ETMC EMS Names New Director of Operations

TYLER — ETMC EMS has named Neal Franklin as the new director of operations for the East Texas service area. Franklin previously served as EMS director of business development and came to ETMC in January after retiring as fire chief with the city of Tyler. In this new position, Franklin will be responsible for more than 300 paramedics and emergency medical technicians, covering over 16,000 square miles in East Texas, responding to 110,000 requests for service and transportation of more than 77,000 patients each year.

Franklin is from Tyler and received his bachelor’s degree in education from Stephen F. Austin State University. While attending graduate school at the University of North Texas, he became a Dallas firefighter. In 1987, he moved back to Tyler and worked his way up through the ranks of the Tyler Fire Department and eventually served as chief for seven years.