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V O L . X X I V N O. V M A R C H 5 , 2 0 1 8 22 H E A LT H C A R E F O C U S " e pay is terrible," says Rick Petrie, executive director at Winslow- based Atlantic Partners EMS, a non- profi t contracted by the state to be an education, quality improvement and administrative resource to ambulance services. Even as a paramedic with 37 years of experience, he earns $24 an hour. "If we ever pass a minimum wage of $16 an hour," he predicts, "we're going to put ambulance ser- vices out of business." Ambulance services respond At North East Mobile Health Services in Scarborough, CEO Butch Russell says, "Staffi ng is our biggest concern." e company, one of the state's few private, for-profi t organizations, bills itself as Maine's premier medical trans- portation provider serving southern parts of the state from depots in Scarborough, Sanford, Biddeford, Brunswick and Rockport. Its fl eet includes traditional and van-style ambulances, neonatal and pediatric intensive-car mobile units, wheelchair vans and shuttles. Russell says the volume of calls has grown every year except for last year, when it did about 25,000 ambulance transports, compared to a peak of 30,000 about three years ago. Lately it's been educating hospitals and nurs- ing homes it's working with to choose better between transport options, given strict rules for billing Medicare and MaineCare, which together make up 70% of its income. "Both of those payers do not pay enough to cover the cost of cover- ing the business," he says. For that reason, the company can only off er a starting salary of $12 an hour, which it recently raised from $10.50 an hour in a cost-of-living increase it introduced to attract more employees during a crunch about six months ago. It also off ered a signing bonus. "I would love to give them all more," he says. Delta Ambulance, a nonprofi t serv- ing 17 towns in the greater Augusta- Waterville area, has also had to up its recruitment game, in the form of sign- on bonuses and benefi ts like reimburse- ments for education and uniforms, gym memberships and "whatever we can add on to try to recruit somebody," says executive director Tim Beals. "We can't compete on salary." Community paramedicine One way to retain more workers might be to practice community paramedi- cine, a system introduced in rural New Mexico in the 1990s to expand the scope of EMS services to include preventive care in an out-of-hospital setting, includ- ing patients' homes. " e catch is right now that there's no reimbursement," says Beals, "and you don't get paid to do those visits, but we're working on it." United Ambulance Service, serving southern and central Maine, is also holding off until there's reimbursement, says edu- cation director Dennis Russell; in the meantime, it's expanded its education and training off erings including in continuing education. But community medicine is gain- ing traction in Maine where 15 to 20 services are now practicing it following a four-year pilot program by Maine EMS recently given permanent status. In the long run, Maine EMS Director St. Germain is hopeful that if there's data showing cost savings from community medicine, then reimburse- ment will follow. " ree's some light at the end of the tunnel," he says. Rewarding job Despite the long hours and hard work of her profession, paramedic and fi refi ghter Breeanna Zoidis is in it for the long haul and tells anyone thinking of pursu- ing the same path to "give it all you've got." She conveys a similar message in a new video for the Maine Municipal Association, part of a campaign called HoMEtown Careers aimed at luring young people to jobs like her full-time position in Biddeford. "With the community supporting us, it defi nitely allows us to hire more people, and as long as we keep making them proud and serving them well we hope they will continue to support us." R C , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e r e a c h e d a t @ . a n d @ » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E Call us today! Helping businesses stay competitive with specialized employment services • Temporary, Temp-to-Hire, and Direct-Hire • Skilled Trades • Flagging, Construction, Light Industrial, General Labor • Administrative, Finance/ Accounting, General Office • Safety/Worksite Services 1-800-639-8802 mainestaff.com Direct Personnel / Project Staffing / Project Staffing / / Project Flagging / Project Flagging / Let us go to work for you! 6 I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but I don't know if there's a workforce crisis, but what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention what I can say anecdotally at least, is retention is always an issue. — Shaun St. Germaine Maine EMS director

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