Waiting ambulances signal 'dangerous predicament'

The professional associationrepresenting paramedics in the capital is blaming mismanagement at the Ottawa Hospital after 19 ambulances were left waitingto off-load patients at the General campus Tuesday night.

A video posted on social media shows a long line of ambulances queuing to offload patients at the General on Tuesday evening.

"One hospital is putting all of Eastern Ontario in a very dangerous predicament," the caption reads.

Under provincial health rules, paramedics aren't allowed to leave patients until they've been transferred to a bed in the hospital's emergency ward. That's led to long delays anda frequent situation known as "level zero," when there are no available ambulances to answer new calls because they're tied up at local hospitals.

• 'Level zero' crisis turning deadly, city warns
• 'People are dying': Life and death at level zero

"It can cost lives," said Darryl Wilton, president of the Professional Paramedic Association of Ottawa.

"Paramedics cannot be spending their time in the hospital managing patients. Those patients need to be off-loaded and paramedics need to be back in the community where they should be to respond to medical emergencies."

Wilton said the backup began around 5 p.m. when ambulances were rerouted from the Civic campus to the General, where some waited two hours to off-load patients.

Hospital to review incident

In a statement, the Ottawa Hospital acknowledgedthe General's emergency department saw a high number of patients that day.

"For about four hours on Tuesday evening, there was greater-than-usual number of people with a range of acuity presenting at the hospital's Emergency Departments; volumes were up across the region," wrote hospital spokesperson Michaela Schreiter.

Most of the patients were received and the ambulances released by 7 p.m., Schreiter said, adding "the hospital is working with paramedics to review the situation from Tuesday evening."

• Long hospital drop offs an 'Achilles heel' for Ottawa paramedics

But Wilton noted it's a complex problem, because when ambulances are tied up at the ER dispatchers call in paramedics from surrounding communities, leaving those areas without adequate emergency coverage.

"It's a domino effect," Wilton said

The latest incident came on the eve of anew report commissioned by CUPE, the largest union representing paramedicsin the province.

The report, titledUnder Pressure: A Statistical Report on Paramedic Services in Ontario,used access to information to trace an alarming increase in ERdelays, which can causecritical ambulance shortages and have resulted in sky-highovertime costs in 22 regions of the province, including Ottawa.

The report calls for better coordination between hospitals and paramedics, as well as improved funding.

Queen's Park responds

On Wednesday, Ottawa Centre MPP Joel Harden mentioned the CUPE report at Queen's Park.

"It is putting Ontarians at risk.Increasingly, calling 911, there's a chance there will be no ambulance available," Harden said.

Health MinisterChristine Elliottsuggested help is on its way.

"The situation in Ottawa is of particular concern," Elliott said, noting a recent investment in nursing staff at Ontario hospitals. "It's something we're working on right now."

Last year, Ottawa's manager of emergency and protective services, Anthony Di Monte,blamed the problem on understaffed emergency rooms, warning ofdeadly consequences for patients if the situation doesn't improve.

"Mortality and morbidity is increasingas a result of off-load delays," Di Monte said.