The head of one of the unions which represents people employed in our road ambulance system says there are many growing pains associated with the new amalgamated system.
Previously, that aspect of health care fell under the jurisdiction of many private operators as well as the public service but the entire system now falls under Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services.
NAPE President, Jerry Earle (VOCM News)
However, NAPE President Jerry Earle says some ambulances acquired by government were in very rough shape, and some of the buildings used for a base should probably have been bulldozed.
Earle says one of the biggest problems is lack of resources.
“I’m hearing that we’re short by about 100 personnel, and then we have off-load delays in the hospitals where the ambulance has to stay until the patient actually goes inside,” says Earle.
He told VOCM Open Line with Linda Swain that people sometimes believe their nearest hospital is an ambulance base, but that is not always the situation.
He says there were 70-some ambulance bases in the province under the old system, and some were parked at hospitals such as Gander, Grand Falls-Windsor and the Health Sciences, but St. Clare’s Hospital is not an ambulance hub.
