District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department
In June 2015, Jullette M. Saussy was named the medical director of DC Fire and EMS. On January 29, 2016, she announced her resignation from that position in a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser. In her letter, she called the department's culture "highly toxic to the delivery of any semblance of quality pre-hospital medical care."
History of the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department
Between 2000 and 2013, DCFEMS saw four Fire Chiefs: Ronnie Few, Adrian H. Thompson, Dennis L. Rubin, and Kenneth B. Ellerbe. Few's tenure is generally considered to be very troubled, with controversies over hiring and promotions, training, and firefighter grooming, as well as multimillion-dollar equipment failures. Thompson's tenure is widely praised, although there were troubles in the EMS division and continuing controversy over the grooming policy. The death of journalist David Rosenbaum led to widespread changes in the department and the merging of the firefighter and EMS divisions.