Dateline: February 2, 2007

Ambulance director resigns position

Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

A debate over the number of full time EMS employees and how to compensate volunteers led to the resignation of Associated Ambulance Authority Director Anita Aaron this week.

“I just felt it was the best thing for the service and that a change in leadership might help move things forward,” Aaron told the Enterprise Friday afternoon.

The sudden resignation came Tuesday night, January 30, during an emergency meeting of the Donley County Hospital Board, which oversees the ambulance service. The board had met in called session the day before to discuss staffing of the ambulance service.

According to board minutes, the board agreed to increase the number of full time paramedics from three and a half to five, but Aaron objected to that plan, saying it was insufficient. She also asked for more incentives for the volunteers that support the ambulance service, but that issue was tabled.

Aaron said Friday that she had hoped that the board would provide additional compensation for the volunteers and that adding two paramedics would not alleviate the pressure on the service’s existing paramedics, who have to be on call around the clock.

“I think five 24-hour shifts is too much,” Aaron said. “You can’t even put a cake in the oven unless you have someone else there to take it out.”

Aaron said she urged the board to contact the administrator of the hospital district in Canadian to learn about that community’s ambulance service.

“They have a very unique situation,” Aaron said. “Their call volume is similar to ours. They have seven employees – four paramedics, two basic EMTs, and one director.”

Aaron also wanted to increase the per call pay for volunteers and have some compensation for the time when they are on call – an idea she says was originated by board president Alan Fletcher.

Fletcher thanked Aaron for her service to the community during Tuesday’s meeting and told the Enterprise Friday that paramedic Anna Howard is serving as interim director of the service. He also said that paramedic Debra Hill, who said she quit at Tuesday’s meeting, had agreed to stay on the job after visiting with individual board members later that night.

“I think everything is okay,” Fletcher said. “We’re going to meet Monday with the volunteers and see what their concerns are.”

Fletcher said he was shocked when Aaron resigned.

“She said Canadian has seven full time employees, but it was never stated exactly what she wanted,” Fletcher said. “Our understanding is that they are overworked and that there are too many 24-hour shifts, so we were trying to alleviate that with five full time people and then fill in with volunteers.”

Fletcher said that the debate about compensating the volunteers more has been going on for six months or more.

“They get $10 for a ‘no transport’ call and $25 for a call where there is a transport,” he said. “Some of the volunteers want to be compensated for the time that they are on call.”

Fletcher said several issues must be considered when increasing the compensation for volunteers. First, the Associated Ambulance Authority is classified by the state as a “volunteer service,” and increasing compensation and the number of full time employees would change that status to “paid service.” That means more expensive licensing fees and raises the question of how the service would be viewed when it tries to apply for grants, he said.

Fletcher said the board must also stay within its budget and consider what turning volunteers into part time employs means for the hospital district with regards to employee benefits and other issues.

Fletcher said the board would have to consider all those issues and said “You want the best service for the citizens of Donley County.”

Aaron will be taking some time before decides what to do next, but she has nothing but good things to say about the people of Clarendon and its ambulance service.

“It’s been a very good experience for me to be here, and I have been honored to work with these people,” she said. “Clarendon is truly blessed with the caliber of people we have and their dedication to this service. Change is always difficult, but it is not always bad.”