Province courting disaster, paramedic leader says
Changes to the Ambulance Act approved Tuesday will increase liability and costs for municipalities, says the Peterborough paramedic and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) leader who led a protest on the steps of Queen’s Park on Tuesday.
Bill 160 opens the door for a proposal by the Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association (OPFFA) to put paramedics on fire trucks, when there are no regulatory systems in place, said Jason Fraser, chairman of the CUPE Ontario Ambulance Committee.
There is extensive oversight in place for paramedics to ensure proper patient care and safety, but not for fire services, said the paramedic, also the chairman of CUPE Local 4911. The union represents about 5,000 of about 8,000 paramedics in the province.
“We’re looking out for our patients,” Fraser said, asking why if the government sees a need for more paramedics, why it wouldn’t invest in paramedic services and not “recreate the wheel and have a duplication of services.”
The union also sees the proposal as an additional cost. Fire services, which are funded wholly by municipalities, cost $118 an hour more to operate than paramedic services, he said. “That’s coming directly from tax dollars.”
Emergency medical services, however, are funded 50:50 by municipalities and the province.
“There is going to be a significantly increased cost to municipalities if they put paramedics on fire trucks,” he said.
Now that the legislation has been passed its third and final reading, it will be up to municipalities to speak up to make changes, Fraser said. Municipalities are sought to take part in pilot projects, but as far as he knows, no one has shown an interest.
Groups including CUPE, Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs, Association of Municipalities of Ontario, Ontario Public Service Employees Union and Ontario Base Hospital Group have each spoken out against the legislation, while one, OPFFA has supported it, he said.
Fraser, a local who has been a paramedic for 15 years – mostly in Peterborough, after starting his career in Toronto – said he will continue efforts to ensure local politicians are aware of the additional costs and liability that CUPE foresees.
“I can only assume (municipalities) wouldn’t want a duplication of services,” he said.
When an initial announcement was made in June, before consultations were held over the summer, it was portrayed that the changes would be based on evidence proving the program could improve outcomes for patients, Fraser added.
“To date, we have not seen any evidence supporting why paramedics should be put on fire trucks,” he said. “We still need to get that patient to the hospital and the only way to do that is in an ambulance with a paramedic.”
The union representing most paramedics wants Ontarians to be aware that pre-hospital medical care is changing, said Stella Yeadon of CUPE communications.
It recently completed polling that asked residents who they wanted to show up in an emergency and expects to release the data early in the new year, she said.
Tuesday’s protest included CUPE paramedics from Peterborough, Ottawa, Toronto, Durham, York, Belleville and Perth and Huron areas.