Olds doesn't share the worries of other Central Alberta communities about the province's plans to eliminate ambulance dispatch services based in Red Deer at the end of the year since ambulance calls for Olds are already dispatched out of the Calgary-based Southern Communications Centre.
But Olds fire department chief Lorne Thompson said because ambulance dispatch services for the community were shifted from Red Deer to Calgary more than three years ago when Alberta Health Services took over ambulance management from Mountain View County, the fire department still has a potential problem.
"We have no ability to communicate with the ambulance,î Thompson said. "It's challenging.î
Since there are many occasions when the fire department arrives at the scene of an emergency before an ambulance, firefighters often need to communicate with ambulance crews, especially if a person is injured and needs care from paramedics or emergency medical technicians.
"We can tell them in a couple minutes the ambulance will be here,î Thompson said.
With fire department dispatch calls coming from Red Deer and ambulance dispatch services in Calgary, however, fire crews sometimes have to wait a long time for an answer to how soon an ambulance might arrive at the scene, he said.
He explained that the department would have to contact Red Deer to learn of an ambulance's location and Red Deer would have to call Calgary.
The Calgary communications centre would have to contact the ambulance and then the information would have to go back to Red Deer before being passed on to firefighters.
"It's kind of a roundabout way of communicating,î Thompson said. "Direct communications is our preferred method.î
There is a solution to the problem, he said, as the province is launching the Alberta First Responder Radio Communications System later this year.
Through the system, the fire department could be equipped with radios that would provide direct communication with ambulances.
But Thompson said at a cost of up to $6,000 for each unit, they are too expensive for the Olds department to purchase.
"We simply can't afford to have that kind of communication device,î he said. "Hopefully the province will, at some point in time, come up with some sort of infrastructure grant or something for municipalities to provide their fire departments with those radios.î
Thompson's wish list would include having six radios for the department to equip each of its "lead-inî fire trucks.
Jason Maloney, a justice and solicitor general ministry spokesman, said the province expects to start implementing the new communications system in the eastern part of Alberta, which includes Olds, towards the end of the year.
Police, ambulance and fire departments would be responsible for paying for the handheld radios, which range in price from $1,200 to $6,000 depending on the features included on the device.
When asked if the government would consider offering financial assistance to emergency service providers looking to buy the radios, Maloney said "Not at this time.î
So far, the lack of direct communication between ambulance personnel and firefighters hasn't led to any serious issues during emergency situations.
But Thompson said having radios that allow for direct communications in place as soon as possible would give the department better information to pass on to people involved in car crashes or other emergencies.
Last month, the province announced its acceptance of a Health Quality Council of Alberta recommendation to consolidate emergency medical service dispatch centres and stated three centresó one in Edmonton, one in Calgary and one in Peace Riveró would handle all dispatch services for the province.
