Peabody may have EMT class
There will be an emergency medical technician class taught in Peabody in mid-September if insurance issues can be resolved.
Marion County Commission approved the request Monday by Larry Larson, Peabody EMS crew chief, and JoAnn Knak, EMT instructor with the condition insurance can be obtained for Knak without significant county expense.
County EMS director Darryl Thiesen was at a training class in Coffeyville but joined the discussion via telephone conference call.
Larson told the commission there has not been an EMT class in Marion County in quite a while.
"There are 13 Peabody residents who want to take the class," Larson said.
He explained the City of Peabody pays for the class for Peabody residents with the agreement the individual will complete the class and be a member of the Peabody EMS department for a minimum of one year.
Larson said Knak had agreed to teach the class and classroom space was available at Peabody Elementary School.
The class size would be 18 to 20 students with Knak using the county's equipment for instruction. Knak said she would need to be covered by the county's insurance.
Commissioner Howard Collett asked county clerk Carol Maggard about insurance for Knak. Maggard responded she was not sure what the policy allowed but did say Knak would be considered a contractual employee.
Knak said she was required to carry $1 million of insurance as an instructor. As a volunteer with EMS, as a technician she's already covered, Knak said.
Knak said ultimately she would be responsible to the county. Commission chairman Leroy Wetta said the responsible party would be Thiesen, as the county's EMS director.
"The county's willing to facilitate but you need to go through Darryl," Wetta emphasized.
Thiesen said he would recommend a team teaching approach where he and Knak took turns teaching.
Larson and Knak disagreed with the concept and said it was not fair to the students to have different instructors with different styles of teaching. Thiesen said it would be good for the students to be trained in this manner.
Thiesen said he was teaching a class in September or October and has had 43 inquiries.
The commission agreed they would like to see two classes taught without any conflict. The two classes will offer choice of instructor, location, and time of day to take the class.
Maggard asked if Knak's fee was in the student's cost for the class. Larson and Knak responded it was included in the cost of the class.
Maggard will contact county's insurance agent and report the results at Monday's commission meeting.
Larson asked and received a 10-minute executive session with the commission to discuss personnel issues. The session reconvened with no decisions.
