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HSAA President to react to EMS funding announcement

“All HSAA/NUPGE members want is to be able to be there when people need them." — Michael Parker, HSAA President

Edmonton (11 March 2022) — “The steps announced to address the crisis in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) by Jason Kenney show he doesn’t understand what needs to be done to ensure people who need care, get it,” said Mike Parker, President of Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA/NUPGE).

Alberta government misses the point on EMS crisis: people save lives, not vehicles

HSAA/NUPGE represents paramedics and emergency communications officers (ECOs) in Alberta. While HSAA/NUPGE’s advocacy has government finally paying attention, new ambulances with no one to crew them just sit empty.

“ECOs and paramedics respond to Albertans in emergencies, not ambulances,” continued Parker. “People make the system work. For 10 years they have been dealing with increases in call volumes. Kenney himself said demand has increased 30% this year. The system is stretched beyond its capability and the only thing holding it together is its people.”

Major problem is shortage of paramedics and ECOs

2021 saw a Calgary ambulance unused with no crew for a shift more than 3200 times. In Edmonton, in January, an ambulance was parked in the garage, without a crew available 348 times.

"Alberta Health Services (AHS) treats our EMS members as expendable rather than the highly valuable professionals they are,” said Parker. “Paramedics and ECOs deal with non-stop calls during any given shift and are pressured into accepting excessive overtime. They don’t get breaks and are often denied vacations. The result is unacceptably high rates of burn out, physical and psychological injury, and people leaving the profession.”

HSAA/NUPGE calls for action

3 things are needed immediately:

  1. A plan to retain paramedics and emergency communications officers they currently have.
  2. A plan to train and recruit more paramedics and emergency communications officers.
  3. Reinstate harm reduction programs to ease the burden on EMS.

“All HSAA/NUPGE members want is to be able to be there when people need them,” Parker concluded.