Nova Scotia’s health minister says he’s been assured there will be a plan within weeks aimed at helping free up ambulance crews to respond to 911 calls.

The paramedics union released figures today to highlight what it says is a growing problem for the province’s health care system.

It says there were 989 incidents when Emergency Health Services (EHS) units were half-staffed or out of service during the last three months of 2018 alone.

Randy Delorey says the issue is a concern and he’s told the Nova Scotia Health Authority and the ambulance service to work together to improve the situation.

A large part of the problem is slow offload times that see paramedics tied up waiting with patients at over-burdened hospitals.

Union local president Michael Nickerson says the numbers are “alarming” and a solution needs to be found.

Source: Read Full Article