Nova Scotia to hire 100 transport operators to relieve pressure on paramedics, ambulance operations
Emergency Well being Providers will rent 100 extra folks to deal with routine affected person transfers in Nova Scotia.
The transfer will deliver the overall variety of transport operators to 180. The province started an growth of non-paramedic drivers final yr in an effort to cut back stress on the ambulance system and permit paramedics to give attention to responding to emergency calls.
Lengthy ambulance waits of as much as a number of hours have been reported, principally just lately by a pair who gave up and drove themselves to the hosptial. Others have died whereas ready for an ambulance.
“We acknowledge the stress the Emergency Well being Providers system is beneath and the way this impacts sufferers, paramedics and the supply of emergency care,” stated Well being Minister Michelle Thompson in a information launch.
“Decreasing our reliance on ambulances to move non-critical or non-urgent sufferers was a suggestion of the 2019 Fitch Report and can imply extra ambulances will probably be out there to answer emergencies.”
Transport operators help EHS’s medical transport service and affected person switch items. Each sorts of switch companies use particularly designed autos with employees who’ve coaching in first assist, car operations and EHS tools and have direct radio entry to the EHS medical communications centre.
The Chroncle Herald has contacted the Well being Division for data on the estimated value of the hiring growth.
For low-risk sufferers
The medical transport service is for low-risk sufferers who’ve been assessed and don’t require medical care throughout transport between hospital services or dwelling and hospital,”the discharge stated.
Affected person switch items are used between health-care services for transfers that aren’t essential or pressing.
The advertisement for transport operators says it pays $20 to $23 an hour with full-time, part-time, and informal positions out there.
In 2021, EHS responded to 182,000 calls, a mean of 500 per day. About 30 per cent of the calls didn’t require medical care throughout transport.
Emergench Well being Providers is contracted out to Emergency Medical Care Inc., a subsidiary of Medavie Well being Providers, which manages and operates floor ambulance, air medical transport and the medical communications operations in Nova Scotia.
EMCI additionally operates the TeleHealth 811 telephone line for psychological well being and addictions in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
