Ambulance dispatch call centre returns to Waterloo region

Ambulance dispatchers have returned to a call centre in Cambridge after being moved to Hamilton more than 18 months ago.

The dispatchers returned to Cambridge Wednesday morning at 7 a.m.

The dispatchers were moved in December 2018 because of staffing issues, an official with Ontario Public Service Employees Union said at the time. The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care spokesperson acknowledged "an unexpected staffing shortage" at the time as well.

There were calls to return the dispatchers to Cambridge because there were concerns about the equipment at the time in Hamilton, and that Hamilton dispatchers wouldn't know Waterloo region as well as the people who were in Cambridge.

Waterloo MPP Catherine Fife advocated to bring the dispatchers back to the Cambridge Central Ambulance Communications Centre (CACC).

"This has been a long process," Fife said Wednesday morning. "Ultimately, these dispatchers, these people take care of us. We should take care of them. And having that commute to Hamilton and the extra stress of that that environment was actually not in their best interest. And so we applied as much pressure as we could as the Official Opposition," she added.

Fife also said the dispatchers never should have been moved in the first place. In April 2019, she wrote to Health Minister Christine Elliott saying the workers were in a "hectic and unhealthy" environment in Hamilton because they were overworked.

"When these people take care of us, we should have always been taking care of them," she said on Wednesday.

In a statement on Wednesday, the region's paramedic services Chief Stephen Van Valkenburg said "welcome home" to the dispatchers.

"Region of Waterloo Paramedic Services is grateful for the return of Cambridge CACC staff to their home location," he said. "They continue to process 911 call for ambulance service in the Region of Waterloo and are a valued member of our emergency services family."

The Ministry of Health says it moved dispatchers back to Cambridge after being able to stabilizestaffing levels. It noted there was no disruption to 911 service as calls were switched back to the Cambridge office.

Region wants to take over dispatch

In the past, the Region of Waterloo has asked the province for permission to take over the dispatch call centre. The province has not granted that request.

Fife says COVID-19 means the province is in a "challenging time" but she supports the region's bid to take over and manage dispatch at a local level.

"I believe the Region of Waterloo made a very compelling case about having the management fall under the Region of Waterloo. They know the community and they know the region well and that there was even potential cost savings," Fife said.

She said once "we get out of the tunnel" of the pandemic, it will be an issue the province needs to address.

"We really need to have a good, hard look at the way health-care services and front-line health care services are run in the province of Ontario," she said.