Ambulance Service

[rkaiser]

The Province is likely going to change their mind about taking over ambulance service on April 1. This is going to pose all kinds of problems for municipalities both rural and urban.
Municipalities prepared their 2005 budgets with the assurance that they would no longer be responsible for ambulance service after the end of March, now most of them haven't budgetted funding for this service and by the look of it they are still going to be responsible.
Rural Alberta should be particularly concerned. In many areas only BLS ( Basic Life Support) coaches are available. ALS ( Advanced Life Support ) coaches usually are only housed in the largest village or town within an Ambulance Region. This leaves much of rural Alberta without ALS support, which can sometimes mean the difference between life and death.
I agree with the take over of ambulances by the Health Regions but the $150 million that the province feels it will cost will easily be gobbled up by the large centres and leave rural Alberta receiving second rate service.

In areas where there are Ambulance Authorities ( I chaired our local one for years ) the municipalities involved are requisitioned annually for the operating costs that aren't covered by the provincial grants. Thus, municipalities with a higher level of assessment can afford a better service, which really isn't the way it should happen so a takeover by the Health Regions would be a more consistent and fair way to deliver ambulance service, however, there will be an added cost to the Province to pick up the costs currently being provided by municipalities.

[Horse]

I sure hope you didnt vote tory last election or you dont have any rights to whine about what they do or dont do as it was RURAL alta put them in power. Now enjoy.

[cakadu]

Actually, the first response resources in rural areas is of great concern. Quite often whether or not someone survives severe trauma depends on the first response. At times someone cannot be saved, no matter what effort is expended, but if there aren't the services available, then that is a totally different story.

There was quite a good editorial about this very topic in the Red Deer paper on Saturday, which points out the things that you do emrald.

This is one area where there cannot and should not be a big discrepancy in services. We all pay the same amount for health care, so we should all be given the same access and a certain level of service.

[cakadu]

exactly Linda, in some of the more remote areas of the province the time alone for response by emergency services can be a life or death matter which is all the more reason to have ALS coaches available

[cakadu]

There is another side to this too, emrald. Several years ago my spouse required an ambulance. Now, the time to one town is about 10 minutes shorter than it is to the major centre and even though there was no way that smaller town could look after what his problem was, the ambulance HAD to take him there because it was the closest emergency. Valuable time could have been wasted while they determined they did not have the services to deal with him and then cleared him to be transported to the major centre. The time that elapsed was about 1.5 hours, which in a critical situation could have had some serious ramifications.

Think about the north country where there is limited population and very few cities and/or towns. Those people have the potential for being at greater risk.

This whole issue of health care just never gets any smaller, does it.

[cakadu]

Many locations in the north don't have a hospital and make do with a health centre that is a glorified first aid station. I would imagine that some areas rely on Stars to evacuate anyone that is in crisis.
I always have felt that rural Albertans should not receive second rate treatment, and that goes for Seniors who are still wanting to live in their own homes. Home care and meals on wheels should be available in rural areas too, but the ability to deliver those services in the winter is a challenge. In my own county it sometimes takes seven or eight days to clear the roads after a major storm, so it isn't safe to have folks relying on someone to bring meals or homecare.....