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The city exercised no "credible judgment'' when it fired Larry Wade last summer, an arbitrator says.
By AMY WIMMER
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 15, 2001
MADEIRA BEACH -- The city wrongfully fired a paramedic last summer after he made a series of mistakes, including administering too much morphine to a patient, an arbitrator has ruled.
The city must rehire Larry Wade, who spent 18 years working for the Madeira Beach Fire Department until his firing in July, and must pay him several months of salary.
"I find no evidence that the city exercised any credible judgment in discharging Mr. Wade in July," wrote John Manson, a lawyer who arbitrated the dispute between Madeira Beach and the firefighters union.
The city and the St. Petersburg Association of Firefighters are still working out the details of how Wade will return to work, specifically how much of Wade's former annual salary of $38,759 must be paid to him.
Wade's forced rehiring is the latest in a series of controversies during the past year involving the Madeira Beach Fire Department. A consultants' report cited massive morale problems in the department and suggested that Fire Chief Brian Turini be fired. City Manager Mike Bonfield placed Turini on probation, and the fire chief ultimately resigned in December.
Wade's professional troubles became public in February 2000, when a firefighters' peer review committee found him "incompetent as a paramedic" and pointed out that the fire department itself "lacks the ability to provide oversight for its paramedics."
In explaining its decision, the committee stated: "Our goal in the case against paramedic Larry Wade is not to remove him from practicing as a paramedic, but to provide him the opportunity to improve his skills through a process that would protect the community."
Few details about Wade's mishaps on the job are available, because they involve individuals' medical records. However, public documents on the case include the incident in which Wade administered a high dose of morphine that could have been deadly to the patient.
Wade had other problems during his tenure with the fire department. He was demoted from his post as lieutenant in 1994 after fellow firefighters accused him of lacking leadership and decision-making skills. One female firefighter once accused him of sexual harassment. Pinellas County Medical Director Robert Pettyjohn revoked Wade's paramedic's license at the committee's recommendation. He also laid out a year's worth of requirements -- including course work and on-the-job training -- that Wade would have to complete to regain his license.
To get the training he needed, Wade began riding without pay with St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue, in addition to his regular schedule in Madeira Beach. But then-Chief Turini changed Wade's deadline for meeting those standards from a year to 90 days.
The firefighters union requested a six-month extension, but the city fired Wade.
Turini explained his actions at the time by saying his department was understaffed for paramedics and needed to hire someone licensed.
Rick Feinberg, president of the St. Petersburg Association of Firefighters, last week said he was pleased with the arbitrator's decision but is eager to work out the final details with the city.
"We were pretty confident going into it that the termination wasn't for just cause," Feinberg said.
Bonfield, the city manager, said the city disagrees with the arbitrator's decision but will honor it.
Besides rehiring Wade for at least 90 days to give him an opportunity to earn back his paramedic's license and paying part of Wade's salary for the past few months, Madeira Beach must permanently rehire him if he passes the requirements that Pettyjohn outlined.
"That's what the arbitrator ruled," Bonfield said. "We have to talk with the union about how to go about doing that. We'll certainly look at all of our options."
Bonfield credits Lt. Dan Mentessi, who has served as interim chief while the city searches for a new fire chief, with raising morale in the department. The Madeira Beach Fire Department recently received an exemplary rating, the highest score possible, on an inspection by the Florida Department of Health's Bureau of Emergency Medical Services.
The bureau called Madeira Beach a "role model of excellence as an EMS service." The city is still looking for a permanent chief, with interviews scheduled later this month.
"The interim chief has done a real good job, and I get a lot of good feedback from the employees," Bonfield said. "Things are going well."