Minutes 05/07/1985 ADVISORY COUNCIL MINUTES
May 7, 1985
Meeting called to order at 10:05 AM, May 7, 1985
Meeting adjourned at 12:30 PM
Members present: Terry Ortengren, Homer Brooks, Bill Boettcher
and Terry Halberg
Guests present: Doug Greenfield and Bill Griffin
OLD BUSINESS
1. Jumpsuits - Mr. Greenfield stated that there is an approximate
difference of $400 between the two quotes for 4.5 jumpsuits
(Martin's Uniforms and Uniform's Galore) . He also stated that
about 65% of the employees found a good fit in the sample jump-
suits provided by Martin's Unifroms. Employees will be notified
when Uniform's Galore provides samples for fitting, and Sally
will survey each employee on which they like best. It will be
October or November before the entire service will be outfitted
with jumpsuits. A "test crew" and the ALS competition team will
be outfitted prior to the rest of the employees. Navy blue will
be the color of the jumpsuits and Risk Management will require
reflective tape. A holster strap for carrying the radio will be
used rather than the jumpsuits having belt loops.
2. Hepatitis B Vaccine - The shots will be given in a 3 shot series,
costing the county about $96 per person. The shots will be given
in house (by your friends and co-workers) and are administered
intramuscularly. Homer recommended that those not desiring to
be given the vaccine be required to sign such a statement to pro-
tect the county against possible litigation. Neither Mr. Green-
field nor Bill Griffin agreed and both made apparent their dis-
belief that any law suits might occur. Homer is completing a
list of those desiring the vaccination. If you have not been
contacted, please get in touch with him at home or at 502 on "B"
shift.
3. School Cars - Action not taken due to lack of expressed desire
for such a schedule.
4. Food and the IRS - Mr. Greenfield has already signed the memo
concerning each crew pooling their money for shifts in an attempt
to get a tax break next year. Terry Ortengren cautioned that she
has been advised that some paramedics and EMT's that used "on duty
food" as a tax deduction for their 1984 returns may be audited.
vis
5. Bugs at 503 Station - Council again asked management to look
into moving the outside lights or changing their color to yellow
to help cut down on the bug situation.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Part-Time Council Representative - Terry Lichliter requested to
be appointed the part-time employees representative in the Ad-
visory Council. This request was accepted by all in attendance.
2. Wellness Center - The Assistant Director of the Wellness Center,
Henry Trollinger, in a letter to Mr. Greenfield dated 4/17/85,
offered EMS employees a 20% discount "in recognition of the dedi-
cated service we afford the community." The cost, with the dis-
count will be $250 for a three month package and $40 for each
month thereafter. The three month package includes bicycle stress
testing, complete blood work, consultation fees and activity fees.
3. Golden Gate Eagle Article - This article was noted by the council.
4. Radio Procedures - Mr. Greenfield reminded the council of the
proper radio (telemetry) procedure when by-passing North Collier
Health Center or Marco Urgent Care Center with a patient. He
agreed that noting the name and position of the person at the
facility making the decision to stop or by-pass be noted on the
trip ticket for future reference is a good idea. He also advised
that in the multi-patient call, all patients must be taken to one
facility or the other and no breaking up of patients is permitted.
5. Representative Resigns - Sue Keny resigned (verbally) from the
Advisory Council. No reason was given during the meeting.
6. Linen - Towels that actually absorb water are available from
Sally. Remember - linen is to be put in the dirty linen con-
tainer at NCH only! Do not leave it at Headquarters or your
station. Also remember that we do not exchange linen at either
Marco Urgent Care Center or North Collier Health Care Center.
7. New Medication Packaging - It was recommended that any new form
of current drugs put on the unit be reviewed during In-service
meetings. It was agreed that this would be a much more approp-
riate time to learn how to use the drug rather than on the scene.
It was also recommended to Bill Griffin that the powdered form
of lidocaine be used up and not re-ordered due to problems in
mixing the drug. There is some question whether the problem is
defective packaging or operator error, so if you have an opinion
one way or the other, contract your representative.
-2-
8. Personal Uses of County Owned Equipment and Supplies - Just a
short reminder that such activity is a Class III Offense.
9. Psychological Counseling - David Lawrence Mental health Care Center
met with Mr. Greenfield on April 15th concerning an employee
assistance program. This program, when instituted, will in-
clude family planning, alcohol and drug rehabilitation, stress
management, pre-employment screening and psychological de-briefing
following traumatic or mass casualty scenes. There will be no
cost to the employee for this service, and it will be mandatory
in some cases.
