The Town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay wants the contract with Labrador Ambulance Service terminated.
John Hickey, mayor of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, said that review of the service showed that between November of 2016 and March of this year the ambulance provider only met provincial standards 48 per cent of the time and that is not acceptable.
“The sooner I see the present contractor heading out of town the happier I will be,” he said. “If you’re prepared to come to our town and only provide the service 48 per cent of the time that is not looking after the best interest of our citizens of our town.”
According to the review, between 2015 and 2016 there were 13 call over 30 minutes, including eight over 45 minutes and one over an hour. Hickey said the bigger question is who is overseeing the contracts with Labrador Grenfell Health.
“Who at LGH is allowing our service to get in such a dilapidated condition? Who is responsible? Who is making sure the contracts are being adhered to? We need some answers. We want change, we want change sooner rather than later.”
Health Minister John Haggie spoke to the media about the issue on October 18 and said the level of service is “totally unacceptable.” Haggie said that an ambulance is being sent from Western Newfoundland to assist in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
“My main concern is the citizens of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, so I have a Plan B,” he said. “There is, as I speak, an ambulance being driven from western Newfoundland to the ferry, which will arrive in Goose Bay tomorrow afternoon or early evening. There are also casual paramedic staff who have been recruited from the Regional Health Authorities who will be flying into Goose Bay and will probably get there before the ambulance does. That will enable us to have two ambulances in Goose Bay and one in Northwest River under the control of Labrador Grenfell.”
Hickey said it’s a step in the right direction and they want LGH to take over the service in the area, as they do in Labrador West and St. Anthony.
“This would ensure the standards of service are being met and the community is being served. It is our opinion it is unacceptable to be below provincial standards when you’re dealing with people’s health. As the mayor of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, I have no confidence in this service provider nor do the citizens of the town. How could they with this track record?”
Haggie said he’s not sure what the cost will be to send the ambulance and paramedics to Happy Valley-Goose Bay, and frankly, it isn’t a concern. When asked by The Telegram whether government may pursue the ambulance operator to pay for the additional costs of flying paramedics to Labrador and sending up an ambulance, Haggie said it’s a possibility.
“At the end of the day, we were paying for something we weren’t getting.”
