CASE FACTS: Robert Dempsey, a former Polk County EMS paramedic, brought suit for libel and slander against the Polk County EMS Director, Sandra Halford, and the Polk County
EMS Medical Director, Alison Van Frank (collectively "defendants").
Two weeks later, a column on March 18 cited information from Fire and EMS Department logs from the night of the attack that indicated a medical director of the department had ordered the ambulance crew that transported Rosenbaum to be taken out of service for "very poor judgement and treatment." King calls this "an internal document that shows the Fire and
EMS medical director did not think it was handled correctly."
[sections] 401.265 requires an
EMS medical director to establish a quality assurance committee for the purpose of providing for quality assurance review of all EMTs and paramedics.
Gordon's report identifies him as a licensed physician who has practiced in Bexar County and has specialized in emergency medicine for the past twenty years; he has supervised the emergency medicine education of medical students and emergency medical technicians for the past twenty years in South Texas, and he has served as the
EMS medical director for the last thirteen years.
There are several problems that contribute to a lack of clarity in this realm, primarily: a) the EMS service is under the direction of the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, b) the Emergency Medical Technicians are licensed by the Board of Medical Examiners, as are the
EMS Medical Directors, and, c) nurses are licensed under the Board of Nursing.
"The Role of
EMS Medical Directors." Emergency Medical Services 15(2):40-5,48-9, March 1986.