City wants compensation for Calgary fire response to medical calls

The City of Calgary is looking to the province for compensation for the number of emergency medical calls responded to by local firefighters.

The Calgary Fire Department has been responding to medical calls in the city since the early 1950s.

READ MORE: Calgary firefighters’ union slams move to extend fire response times in new communities

In fact, 45 per cent of calls to fire are for critical medical interventions and the number of calls continues to increase year after year.

From 2013 to 2017, there was an 18 per cent increase in medical calls — from 23,959 to 28,397.

City council is being asked to advocate to the province to be compensated for doing a lot of the work that falls under the jurisdiction of Alberta Health Services.

READ MORE: Alberta paramedics rally at legislature, urge government to address resource ‘crisis’

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Mayor Naheed Nenshi says he’s willing to work with the province to come up with a solution.

“It’s really important that we continue to have this conversation because the medical services that firefighters provide are critical; they’re often the first on the scene and, in moments when every second matters, this really matters.”

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Fire has been able to get to calls in about seven minutes 90 per cent of the time because of where its stations are located in the city — often well before EMS can respond.

A report presented to city council’s Intergovernmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday states that EMS performance has declined in the last two years with a first-in unit actual performance of close to 15 minutes 90 per cent of the time.

READ MORE: Calgary’s ‘red alert’ points to ‘medical crisis’ in Alberta: paramedic union president

The mayor doesn’t have a specific number for how much he feels the city should be compensated for.

“We’re really trying to fairly evaluate that number. It’s not fair to charge for every single firefighter moment and overhead for every call because some of that overhead we’re going to pay anyway,” Nenshi said.

In a comparison presented at committee, it seems Montreal and Winnipeg are the only major cities that receive compensation from a provincial government when firefighters deal with emergency medical calls.

“You miss every shot you don’t take,” Nenshi said in response to the likelihood of receiving funding.

“I’m willing to co-create a solution with the province on this that would make sense. This is really about starting a broader conversation.”