Answers needed on wait times and ER closures impact on cardiac arrests

Halifax - At the Health Committee meeting today, NDP MLAs will be looking for information about how people experiencing cardiac arrest are impacted by the shortage of paramedics, long offload times at hospitals, and rural ER closures.

“Many families have gone public with concerns that their loved one's cardiac incident may have had a different outcome if emergency services had arrived more quickly, or if hospitals were not so backed up,” said Susan Leblanc, NDP Health and Wellness Spokesperson. “We know that the shortage of paramedics and long offload times at hospitals are having an impact on emergency care, and there are solutions available.”

NDP proposals to allow physician assistants to practice, and expanding midwifery services, were not included in the Conservatives’ health plan even though these solutions could ease pressure on hospitals and doctors. Similarly, proposals for expanding Collaborative Emergency Centres as a way to keep rural ERs open are not being taken seriously by the Houston government.

“Today we are hoping to hear from frontline services providers and advocates about how the problems in health care are impacting people that experience cardiac arrests and what solutions they see to improve services for everyone,” said Leblanc.

The Conservatives promised to provide an update on their health plan early this summer.

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