetings.
