Staffing shortages still impacting ambulance wait times in Nova Scotia
A day after a Nova Scotia woman shared her story about driving her son to the hospital after waiting for an ambulance, her provincial politician is calling for better services and accountability.
It was during a Canada Day celebration in Pugwash, N.S., when Felicia Holden’s eight-year-old son passed out twice after playing in a bouncy castle.
The mother called 9-1-1 but a 40 minute wait led her to drive her son to the hospital herself.
Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin, the MLA for the area, says hundreds attended the annual Canada Day festival and there should have been an ambulance on site, or near the festival.
"In my opinion, there should be policy in place by the province that whenever there are large gatherings like that, there should be an ambulance within 10 to 15 minutes," said Smith-McCrossin. "To ensure there could be a safe response time.”
The province has contracted out Emergency Health Services to a private company which manages ambulance services and paramedics.
Charbel Daniel, ground operations executive director for Emergency Health Services says staffing challenges are an issue.
"That day [Canada Day] was no exception to the staffing challenges we’ve been facing on any given day," said Daniel.
Normally EHS would have 128 ambulances during peak activity at their 63 stations across the province.
Daniel and the Nova Scotia Paramedics Union both said they didn’t have a full roster on Canada Day, and its one factor leading to longer wait times.
"We’re averaging over the last five months, anywhere from 20 to 25 per cent of our units are offline," said Kevin MacMullin, Nova Scotia Paramedics Union business manager. "That’s because they [ambulances] can’t be staffed because we’ve lost paramedics that have left for other professions or other companies in other regions."
It’s a difficult situation, but EHS has been working on the issue as they have hired 80 paramedics so far this year.
But they still have 38 permanent paramedic vacancies to fill, a number that constantly changes says EHS, as staff move around or switch to new roles within the system.
Daniel adds staffing shortages at hospitals are also having an impact on ambulance wait times as emergency department hours are being cut and weekend closures are becoming more common.
"Sometimes you have to transfer further distances because the ED [Emergency Department] is closed," said Daniel. "The second and most significant impact is, that with fewer hospitals to transport to, we wind up with more patients."
The union says wages for paramedics in Nova Scotia are among the lowest in the country and the government needs to address the wage disparity immediately to help with retention and recruitment.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.