Newfoundland and Labrador has seen a 21 percent increase in calls for ambulatory services since pre-pandemic numbers.

That’s according to numbers published with an access to information request on the provincial government’s website.

The numbers show a steady increase over a four year period, going from a total of 44,622 trips in 2019 to 54,007 in 2022.

Those numbers come over a period where those in the industry have been reporting frequent red alerts, stress, and burnout.

NAPE Unsurprised at Increase

NAPE President Jerry Earle says those numbers are not surprising to him.

He says everything that happens in health care is a chain reaction, and the increase in call volume can be tied back to other problems in the system.

For example, he says people in areas without a family physician are calling ambulances to bring them to emergency centres so that they can get their prescriptions renewed. Earle says that takes the ambulance out for two trips, accounting for transport to and from the health centre.

Earle says that’s not what an ambulance is there for, but he understands why people would go that route, because if they don’t get their medication it could turn into an emergency.

As for possible solutions, he points to a way in which issues with inter-facilities transport was handled in St. John’s.

He says front line workers suggested that they don’t need a “lights and sirens” response in those situations. He says the solution with the health authorities and government resulted in about 1,000 calls being taken out of the system.