Gundersen Tri-State Ambulance and the La Crosse Fire Department have agreed to a partnership that is expected to help solve the local paramedic shortage that mirrors the same problem nationwide. The agreement, announced at a joint press conference Thursday at Tri-State headquarters in La Crosse and projected to take effect this summer, will allow fire department paramedics to apply for open paramedic positions at Tri-State, as well as fill paramedic shifts at the ambulance service as needed, Gundersen and city officials said.