NAPE and the Health Minister went another round yesterday over paramedics and emergency services, and the lack thereof.

The issue has been brought back to the fore by the increasing number of so-called red alerts, which are issued when no ambulances are immediately available.

The union says those situations have a serious trickle-down effect from the sick or injured, to their families, to first responders, particularly paramedics.

Health Minister John Haggie did meet with NAPE’s Jerry Earle and four such paramedics Wednesday morning, later telling media it was both an emotional and eye-opening experience.

Earle, however, called it a tense meeting, saying it was shortened by the minister’s rush to tell the media all about it.

He also expressed shock that Haggie needed further evidence of the physical and mental strain on paramedics, saying that government has been supplied with this information for years, but has failed to act.

Earle reluctantly accepted Haggie’s offer to form a team of government and union brass to dive deeper into the gaps in service.

Haggie hopes that will get to the bottom of the issue once and for all.

He did, however, acknowledge there are some things you can’t get from a report, saying of the current system, “I don’t know why it’s not working, because on paper it should.”