October 24 , 2006
- The budget for the BC Ambulance Service has risen
more than 50 per cent in the past five years, reaching
$267 million this year (2006/07), compared to the
2001/02 budget for emergency health services of $176
million.
- Much of the budget increase has gone to increasing
the number of paramedics and dispatchers, which have
grown from 1,625 FTEs to 2,263 FTEs - an increase
of 639 FTEs, or 39 per cent, between 2001 and today.
- In the last four years, demand for ambulance service
has increased by 38 per cent. The BC Ambulance Service
responded to about 384,000 ambulance calls in 2002/03.
Last year in 2005/06, BC Ambulance responded to more
than 530,000 calls.
- The number of ambulances has also increased. In
2001/02, there were 463 ambulances in B.C. Today
there are 503 ambulances on the streets across the
province.
- In February 2005, 48 ambulance stations across
B.C. were upgraded to rural from a remote designation,
meaning they have 24/7 standby coverage at the station.
Previously the stations did not have staff on site
24/7. Ten ambulance stations were upgraded in September
2005 from rural to urban. These service upgrades
are based on the changing needs of the community,
including increased call volumes.
- Response times have improved by an average of 15
per cent in rural communities throughout the province
through the addition of the 24/7 standby model in
2005. In urban centres, response times have remained
stable since fiscal 2002/03.
- Of calls for assistance received related to motor
vehicle accidents, the BC Ambulance Service transports
patients to hospital in only 30 per cent of cases
and the resources spent to attend to the scene are
not recovered. The BC Ambulance Service responds
to over 52,700 motor vehicle accidents every year.
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