March 2009 News Archive:
ACEMS Director Re-Elected As State EMS Board Chairman
By: Jon W. Knowles, Public Information Officer
Published: 03-31-2009 @ 23:10
During the recent March Tennessee State Division of EMS Board of Directors meeting, ACEMS Director Robert L. Byrd Jr. was unanimously reelected as Chairman of the Board. Byrd was elected to his third term as Chairman by his peers of nurses, doctors and paramedics who currently sit on the Board. The Emergency Medical Services Board consists of 13 board members who are appointed by Governor Bredesen. Byrd was originally appointed to the Board in 2004 and reappointed by the Governor in 2008. The Chairman's position is elected on an annual basis.
“I am both humbled and privileged in the confidence my peers have shown in me to serve in this capacity for a third term. I look forward to my continued responsibilities as Chair in several regulatory projects that this Board has under construction" Byrd said. "Additionally, my associates have shown a collective interest in placing pre-hospital pediatric medicine at the forefront of Tennessee EMS, and I am eager to be a part of this mission.”
Being the first of its kind in the nation, the State EMS Board establishes standards and regulations governing emergency medical services in Tennessee. The Board also conducts hearings to review and decide disciplinary matters presented by the Division of EMS while meeting on a quarterly basis. Chairman Byrd's responsibilities include the approval of the agenda and appointment of committee's and committee members. Also, the Chairman's signature ratifies all board activity, ranging from the approval of training programs to disciplinary action and the implementation of new rules and regulations.
Byrd continues to serve as Director of Emergency Services for Anderson County Government, a post he has held for eleven years.
ACEMS Acquires Four New Ambulances
By: Jon W. Knowles, Public Information Officer
Published: 03-30-2009 @ 23:05
The month of March brought new deliveries to ACEMS: Four new Taylor Made GMC Ambulances. The new GMC’s are equipped with a 6.6 Duramax Diesel engine along with an Allison Automatic Transmission and dual rear wheels.
ACEMS Assistant Chief of Fleet Operations Peter Sexton traveled to Arkansas to take delivery of the new units. “There were very few changes from the previous three GMC's we placed in service last May, the most noticeable difference is the all LED emergency light component that these four feature." Sexton said. LEDs present many advantages over traditional emergency light sources including lower energy consumption, longer lifetime and improved robustness. LED emergency lights are much brighter than traditional emergency lighting systems.
The new Ambulance additions were manufactured and customized by Taylor Made Ambulance Manufactures in Newport,Arkansas. The four new units are now fully operational, two are serving the cities of Andersonville and Lake City, two are also serving as Convalescent Units. ACEMS maintains 19 total Ambulances in the current fleet along with one training unit, a supply unit and a supervisors command vehicle. With the new additions, three older Ford model ambulances will be turned over to surplus or delivered to other county entities.