Deadline for Fentress EMS Director Applications

Fentress County is in need of a new EMS Director as the county reaches Friday’s deadline for applications.

County Executive Jimmy Johnson said Jonathan Beaty is serving as interim director when Micah Dunford retired after 3 years. Johnson said he will be praying on deadline day because this is going to be a difficult position to fill.

“Not only is he director but in a small town like this, you have to have someone that doesn’t care to help make runs,” Johnson said. “That will fill in on shifts if need be and where we’re shorthanded. It’s a problem all across the state of Tennessee.”

Johnson said paramedics and EMT’s work the positions for decades and then retire, creating a shortage of people qualified to be an EMS Director. Johnson said Beaty stepping up into the interim position has been key to keeping operations going.

“He was part of the EMS services here and has been for several years and so he is it right now,” Johnson said. “If he decides to stay on that will be good if we don’t have someone who wants to, but he is an excellent applicant for that and does a good job.”

Johnson said the county needs to start staffing from the entry positions up to set up a hiring base for the future.

“We’re trying to get EMT’s trained and hopefully we will be hiring those and they’ll go on to paramedic school and stay with us,” Johnson said. “Here in the county we do pay to help them get through school and then they’ll sign a contract to stay with us a certain amount of years. Hopefully we can pick up a lot and hopefully we can get us a good director in here that will stay with us.”

Johnson said he will be the one to appoint someone to the EMS Director position. However, Johnson said he will review any potential nominee with his county commissioners.