How long is too long to wait for an ambulance on the Island of Montreal?
When you call 911 for an ambulance, you expect it to arrive quickly. But one former paramedic says timing could depend on where you are on the island.
Data gathered by Hal Newman, the founder of primary healthcare blog The Last Ambulance, suggests that if you lived on the West Island in 2022, you waited an average of 13 minutes for a priority-one call. For calls to downtown, patients waited for 10 minutes.
"A priority-one patient who could be critically ill or injured (faced) a 13 minute wait," said Newman. "Thirteen minutes -- that's a long time."
Urgences-Sante says that while the numbers may be concerning on the surface, it's important to look at the entire emergency response plan. It says that, in high priority cases, its response always includes a first responder who should take around eight minutes to arrive anywhere on the island.
"They are able to give you what you need in terms of care within the first few minutes of the life threatening situation,” said Chantal Comeau, spokesperson for Urgences-Sante. “And of course, every call also needs an ambulance to be dispatched.”
But Newman says a paramedic, who has more specialized training than a first-responder, should be available to take over in less time.
"(A) priority-one emergency would be someone in respiratory distress, someone who has signs and symptoms of a heart attack, someone who's been involved in a car accident and has visible trauma," said Newman.
Patients' rights advocate Paul Brunet says better access to home care could decrease wait times.
"We've suggested, like they do in Verdun, to go and meet the patients at home,” he said. “Guess what? We save hospitalizations, we save ambulance transportation, we save beds. What are we waiting for?”
Urgences-Sante says its overall wait times have decreased in recent months, and that it's always working to cut them down even more.
In the meantime, Newman is urging West Islanders to contact their elected officials.
"If we were to do this on a proactive basis, we'd go to our elected reps and say, ‘Hey, I live on the West Island. I pay taxes. I am part of Metro Montreal, why do I have a 13 minute response time?’"
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.