The state of EMS service in the Foothills is a classic case of, “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.”
Unfortunately for rural residents the provincial government tinkered with an exemplary 911 dispatch system and the new protocol is not working nearly as efficiently as what was in place originally.
In October 2009 the provincial government centralized EMS dispatch into three call centres including Edmonton, Peace Country and Calgary. As a result, Foothills Regional EMS was no longer being dispatched from its own call centre operated by the Foothills Regional Emergency Services Commission.
Now there is growing concern among residents and officials within the MD of Foothills regarding the status of the EMS service within the rural area.
The concern is focused on the inefficiency of the ambulance dispatch service based in Calgary.
According to MD Coun. Barb Castell there have been several incidents where ambulances dispatched from Calgary could not locate homes in the country where emergency calls originated. The confusion is mainly because the dispatcher did not understand rural addresses.
In one instance it took an ambulance from Black Diamond almost 30 minutes to reach a call in Millarville because the dispatcher, based in Calgary, did not understand the MD’s blue sign address system.
Realistically, an ambulance from Black Diamond should arrive in Millarville in under 10 minutes.
Thankfully, it appears none of the incidents of late ambulances reported to the MD have resulted in fatalities. However, should it have to come to that before changes are made?
As a result of the concerns raised by residents, Castell and MD Coun. Suzanne Oel met with Alberta Health Minister Gene Zwozdesky in March demanding this issue be addressed.
This should not take a six-month Alberta Health Services inquiry to find a resolution. The solution is actually quite simple: return the dispatch service back to Black Diamond.
When Foothills Regional EMS was being dispatched through its Foothills Regional Emergency Services Commission call centre the system worked extremely well and it would be an easy fix.
Residents must have faith in the emergency system. They must be confident when they call 911 an ambulance will be on its way and arrive in a timely fashion — not get lost en route because a city dispatcher does not know rural routes.
