Ambulance N.B. extends rural pilot project, sees early positive results
Pilot region saw an improvement in response times of 6.4 per cent
Ambulance New Brunswick is extending a pilot project that changes the way ambulances are organized in the province, with the goal of improving response times and taking pressure off staff.
The initial project ran for 60 days in Port Elgin, Cap-Pelé, and Fords Mills. It will be extended for another 60 days.
The three areas saw ambulances stay in their communities instead of covering other regions. Results from the pilot saw an improvement in response times of 6.4 per cent in the area, according to Medavie Health Services, which provides ambulance service.
Eric Robichaud, a spokesperson for Medavie Health Services, said in an emailed statement that "local ANB units were not automatically deployed to provide coverage in neighbouring areas, however they did continue to respond to requests for service where required."
The statement also said that the project was in response to "challenges posed by increasing call volumes and offload delays, as well as pressure on staff." The areas selected for the pilot have been "experiencing prolonged response times due to system pressures."
The pilot, which eliminates covering neighbouring areas, is contrary to the organization's dynamic deployment system they've been using since 2007.
Chris Hood, executive director of the Paramedic Association of New Brunswick, welcomes the change.
"The way we have done business over the years has to change," said Hood.
Early results 'promising'
Data is still being analyzed, according to Robichaud, but "early results are promising."
The change has improved response times in the south of the province where ambulances would have been expected to cover the eastern region in the dynamic deployment system.
Robichaud said the improvement "is based on fewer requests for these units to relocate and cover calls."
Hood said that early success "shouldn't be a shock."
"We will absolutely see success if this were to be rolled out."
He describes dynamic deployment as a "string theory" — when an ambulance gets pulled from one part of the province, the next-closest ambulance moves closer to the vacant region to fill in.
"Consider an ambulance is on string. Every time a string moves, the next closest ambulance moves in a little bit closer," said Hood.
He said the problem with dynamic deployment is "ultimately the string ends at some point and that community is the one that's left with nothing." He said that community is usually "rural and remote areas."
Hood said the system works great in dense, urban areas like Montreal, but "it doesn't work in a province with the geography such as New Brunswick."
"I've heard horror stories of ambulances from Sussex responding to Cap-Pelé for cardiac arrest. That just can't happen."
Medavie's contract requires them to respond to 90 per cent of calls within target times of nine minutes in urban areas and 22 minutes in rural areas.
Hood said Ambulance New Brunswick employs almost 1,000 paramedics and the province isn't losing any.
He also said the change is an improvement for paramedics as well.
"It's not unheard of to see three or four hundred kilometres of travel happen by an ambulance and never see a patient," he said.
Now, Hood thinks that if paramedics stay in their communities, they will have opportunities to become more "integrated into the health-care system."
He said paramedics could check on people in the community that have recently been discharged from hospital and help keep them out of hospital.
In the long run, he said it can help prevent constantly "moving patients to health-care facilities only because they haven't had good follow up."
Hood would like to see paramedics present in ambulance stations so people can see them for wellness checks, blood pressure checks and blood glucose monitoring.
Robichaud said "the option to expand the pilot to other communities is being considered, no formal decisions have been made at this time."
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With files from Shift