A pending report on ambulance service in Alberta is delaying a new contract between St. Albert and Alberta Health Services.
Council on Monday night approved a six-month extension of the existing contract, which is scheduled to lapse on March 31, 2013. According to administration, AHS is delaying new contracts with St. Albert and some other municipalities until the release of the Health Quality Council report on the state of ground ambulance service in the province. Pushed back twice since it was expected in October, the report is now tentatively set for release on Jan. 7, 2013.
“In fairness to (AHS), they’ve had this looming over them, waiting to see what it’s going to mean,” said Chris Jardine, general manager of community and protective services. “They were a little bit reluctant to get into finalizing agreements until that report comes out.”
The original contract between St. Albert and AHS, signed in 2009, contained two one-year extensions, both of which have been utilized. The two sides might be able to reach a new agreement before March 31, but the six-month extension was suggested as a precaution.
“This is a bit of hedging,” Jardine said.
But there are several challenges that still need to be resolved, though they do not relate directly to the new ambulance contract. The city issued a change order to the province almost one year ago, seeking $300,000 for unexpected costs for items such as vehicle maintenance, fuel and pharmaceuticals, items that were not adequately discussed in 2009. That has not yet been approved by the province.
“No one envisioned the travel distance doubling, so we have increased fuel costs, labour costs and we have pharmaceutical and medical-related expenses due to call volumes,” said St. Albert Fire Chief Ray Richards.
The city has also made no secret of its desire for a third full-time ground ambulance. The 2009 deal slashed the number of ambulances the city had available from five to two. In 2011 the province added a third peak-hour car stationed at the Sturgeon Community Hospital, but it is only in St. Albert from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and is often called out of the city. Richards said St. Albert still frequently finds itself in code-red situations, when there are no ambulances available to respond to calls.
Both Jardine and Richards said this contract is not the time to ask for a third ambulance, but St. Albert will continue to make its case.
“We would dearly love to see a third ambulance,” Richards said. “It’s just stayed status quo.”
Standards and response times are also at issue, as part of that status quo. Despite the assertion from the province in 2009 that there would be no change in service standards, St. Albert has seen a marked change in response times. When, as an integrated fire service, it responded to almost all calls within nine minutes, 90 per cent of the time, the city has seen its response times fluctuate from a high of 15 minutes last year to 11 minutes last month.
Jardine said part of the problem is divining some set of province-wide standards, which can vary depending on geography.
“It’s kind of like a fire protection standard. If you choose to live on an acreage, your fire coverage is not the same as in an urban setting. An ambulance service is going to have to be the same thing,” Jardine said.
