“Why aren’t local EMS and healthcare workers getting the support they need? EMS workers have asked you to commit to funding for more paramedics and dispatchers to handle the volume of 911 calls? – Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates
A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates
Posted February 23td, 2022 on Niagara At Large
Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates
QUEEN’S PARK — This Wednesday, February 23rd, NDP MPP Wayne Gates challenged Premier Doug Ford to immediately address Niagara’s emergency response situation during question period..
Gates revealed that after speaking with front-line workers that residents who dial 911 are sometimes waiting for hours for an ambulance to arrive.
“I’ve been speaking with frontline EMS workers and residents and frankly what’s happening in Niagara is terrifying. We have so few hospital beds in Niagara that ambulances are waiting upwards of five hours to offload patients at hospitals.
“This means that over half of Niagara’s ambulances are waiting at hospital emergency departments and not on the roads. In my community that means residents are dialing 911 and waiting three hours for an ambulance to be available or being told to take a cab” said Gates. “Imagine dialing 911 and waiting three hours for an ambulance.”
Gates said when he spoke with local front-line workers it was clear they needed supports to handle the volume of 911 calls but also to clear the backlog at hospitals that are causing the delays. He said frontline health care and EMS workers were asking for more beds and more nurses, that way EMS could offload patients and get back on the road quicker.
“Premier, do you think it’s acceptable that patients wait three hours after dialing 911 in Niagara? If not, why aren’t local EMS and healthcare workers getting the support they need? EMS workers have asked you to commit to funding for more paramedics and dispatchers to handle the volume of 911 calls – you’ve ignored that to,” said Gates.
Gates also reiterated a long-standing NDP push to repeal bill 124, Ford’s bill which drives down nurses wages and drives nurses out of the profession.
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