10. Immobilization Plan - Mr. Greenfield cited working second jobs
and living outside the county as two problems with the county's
plan for mobilization in cases of disasters. The problem is
being looked into.
11. Mandatory Overtime - Homer asked about how an employee was chosen
for mandatory overtime. Doug Greenfield and Bill Griffin advised
that although we have come close to having to implement this
county right on a few occasions, that it has never caused a pro-
blem or had to be used. They also stated that there was no real
system to deciding who gets called in on mandatory overtime and
that they would consider developing a system if it becomes a pro-
blem.
12. Late Arrivals at Stations - Terry Halberg brought up the problem
of late relief by part-time employees just getting off their
regular jobs. The problem is being looked into.
13. Calling Out Sick Deadline - Homer recommended that the deadline
for calling in sick be moved back a half an hour to 7:00 AM. The
reason was that it is difficult to get to work on time (especially
in Immokalee) when the supervisor calls you after 7:30 AM and tells
you to report to a different station.
14. Flight Teams - The idea of having a team of 6 people for helicopter
flights in the new 511 was discussed. Mr. Greenfield's idea is to
have each crew spend one month on 511 and then one month on 510.
This would be the constant rotation of the flight team. He pointed
out that the teams would have to be specially trained and dealt
with so only these 6 people would be flying in the helicopter.
15. New Ambulance - Our new Type II (van) ambulance for Immokalee should
be on the road by the third week of June.
-3-
t_y
16. New Supply System - Although not complete, the idea of having
locked medication boxes on the units, along with other components
of the system were discussed.
17. Raises - Mr. Greenfield stated that all employees will be given
a 4% raise in October of this year. A possible 3% raise will
also be available next year in the form of merit raises. The
evaluation forms for next year have also been simplified and
standardized.
18. Temporary Secretary - Please note that due to work, Bill Peplinski,
Council Secretary, was not in attendance at this meeting. Homer
was "elected" to take notes due to the lack of another volunteer.
Please excuse any errors and hurry back Bill (I don't like this
job! ) .
Re •ectfully Submitty0,
/
I0
Homer Brooks, vice Chairman
Acting Secretary
HB/jm
-4-
ADVISORY COUNCIL MINUTES
May 7, 1985
Meeting called to order at 10:05 AM, May 7, 1985
Meeting adjourned at 12:30 PM
Members present: Terry Ortengren, Homer Brooks, Bill Boettcher
and Terry Halberg
Guests present: Doug Greenfield and Bill Griffin
OLD BUSINESS
1. Jumpsuits - Mr. Greenfield stated that there is an approximate
difference of $400 between the two quotes for 45 jumpsuits
(Martin's Uniforms and Uniform's Galore) . He also stated that
about 65% of the employees found a good fit in the sample jump-
suits provided by Martin's Unifroms. Employees will be notified
when Uniform's Galore provides samples for fitting, and Sally
will survey each employee on which they like best. It will be
October or November before the entire service will be outfitted
with jumpsuits. A "test crew" and the ALS competition team will
be outfitted prior to the rest of the employees. Navy blue will
be the color of the jumpsuits and Risk Management will require
reflective tape. A holster strap for carrying the radio will be
used rather than the jumpsuits having belt loops.
2. Hepatitis B Vaccine - The shots will be given in a 3 shot series,
costing the county about $96 per person. The shots will be given
in house (by your friends and co-workers) and are administered
intramuscularly. Homer recommended that those not desiring to
be given the vaccine be required to sign such a statement to pro-
tect the county against possible litigation. Neither Mr. Green-
field nor Bill Griffin agreed and both made apparent their dis-
belief that any law suits might occur. Homer is completing a
list of those desiring the vaccination. If you have not been
contacted, please get in touch with him at home or at 502 on "B"
shift.
3. School Cars - Action not taken due to lack of expressed desire
for such a schedule.
4. Food and the IRS - Me. Greenfield has already signed the memo
concerning each crew pooling their money for shifts in an attempt
to get a tax break next year. Terry Ortengren cautioned that she
has been advised that some paramedics and EMT's that used "on duty
food" as a tax deduction for their 1984 returns may be audited.
5. Bugs at 503 Station - Council again asked management to look
into moving the outside lights or changing their color to yellow
to help cut down on the bug situation.
NEW BUSINESS
1. Part-Time Council Representative - Terry Lichliter requested to
be appointed the part-time employees representative in the Ad-
visory Council. This request was accepted by all in attendance.
