Georgetown grapples with how to continue meeting emergency medical service needs

GEORGETOWN TWP. — Georgetown Township officials must soon decide how to provide emergency medical services to residents once the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department ends paramedic-licensed deputies in May.

Emergency response will continue, but the emergency medical certification level will be decreasing.

"You guys aren't losing any police officers, you're losing paramedic response police officers," Sgt. Michael Tamminga explained.

Tamminga oversees the 14 full-time deputies contracted from OCSD to patrol in Georgetown Township. Seven of them currently carry paramedic-level licensure and have specialized equipment in their vehicles to respond to medical calls.

OCSD has said it isn't able to maintain that level of service any longer, largely due to staffing shortages.

"There are times where the e-units, based on our coverage and our staffing, where we just weren't able to get a paramedic on duty," Tamminga said.

Sheriff Eric DeBoer did not respond to requests for an interview for this story.

At times like that, the medical calls are passed on to the Georgetown Township Fire Department, which is staffed mostly with part-time, paid-on-call firefighters. These firefighters usually have other jobs, and only work for the fire department when there's an emergency or training.

"It was burning out our paid-on-call," said Township Supervisor Justin Stadt. "We're at the point now where we have to now pivot again and make a new plan."

Looking at options

At their Aug. 11 meeting, the Georgetown Township Board of Trustees received several presentations on what the alternatives are.

At the meeting, Stadt presented the board with several options to consider.

Option 1: Do nothing.

Stadt cautioned that doing nothing would further burn out the paid-on-call firefighters and that levels of service would drop.

Option 2: Two proposals from Life EMS.

Life EMS currently provides medical transport and paramedic service to the township, and will continue to do so regardless of the board's decision.

The first of Life EMS's proposals would cost approximately $550,000 per year for a Medical First Response Unit, or MFRU, to be on station around the clock, and a second MFRU between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., the busiest hours.

An MFRU is an SUV-style vehicle that doesn't perform medical transports but carries various lifesaving and stabilization equipment. It would not be staffed with paramedic-licensed individuals, but with emergency medical technicians (EMTs), a lower-level certification.

The second proposal from Life EMS would cost $390,000 per year and includes only one MFRU on station at all hours.

Option 3: Expand the township fire department.

The GTFD also put several options on the table for expanding its full-time staff to cover the medical first responder service gap, saying it would also help bridge gaps in fire response.

Fire Chief Matthew DeWitt declined to be interviewed for this story, but told the board at the Aug. 11 meeting that there was a minor brush fire reported this summer and no fire truck showed up.

"We've never had that issue before," DeWitt said.

The department laid out five possible options, but focused on the third and fourth options more in depth.

Deputy Chief Ryan Tibbets said that option three would likely mirror the current level of service through the sheriff's department.

It would cost about $1.2 million and staff both the Church Court station and the 36th Avenue station, each with two full-time firefighters around the clock, which would mean hiring 12 more full-time employees (the department currently has four full-time employees).

Option four is similar, but would add two firefighters 24/7 at the 44th Street station, and would mean hiring 18 full-time staff at a cost of about $1.7 million. Although several of the firefighters carry paramedic licenses, the department would only be guaranteeing EMT-level service as well.

Tibbets said both proposals have the added benefit of cutting fire response times in half for much of the township. With full-time personnel at the stations with trucks, the paid, on-call staff can respond straight to the site of an emergency instead of reporting to the fire station first.

When they aren't on call, DeWitt said the full-time staff can complete additional training, equipment checks, maintenance of the stations, administrative work and engage in public education and outreach.

"A lot of those tasks are handled by the paid, on-call right now," DeWitt said.

When the board asked about the need to expand the fire department facilities to accommodate the additional staff, Tibbets said recommended holding off on any renovations for at least three years, until a new study of how the buildings are being utilized under the new staffing conditions can be completed.

Previous renovations occurred 25 years ago and allowed the possibility of future expansion.

Trustees discuss the options

The fire department proposals received a mix of scrutiny and support from the trustees.

Trustee John Schwalm felt there was no way to fund the expansion without a public safety millage. He said it would give the chance for citizens to learn about the choice and make a decision for themselves.

"I think this could be promoted tremendously, and I think it would pass," Schwalm said.

Treasurer Gene DeWitt, a long-time firefighter, said he supports the fire department's option three, and that the expansion of the fire department is overdue.

"The fire department is not something I'm willing to take a chance on," Township Clerk Kelly Kuiper said.

She said she doesn't support either of the Life EMS proposals and sees fire and medical response as an essential government service. She said she would rather cut from parts of the budget for parks, the library or roads than see fire and medical responses drop.

Supervisor Jim Wierenga asked many questions about the various options, but refrained from voicing clear support for any of the proposals, as did Trustees Amy Grasman, Gary Veldink and Kevin Kelly.

Stadt said funding options to expand the department include a public safety millage in 2026, a special tax assessment, an increase in the base millage or drawing on the township's rainy day fund. The GTFD has also applied for the national Staffing For Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant through Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The fire services discussion was advanced by the township's services committee on Oct. 6 to the full board for its Oct. 13 meeting, where all of the proposals will be considered.

The agenda for the meeting has not yet been posted.

— Joshua Vissers covers communities in eastern Ottawa County. Contact him at newsroom@ottawanewsnetwork.org.