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Kezia Sullivan was hired at a city council meeting Aug. 26. Sullivan's hiring was one of several updates on the upcoming city-operated emergency medical services program given by City Manager Jeff Dygert during a presentation. A video on the presentation is on Auburn's website and on YouTube. 

With the new Auburn-run system scheduled to begin in November, the city's agreement with its longtime private ambulance provider, TLC Emergency Medical Services, is set to expire Oct. 31.

Sullivan, who was selected and started Aug. 17, was one of 17 people who applied for the post, Dygert said. Thirteen of the candidates were from the region while four hailed from other parts of the U.S. A handful of the applicants were interviewed the prior week.

Dygert said he, Auburn Fire Chief Mark Fritz and medical director Dr. Michael Jorolemon interviewed the candidates. The candidates also went through a physical ability evaluation, a medical evaluation, background checks and a skills evaluation overseen by Jorolemon.

Sullivan then spoke, saying she grew up in King Ferry and started working in emergency medical services as a teenager when she was with a volunteer ambulance, noting she has "continued doing that until now." She received an associate's degree from Cayuga Community College and a bachelor's degree in human biology, health and society from Cornell University. She also has a master's degree in physician assistant studies from Le Moyne College in Syracuse, and is a licensed paramedic.

For the last 15 years, Sullivan has primarily worked as a physician's assistant in either emergency room or urgent care settings, she said. 

"But I continued working in EMS on the side and I was happy to have this opportunity to do it full-time," Sullivan added.  

Sullivan, in an interview with ÈËÊÞÐÔ½» Tuesday, said she is currently in the director job and is also a physician's assistant at the urgent care at Auburn Community Hospital. While she is currently doing both jobs, she said she is transitioning to the director job and will be "committed 100% to the city as of Oct. 1."

She talked about why she wanted this new position.

"I've always been most interested in working in EMS, and this was a unique opportunity to do something that I think could have a real positive impact on the community," Sullivan said. 

Dygert praised Sullivan in an interview Tuesday.

"She had a great attitude and a great perspective on what it is that we're doing," he said. 

The city said in Thursday's presentation that five ambulances have been ordered, with two planned to be delivered in two weeks. Equipment such as cardiac monitors and stretchers have been ordered, and medical equipment and supplies to stock ambulances have also been ordered. 

During the presentation, Sullivan told council that she has contacted representatives with the New York State Department of Health Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and the Central New York Emergency Medical Services program "and they're going to be working with me going forward to make sure we're compliant with all state and regional regulations." 

She added that "we've started talking to ambulance billing companies" and a request for proposals for that should be posted soon.

"We have a lot to do in a short amount of time but I'm taking this position very seriously and I'm committed to working very hard to make sure it's successful," Sullivan said.

Sullivan also said Tuesday that one of her goals is to "create a great, supportive workplace for EMS personnel" and said she is confident in meeting the deadline to begin operations by Nov. 1.

The first day of physical ability tests for ambulance service employee applicants is Sept. 4. Sullivan also said in addition to her role, there will be 24 full-time positions, with 12 paramedics and 12 emergency medical technicians — which includes shift supervisors plus having additional people in part-time spots.

Dygert, however, said on Tuesday that having part-time spots in addition to the 24 other positions is possible but hasn't been set yet, saying, 'We've still got to work through all that, got to see who's interested and how people interview and what our candidate pool looks like."

"We have to look at the entire staffing model," Dygert said. "It's not something that's totally set in stone because if we have a lot of people that would rather (have) part-time positions and not full-time, then we'll adjust staffing to accommodate that."