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AHS spokesperson James Wood said Monday that the province hasn’t given any direction to change course now.
“EMS dispatch integration is proceeding as planned,” he said.
The four mayors represent the last remaining communities with locally run ambulance dispatch. The rest of the province was brought under the consolidated system in 2009.
The municipal leaders said Monday that if the province is intent on moving forward with consolidation, they should at least put it on pause for now, considering that Alberta is in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lethbridge Mayor Spearman called on Kenney to act, with the EMS transition beginning in his city and in Red Deer this week.
“You either have to support your health minister or support Albertans. Today is decision day,” he said.
Nenshi added that he has a new concern about the change, which will take effect in Calgary on Jan. 26.
According to the mayor, there isn’t a plan in place to implement “co-evaluation,” a process where dispatchers for police, fire and EMS can listen to a call simultaneously and get the right information for first responders.
Nenshi said the next best thing is a system where a 911 caller is transferred to a police dispatcher so they can ask questions about the scene where officers will arrive. That’s important, he said, because police dispatchers will need different information about the situation than EMS call-takers.
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