Chatham-Kent officials have signed off on their EMS services contract, renewing the municipality's relationship with Medavie for another five years.
The contract was signed Tuesday, a little less than two months before the current contract was slated to expire. The signing marks an end to the Chatham-Kent Fire and Emergency Service's "service review," which flared up passions from the EMS and paramedic community.
Back in the spring, emergency officials recommended re-signing Medavie to a new two-year contract. That would have allowed administration to continue reviewing the logistics of a "blended" fire-EMS service model.
"We were saying, maintain the current system for two years, and continue to explore and validate the model so council could make a better, informed decision," says Fire Chief Ken Steubing.
Instead, council elected to keep the current service as-is, asking staff to negotiate a new five-year deal with the EMS company.
"I certainly understand some of the staff felt anxious about the contract, but the minute council made that decision, both the contractor and our negotiations team were dedicated to get the best contract sorted out that we could," adds Steubing.
The contract with Medavie is worth a total of $54,449,281.
