Port has plan for ‘dire’ paramedic shortage

Port Washington City Administrator Tony Brown is expected to unveil a plan to hire a second full-time paramedic for consideration by aldermen at the Tuesday, Dec. 15, Common Council meeting.

Money for the position could come from reallocating some funds the city has already budgeted, Brown said, although he did not get more specific.

After Fire Chief Mark Mitchell told the Common Council last month that he is facing a “dire” staff shortage — so bad that there are times he can’t staff even one ambulance — as he unsuccessfully sought funding for the position during the city’s budget hearing, Brown told aldermen he was working on a plan that could provide funding for a full-time paramedic for a couple years. 

“I think there’s more research to do,” Brown said last week.

Part of that will come next week when the Police and Fire Commission considers whether to continue seeking a firefighter/paramedic or just a paramedic for the position.

Port has had money in the budget for one full-time firefighter/paramedic position for the last year, but the two people hired to fill that position both left shortly after they began work.

Commission members said in November they would consider dropping the firefighter portion of the full-time duties and perhaps adjusting the salary or looking at the residency requirements as they seek to attract candidates for the job.

“Before we venture down the road, those are things we need to look at,” Brown said, noting they could impact the salary and benefits paid by the city.

“We need to make sure the wages are attractive for the position,” he said. “I think we need to do a little more homework.”

Mitchell said Tuesday he is still looking at those issues and researching whether some changes need to be made to the “paid on premise” pay.

While the situation has improved a little in recent weeks, Mitchell said, “we’re still  looking at the schedule every day.”

Brown emphasized that his plan is not a long-term solution to the city’s problem but a way to provide short-term relief as the city seeks a more sustainable way to fund the position.

The city has budgeted some money to conduct a staffing study for the department next year, and a county-wide study of shared services is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

“This is a short-term measure to get us to the point of the staffing study,” Brown said, noting that study is expected to identify possible ways to resolve the immediate staffing shortage.

The shared-services study, he said, is more of a long-term look at how to resolve the issue.

Brown emphasized that his plan will likely only fund the position for a couple years. After that, the city would have to make significant cuts in its budget to fund the position or find other funding sources.

“To think that’s a reasonable assumption is not a viable option as far as I’m concerned,” he said.

It’s important to help the department handle the staffing shortage, Brown said.

“Emergency services is one of the most important jobs the city has,” he said. “The sooner we can figure this out, the better.”