2. Wellness Center - The Assistant Director of the Wellness Center,
Henry Trollinger, in a letter to Mr. Greenfield dated 4/17/85,
offered EMS employees a 20% discount "in recognition of the dedi-
cated service we afford the community." The cost, with the dis-
count will be $250 for a three month package and $40 for each
month thereafter. The three month package includes bicycle stress
testing, complete blood work, consultation fees and activity fees.
3. Golden Gate Eagle Article - This article was noted by the council.
4. Radio Procedures - Mr. Greenfield reminded the council of the
proper radio (telemetry) procedure when by-passing North Collier
Health Center or Marco Urgent Care Center with a patient. He
agreed that noting the name and position of. the person at the
facility making the decision to stop or by-pass be noted on the
trip ticket for future reference is a good idea. He also advised
that in the multi-patient call, all patients must be taken to one
facility or the other and no breaking up of patients is permitted.
5. Representative Resigns - Sue Keny resigned (verbally) from the
Advisory Council. No reason was given during the meeting.
6. Linen - Towels that actually absorb water are available from
Sally. Remember - linen is to be put in the dirty linen con-
tainer at NCH only! Do not leave it at Headquarters or your
station. Also remember that we do not exchange linen at either
Marco Urgent Care Center or North Collier Health Care Center.
7. New Medication Packaging - It was recommended that any new form
of current drugs put on the unit be reviewed during In-service
meetings. It was agreed that this would be a much more approp-
riate time to learn how to use the drug rather than on the scene.
It was also recommended to Bill Griffin that the powdered form
of lidocaine be used up and not re-ordered due to problems in
mixing the drug. There is some question whether the problem is
defective packaging or operator error, so if you have an opinion
one way or the other, contract your representative.
-2-
8. Personal Uses of County Owned Equipment and Supplies - Just a
short reminder that such activity is a Class III Offense.
9. Psychological Counseling - David Lawrence Mental health Care Center
met with Mr. Greenfield on April 15th concerning an employee
assistance program. This program, when instituted, will in-
clude family planning, alcohol and drug rehabilitation, stress
management, pre-employment screening and psychological de-briefing
following traumatic or mass casualty scenes. There will be no
cost to the employee for this service, and it will be mandatory
in some cases.
10. Immobilization Plan - Mr. Greenfield cited working second jobs
and living outside the county as two problems with the county's
plan for mobilization in cases of disasters. The problem is
being looked into.
11. Mandatory Overtime - Homer asked about how an employee was chosen
for mandatory overtime. Doug Greenfield and Bill Griffin advised
that although we have come close to having to implement this
county right on a few occasions, that it has never caused a pro-
blem or had to be used. They also stated that there was no real
system to deciding who gets called in on mandatory overtime and
that they would consider developing a system if it becomes a pro-
blem.
12. Late Arrivals at Stations - Terry Halberg brought up the problem
of late relief by part-time employees just getting off their
regular jobs. The problem is being looked into.
13. Calling Out Sick Deadline - Homer recommended that the deadline
for calling in sick be moved back a half an hour to 7:00 AM. The
reason was that it is difficult to get to work on time (especially
in Immokalee) when the supervisor calls you after 7:30 AM and tells
you to report to a different station.
14. Flight Teams - The idea of having a team of 6 people for helicopter
flights in the new 511 was discussed. Mr. Greenfield's idea is to
have each crew spend one month on 511 and then one month on 510.
This would be the constant rotation of the flight team. He pointed
out that the teams would have to be specially trained and dealt
with so only these 6 people would be flying in the helicopter.
15. New Ambulance - Our new Type II (van) ambulance for Immokalee should
be on the road by the third week of June.
-3-
16. New Supply System - Although not complete, the idea of having
locked medication boxes on the units, along with other components
of the system were discussed.
17. Raises - Mr. Greenfield stated that all employees will be given
a 4% raise in October of this year. A possible 3% raise will
also be available next year in the form of merit raises. The
evaluation forms for next year have also been simplified and
standardized.
18. Temporary Secretary - Please note that due to work, Bill Peplinski,
Council Secretary, was not in attendance at this meeting. Homer
was "elected" to take notes due to the lack of another volunteer.
Please excuse any errors and hurry back Bill (I don't like this
job! ).
Re .-ctfully Submitt=1,
/e
'f
Homer Brooks, vise Chairman
Acting Secretary
HB/jm
-4-