Sheldon Gilbert has stepped down in June as fire chief of the Alameda County (Calif.) Fire Department to become the new director of business development and government affairs for Paramedics Plus, a Texas-based emergency medical services company with operations in California, Florida, Oklahoma and Indiana. Gilbert will be working out of Alameda, Calif.
Paramedics Plus President Ron Schwartz said this new position will focus on new business opportunities. “In his new position, Gilbert will manage new business opportunities with local, state and federal agencies and work with emergency medical services and fire departments to build or enhance relationships,” Schwartz says.
Gilbert spent the 27 of the past 29 years of his career in the fire service with Alameda Fire. During his career he was a paramedic, the chief officer for 17 years and, for the last five and a half years, he served at the fire chief. Gilbert is past president of the California Fire Chiefs Association.
“We are seeing a trend in increased private sector cooperation and coordination with the fire service agencies so these shifts in talent are not surprising, but rather encouraging, as the dynamics and structure of EMS systems are changing,” says A.J. Heightman, Editor-in-Chief of JEMS.
