News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Fentress County Commission approved new contracts for paramedic and advanced medical technology students working with the county.
Ambulance Services Director Daniel Coleman said these contracts would ensure that the county is repaid whenever it pays to send someone to paramedic or AEMT school. Coleman said he has two full-time employees that recently started AEMT school.
“This is no employment contract with the employee,” Coleman said. “This just states that they understand that by us paying this that they are entitled to paying us back. It also states that we do not require the agency to offer them a position as full-time or anything like that, however they are are full-time positions currently.”
Coleman said the county is estimated to pay $7,500 for each AEMT student. He said he secured outside funding to get his two employees started with their classes.
“A lot of times what I have seen in the past at other agencies is we may have – you may have an employee that works at this agency, and this other agency wants them, so that agency will, in turn, turn around and pay that contract off so that they can pick up their employment,” Coleman said.
Coleman said he does not have anyone with the county going to paramedic school, but he drafted the both contracts together so they would be ready when the time comes.
In other business, the commission also approved an automatic manual aid agreement between Overton County’s Mountain Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service and the Fentress County Volunteer Fire Department.
