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As a first responder himself, the mayor of Glenavon knows how critical it is to get an ambulance to the scene of an emergency.
“Things can change so drastically in that first hour. And I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of the ‘golden hour.’ Well, we’re running over that,” said Bill Sluser.
“It’s not a good feeling, especially when you know in your gut that the patient is getting worse.”
In Sluser’s community, it has been first responders — who are volunteers with a limited scope of practice — attending to patients until an ambulance arrives from further away. Sluser says those ambulances are sent from communities like Fillmore, Stoughton and Carlyle, with wait times of more than an hour.
Glenavon is a village located about 115 kilometres southeast of Regina that has been without full-time ambulance coverage. During a news conference held by the Saskatchewan NDP on Thursday, Sluser said this is because a paramedic position in Kipling has been vacant since the winter.
Recruiting somebody to fill that position has come up empty and Sluser blames the low pay in rural Saskatchewan for the failure to attract candidates. He says the workers are not full-time employees and are paid $5 per hour while on call until they are called into work.
Sluser credited the Saskatchewan Health Authority for making some room in its budget for a temporary position that pays for at least six hours.
But he is calling on the government to fund a full-time position and says he has repeatedly called his local MLA, cabinet ministers and the premier to no avail.
“I just don’t want to see a death or something as bad happen and then they will fix it. It shouldn’t take a human losing its life to get funding,” he said.
An emailed response from the Ministry of Health says the SHA strives to provide the best care “despite the challenges of geographic expanse in Saskatchewan.”
It says the ministry is aware of the difficulties in recruitment and retention, with the SHA trying to improve staffing by providing training for those who want to become emergency medical responders or first responders.
As for funding, the statement says the government provides “global funding” for the SHA to deliver services.
“Through this funding, the SHA is responsible to evaluate and determine the health-care needs and resources that are required in all its communities,” the statement says.
“As patients’ needs continue to change across the province, it is important for the SHA to be able to determine the services that are needed within its communities.”
NDP Health Critic Vicki Mowat says the government also needs to provide information on other communities without full-time ambulance service and to publicly report disruptions in ambulance service.
“Saskatchewan has one of the most expensive and dysfunctional ambulance systems in the country and although this government has twice conducted ambulance system reviews, there have been no substantial changes,” Mowat said.
The Ministry of Health says it does not currently track disruptions to ambulance service.
According to the SHA, the target response time in rural emergencies is under 30 minutes 90 per cent of the time. In urban areas, the goal is under nine minutes 90 per cent of the time.
When an ambulance is not available from Kipling, service to Glenavon is provided from neighbouring communities like Whitewood (located 51 kilometres away), Grenfell (54 km), Wawota (58 km) and Stoughton (80 km).
Sluser said he is limited in the care he can provide as a first responder, like checking a patient’s vital signs, giving oxygen and prescribing medication.
He recalled a few incidents where an ambulance was not readily available. A woman waited more than an hour after falling and breaking a hip. In another case, it was a quad crash.
“Right in Kipling, minutes away from the hospital, and there was no ambulance. It had to come from Carlyle and then with a quad accident, it automatically brings STARS out,” he said.
“I’m just scared that we’re running out of time here.”
Sandra Seitz is the president of CUPE 5430, which represents 14,000 health-care workers in Saskatchewan, including emergency medical responders.
Seitz says she hears concerns about recruitment and retention in rural Saskatchewan all the time. The union has been advocating for full-time positions for several years.
Because of the low pay, she says many workers have other jobs.
“In order to recruit and retain employees to provide a service, you need to have meaningful work and meaningful work would mean, full-time positions or a large part-time position,” Seitz said in a recent interview.
“If I’m a rural EMS person and I’m on call, I’m putting my life on hold for $5 an hour to possibly save another life, and respond to that call.”