NORFOLK, Va. — The city of Norfolk is proposing a new program to bulk up its first responders amid a shortage of paramedics to respond to emergencies. The new full-time Pilot Paramedic Program plans to bring in 12 full-time paramedics. Norfolk Fire-Rescue Chief Sidney Carroll announced the plan at a city council informal session Tuesday.
Currently, the city's paramedics spend half their shift in an ambulance and the other half riding with fire crews. But under the pilot plan, those 12 newly hired full-time paramedics would only ride and serve in ambulances.
"A lot of firefighter-paramedics, they want to be just paramedics versus some people who just want to be firefighters,” Carroll said in an interview on Wednesday with 13News Now.
In a presentation to Norfolk City Council Tuesday afternoon, Chief Carroll noted the department is currently short nearly three dozen paramedics of their goal — a shortfall he attributed to work-life balance concerns. Carroll said the new hires could make around $69,000 combining salary and overtime pay.
“Building the morale, that's the key to any organization. You want your employees to be happy doing what they're doing, and this is a step towards that," Carroll said.
Ultimately Carroll hopes to expand the pilot paramedic program even further.
"Our vision is to set up the paramedic EMS division and that would take according to our book work we plan to have a total of 36 paramedic supervisors in this division." Carroll said.
The Norfolk City Council is expected to discuss the paramedic program again at its October 22nd council meeting.