The task force set up after the death of a veteran New York Times journalist recommended Thursday that the District increase the pay for emergency medical technicians and raise their level of training.
The panel was created as part of the District’s settlement of a $20 million lawsuit with the family of veteran newsman David Rosenbaum. The 13-member panel included Rosenbaum’s son-in-law.
The task force recommendations addressed the structure and culture of the city’s Fire and Emergency Medical Services, which was found to have an alarming level of indifference within the department.
The task force called for the hiring of a well-resourced medical director and an assistant chief for EMS, as well as enhanced field supervision of EMS providers. More than 75 percent of 911 calls are for medical assistance.
The report didn’t suggest any specific level of pay increase. As for training, the findings emphasized that EMS and
firefighters should have the same skills and be capable filling dual roles.
But the recommendations disappointed the Federation of Citizens Associations, which had called for the separation of the fire and EMS sections long before Rosenbaum’s death.
Rosenbaum had been beaten in a robbery near his Northwest Washington home, but emergency workers mistakenly thought the newsman was drunk. Rosenbaum was left on a Howard University Hospital gurney for hours before his injuries were discovered. He died two days later.
