Local medical first responders are back on call in Dorchester and Memramcook
After nine months, Ambulance New Brunswick has listened to local authorities and will return to the practice of dispatching medical calls to the twelve fire departments in the province trained as medical first responders. Dorchester Fire Department and Memramcook Fire Department are two of those twelve, and the news has been welcomed in both communities.
Dorchester Fire Chief Greg Partridge says he is “very happy for our community, very happy for the province,” and is hoping that Ambulance NB makes good on a promise to offer dispatching to other fire departments interested in taking on the responsibility. “I’d like to see it expanded,” says Partridge. “That would be a plus for everybody.”
Memramcook Mayor Maxime Bourgeois says he was also happy to receive the news on Wednesday that Ambulance NB would make the change. “We were putting a lot of pressure, and they were saying that they were working on it,” says Bourgeois, “but obviously, we were a little bit skeptical about how fast they could resolve this issue.”
It’s been about nine months since Ambulance NB stopped medical call dispatching. In March, spokesperson Christianna Williston told CHMA via email that the organization didn’t have the mandate to dispatch to fire departments, and that they had determined doing so was no longer sustainable.
On Wednesday, Williston confirmed the return to medical first responders dispatching would take place October 5, and that it would happen “through existing resources”.… Continue
Dispatching solution expected in coming months after meeting between mayors, Ambulance NB, dept of Health
It’s been eight months since Ambulance NB stopped dispatching emergency medical calls to the Memramcook and Dorchester fire departments, as well as another ten departments across the province. Last week, officials from the New Brunswick Department of Health and Ambulance New Brunswick met with local mayors and representatives from the province’s municipal associations to discuss the issue, and the delay in solving it.
CHMA spoke with Village of Memramcook mayor Maxime Bourgeois to find out more:
“The folks on the call were fairly optimistic that they were going to find a solution,” says Bourgeois, and one that could be in place by October, and apply across the province. “They want all the fire departments to have that opportunity to be able to be called and dispatched,” says Bourgeois.
“In our communities, as you know, if something does happen, it can take up to 45 minutes before a paramedic arrives on the scene,” says Bourgeois. Local fire departments, on the other hand, are typically under 10 minutes away. “So it’s the fire department calls that can definitely make the difference between life and death in certain situations,” says Bourgeois.
The decision to end medical first responder dispatching appears to be a resource issue. In March, Ambulance NB spokesperson Christianna Williston told CHMA that the “improvised solution” by which a dozen departments received calls was determined to be “no longer sustainable”.… Continue
Rapid Response Unit in Sackville extended for 6 months
Sackville’s Ambulance NB station will keep its Rapid Response Unit for another six months, according to Medavie spokesperson Eric Robichaud.
The unit consists of a smaller vehicle, equipped like an ambulance but with no stretcher, and staffed with one paramedic. Since it does not transfer patients, the Rapid Response Unit is often available to provide care on the scene when ambulances might be busy.
Rapid Response Units have been used since 2018 in five rural communities with long emergency response times caused by a lack of available ambulances.
The unit was brought into use in Sackville in November of 2021 in response to the dramatic reduction of emergency room hours at the Sackville hospital. It operates seven days a week, from 6pm to 6am. The unit is based in Sackville but moves around the region.
The ER in Sackville is currently open only eight hours per day, from 8am to 4pm.… Continue