A new report says Waterloo Region’s ambulances spend less time in service and see fewer calls than ambulances in many other major Ontario municipalities.
The Ontario Municipal Benchmarking Initiative compares municipal performance in 15 Ontario municipalities and Winnipeg.
The 2012 OMBI found that Waterloo Region’s ambulances responded to 64 calls per 1,000 residents – less than all surveyed governments except for York Region.
The median response rate was 119 calls per 1,000 residents.
When it comes to how many hours of ambulance service are provided in each area, Waterloo Region’s 201 hours per 1,000 people finished dead last, with Toronto the closest municipality at 241 hours per 1,000 people.
Local officials say the numbers can be chalked up to demographics and Waterloo Region’s inclusion of rural areas – something that’s not the case in many of the other municipalities.
“Sometimes our number is a bit lower because we have to provide service across a broader area of geography,” Waterloo Coun. Sean Strickland tells CTV News.
“It’s hard to compare apples to apples.”
Dr. Liana Nolan, the region’s health commissioner, says the health unit has been hiring new paramedics over the past few years, but hasn’t been following that up with new vehicles and resources.
“We need to pay attention to both,” she says.
“We’ve been on a path to add more resources because we feel we need more.”
According to the OMBI, it cost Waterloo Region $187 to provide one hour of ambulance service – right in the middle of the pack.
