Waterloo Region’s ambulance service saw its busiest year ever in 2014, and the region’s health officials know exactly who is to thank for that.
“The older people get, the more they use the health care system,” Dr. Liana Nolan, the region’s medical officer of health, told CTV News.
“This isn’t just an EMS issue.”
Between 2013 and 2014, the number of calls for Region of Waterloo EMS service rose by more than seven per cent.
More than 37,000 total calls were made in 2014 – an increase of more than 7,000 since 2009.
“It’s an area of concern,” said EMS chief Stephen Van Valkenburg.
“We’re ending up as a social safety net for the return to the hospital environment.”
Public health officials say the increase, which is outpacing population growth, is due primarily to the region’s aging population – a trend that isn’t expected to reverse itself anytime soon.
A new ambulance has been approved, along with a team of paramedics, to start operating in the region in July.
Aside from that, Van Valkernburg said, the region may look at doing more public education campaigns around when an ambulance should or should not be called.
