Albertans needing emergency medical services will now be able to be transported to alternative care locations in cases where the emergency department is not specifically what the patient needs.
Transport to different health-care facilities, like hospices or community health centres that can help with urgent but non-life threatening situations, were not allowed formerly under government-sponsored benefit programs.
Health Minister Tyler Shandro says the province has seen too often, ambulances lined up at emergency departments with non-critical patients waiting to receive care. “Often, these patients don’t need emergency services and would be better served at other health-care facilities. Albertans requiring EMS should be taken to the most appropriate health-care facility – and ambulances should be back on the road as quickly as possible to reduce EMS wait times.” Shandro noted the new change is one of many steps the province is taking to improve the EMS system for Alberta.
Around 90,000 calls to EMS responded with ground ambulances to non-urgent events from 2017-2019, where taking patients to alternative care facilities would have been considered. By the end of 2021, ten alternative health-care facilities across Alberta will be included in the first phase of this change, with many more locations being added by 2023.
Alternative health-care facilities already receiving patients transported by ambulance in Phase 1:
- St. Joseph’s Home Carmel Hospice (Medicine Hat)
- St. Michael’s Health Centre (Lethbridge)
- Bashaw Care Centre (Bashaw)
- Sylvan Lake Community Health Centre (Sylvan Lake)
- La Crete Health Centre (La Crete)
- Rainbow Lake Health Centre (Rainbow Lake)
Additional Phase 1 facilities to be included by Dec. 31:
- Magrath Health Centre (Magrath)
- Piyami Health Centre (Picture Butte)
- East Calgary Health Centre (Calgary)
- Slave Lake Family Care Clinic (Slave Lake)
-Erika Rolling, Trending 55 Newsroom
