November 15, 2017
In 2017, Priority Ambulance’s national family of companies more than doubled in size now serving more than 350,000 patients annually and expanded its footprint to include a nine-state network. To position the company for continued growth in 2018 and beyond, the company today announced a restructuring of its operational team that would transfer operational oversight to newly-created Regional Presidents and strengthen support from its national team.
“Priority has enjoyed exponential growth since we began our operations in 2014,” said CEO Bryan Gibson. “We are now the third largest national ambulance company. It’s incredible what our team has been able to accomplish in nearly four years, and we have tremendous momentum with new contracts and acquisitions completed and on the horizon for 2018.
“As our family of companies grows and matures, a centralized operating structure is no longer the best strategic fit. By creating a new regional leadership structure, we can better serve our local operations and stay true to our mission of ‘Our Community. Our Priority.’ As we continue to grow, this restructuring ensures operational decisions are made efficiently, close to the customer, by those who live in the communities they affect.”
The four new Regional Presidents will be charged with managing day-to-day operations of the current and future Priority Ambulance family of companies. The family of companies will be divided into the following regions:
- Northeast Division, which currently includes Seals Ambulance in Central Indiana, Kunkel Ambulance and Trans Am Ambulance in Upstate New York
- MidSouth Division, which currently includes Shoals Ambulance in Northwest and Central Alabama, Medshore Ambulance in South Carolina, and Baptist Ambulance in West Tennessee and Mississippi.
- Southeast Division, which currently includes Central EMS in Georgia, Puckett EMS in Georgia and Southeast Tennessee and Priority Ambulance of East Tennessee in the greater Knoxville metro area.
- West Division, which currently includes Maricopa Ambulance in Arizona.
As new acquisitions and contracts are executed, the service areas will be added to the divisions that geographically correspond.
Current Chief Operating Officer Steve Blackburn will transition to Regional President of the Northeast Division focusing on objectives in those areas. “As chief operating officer, Steve has done a tremendous job in managing our operations and startups to get us to where we are today,” said Gibson. The additional Regional Presidents will be announced in the coming months as we complete internal hiring processes and outside candidate searches.
Growth continues to be a key focus of the enterprise, and the operational restructuring will proactively position the company to more directly oversee future expansion. “In the first several years, we focused on building a startup infrastructure and obtain a critical mass,” said Gibson. “The company is maturing nicely, and we expect and are preparing for an acceleration of our growth.”
Priority Ambulance was founded on the belief that the strength of the company is directly tied to the connections it has to the communities it serves. Those connections lie with the trusted brands that have joined the Priority Ambulance family of companies. Every former owner of the companies that have joined Priority remains active in their local organization, as well as working closely Priority’s executive team. This Owners Group serve as key advisors to the national executive leadership team on setting the national direction of the company.
Operations will transition to the new regional operational structure on January 1, 2018.
About Priority Ambulance
Based in Knoxville, Tenn., Priority Ambulance provides the highest level of clinical excellence in emergency and nonemergency medical care to the communities it serves. Throughout its national service area, approximately 2,000 highly trained paramedics and EMTs staff a fleet of approximately 400 state-of-the-art vehicles with the latest medical equipment and technology.
Priority Ambulance’s community of companies operates under trusted local brands providing medical transport options in nine states. The Priority Ambulance company partners include Shoals Ambulance in Alabama; Maricopa Ambulance in Arizona; Puckett EMS in Georgia and Southeast Tennessee; Central EMS in Georgia; Seals Ambulance in Indiana; Kunkel Ambulance in Upstate New York; Trans Am Ambulance in western New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania; Medshore Ambulance in South Carolina; and Priority Ambulance in East Tennessee. Priority Ambulance also serves Baptist Memorial Health Care facilities in West Tennessee and Mississippi under the Baptist brand.