James Crutchfield, who launched and has led the County's successful Community Paramedic program in 2016, has been named Chief of Emergency Medical Services. The Community Paramedic Division will now fall within EMS, allowing the Public Safety Department to focus its efforts in both pre-hospital emergency medicine and preventative healthcare for patients in need. Acting Public Safety Director Jacob Saur said it was a clear-cut decision to ask James to oversee the Emergency Medical Services Division.  

The Community Paramedicine Team has graduated more than 400 patients since 2016. It has also diverted nearly 1,200 ambulance trips and loaned more than 285 pieces of durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, scooters and hospital beds. The University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee is now reviewing the Community Paramedic Program to evaluate the processes and overall successes of the program. USF has measured cost savings $3.5 million through their evaluation process.

Because of his success, James has gained recognition from the State of Florida Department of Health and the Bureau of Emergency Medical Oversight which is the state EMS regulating authority. He received the 2018 EMS Injury Prevention Award, serves as the co-chairperson for the Florida EMS Advisory Council’s Access to Care Committee and a board member for Manatee County’s Health Alliance and is active in many local health collations.