The warden of Oxford County is sounding the siren over paramedic services in Oxford. His concerns come as county council considers a report detailing dramatic increases in emergency calls.
“These are crazy numbers. A ten per cent increase is just bonkers,” exclaimed Marcus Ryan, referring to a projected ten per cent increase in emergency call volume for 2024 over 2023.
“Either our response times get worse, we don’t take calls, or we buy more ambulances and hire more paramedics. Those are the options,” he said.
A report from Oxford Paramedic Services says in 2020 Oxford County paramedics responded to just under 15,000 calls. By 2023 the number was more than 21,000, an increase of 43.5 per cent in just three years.
(Source: Oxford County Paramedic Services)
The report also indicates that 2024 is on track to increase an additional ten per cent.
Ryan said that part of the increase can be attributed to population growth, …