Concerns over local ambulance availability and staffing shortages dominated a recent meeting between the Town of Whitewood and representatives from the Saskatchewan Health Authority, who acknowledged that emergency medical services across the province are facing one of the most challenging staffing crises in years.
Over the summer, several incidents occurred where the Whitewood ambulance was out of service due to lack of paramedic coverage, forcing units from neighboring communities to respond to local emergencies which obviously takes those unit(s) from another community. “We just wanted to get a feeling of what’s going on and see if there’s anything the town can do to help ensure we don’t lose a vital service,” Mayor Chris Ashfield said during the meeting.
SHA representatives Glen Perchie, Director/Chief of EMS – South and Jon Antal, Manager/Deputy Chief, EMS – South Central spent approximately 30 minutes speaking with council, where they explained the current EMS situation and outlined where changes need to be made to ensure paramedic services can continue to operate throughout Saskatchewan.
“So as much as I don’t like being in this position, I actually really appreciate that you are asking this. We’re not okay with this either,” Antal said of the current challenges and confirmed that the shortage is a province-wide issue, with vacancies in nearly every EMS service. “We are probably in the worst shape we’ve been in for years in EMS in Saskatchewan. There is some light at the end of the tunnel, but it’ll be six to eight months before we see the effects of new training seats opening up.”
Last year, the province funded an additional 100 seats in the primary care paramedic program, but only about one-third of graduates end up working in EMS. Many are being hired by municipal fire departments, which offer higher wages and better schedules. “We need to be more competitive with our peer emergency responders across the province,” Perchie noted, stating that’s between SEHO and the unions. Until that gap starts getting bridged, he said they will continue to see this, adding that pay parity and benefits are key to long-term stability.
Despite the challenges, Whitewood remains in a relatively stronger position compared to many rural communities. The town’s ambulance operates on 12-hour shifts (same as fulltime fire services)—considered the “gold standard” in the industry as many services work on eight-hour shifts and standby —and benefits from dedicated living quarters for paramedics on duty. The majority of the paramedics don’t live in Whitewood. “If we didn’t have the house, we wouldn’t be staffed at all,” Antal explained. “Those three things—good pay, 12-hour shifts, and a place to stay—are what stabilize rural EMS.”
Currently, Whitewood has four full-time paramedic positions but only one is filled. Two staff members are away attending paramedic school, and another accepted a temporary post elsewhere. However, SHA officials announced that a new paramedic has been recruited and will begin work in mid-November. Additional casual staff from Indian Head and Esterhazy are also being brought in to help fill shifts.
Perchie stated he is responsible for 38 ambulance services throughout Southern Saskatchewan and a good chunk of those are on-call services. “So, we’ve been working with the government for the last four years on stabilizing rural EMS. We’re trying to move those services to eight hours on and 16 on-call. So even that is not as good as what we have (in Whitewood), because we’ve got 12 and 12.”
Continuing to explain that Regina loses all kinds of staff to the fire department, Perchie added, “And so once you’re in with the SHA, you have seniority, and a position opens up in Regina, and you’ve got it. And that’s a challenge for us. The best practice that we see is when we can grow local people from the community, right?”
The SHA is exploring innovative approaches to address staffing gaps, including hiring graduates on “restricted licenses” that opens up staff that can drive the ambulance and work alongside their partner but cannot be alone in the back of a unit alone with a patient until they complete the national certification exams, which are only offered twice a year. They are offering bursaries to attract rural recruits. Emergency medical responders from local communities are also being trained through a short in-house program, though that option will soon become less feasible when course requirements increase next year.
To encourage more rural participation, SHA has launched a $10,000 bursary for new paramedic trainees who commit to working in smaller centres for at least two years—double the amount of the bursary amount offered in Regina and Saskatoon. Local leaders suggested that the SHA should be promoting the bursary through town channels and schools to reach potential candidates.
While recruitment remains the immediate priority, officials emphasized that retention is equally critical. “We need something for those who’ve stayed and built careers here,” one said. “A $10,000 bursary is great for new people, but it doesn’t help the ones who’ve been carrying the load for years.”
“Our goal, we call it assembled crew where there’s a station with an ambulance,” Perchie added. “The goal is on a hot call, they gotta be in the bus, say ready to go in one minute. If it’s not an assembled crew, it’s 10 to 15; 10 minutes is the goal but sits around 12 or 13. That’s a big difference for a medical, like in a medical emergency.”
Ideally the ambulance and the staff will be in the same building. “I think the ministry knows pretty clearly now the three things that we’re looking for. And we have multiple business cases in for funding to try, and I don’t care if we lease or what we do, but something that’s got a decent facility for people that’s co-located with an ambulance, Antal stated but also commented, “Until we get more into the system actually get it stabilized, this is what it’s going to be like for a while. I get a lot of pressure, fix it, fix it, but you know what? We want to move the bar.”
Both the SHA and the Town of Whitewood agreed to keep communication open and to explore ways municipalities can help advocate for stronger support through organizations like SUMA. “We’re doing everything we can to move the bar,” Perchie concluded. “Whitewood is fortunate to have what it does—but the reality is, we’re still only one sprained ankle away from being down an ambulance.”
