Staff photo
The status quo is not sustainable and needs to change.
That’s the conclusion of a draft report conducted by the Superior North EMS and Performance Concepts Consulting, which looks at such recommendations like round the clock staffing plan and station replacements as required.
“The status quo is not financially sustainable, we can’t just keep adding ambulance resources every second year for the next three decades, we have to find a way to restructure the system,” says Todd McDonald, the President of Performance Concepts Consulting. “Paramedics are going to play a crucial role emergency requests for service over 9-1-1 but also what we called community based paramedicine. That means working holistically with hospitals and health care providers on the front lines beyond their traditional role.”
The President notes council, with the recommendations in the report, can play a significant role in terms of advocating other levels of government for help.
“To be fair [other levels of government] have stepped up in the case of the Armstrong base and we optimistically hope that they’ll do so again to help the Nakina and Longlac bases in a district where a majority of the patients are parts of first nations communities. I’m optimistic that council will meet that challenge and advocate not only for the communities but also for much needed relief to taxpayers,” adds McDonald.
City staff told council the final report will be presented on January 18th.
The Recommendations
