Government again shows air ambulance report nothing but a farce!

The decision to move the air ambulance out of St. Anthony by May 30^th without medevac teams in Happy Valley-Goose Bay again shows government’s consultant report is not worth the paper it is written on, says Marshall Dean, MHA for the District of the Straits-White Bay North. The issue was raised earlier today in the House of Assembly.

“Government’s original justification for moving the air ambulance service to Happy Valley-Goose Bay was that medevac teams would also be stationed with the plane,” said Mr. Dean. “The minister admitted today that these teams will not be on the ground for the foreseeable future. Government is rushing this decision and these actions will create more problems in the system.

“In the absence of medevac teams in Labrador, flights will have to travel to St. John’s before responding to emergencies and moving the plane from St. Anthony will add another hour to the response time. How will this increased delay help patients and improve the air medevac service in our province?”

Dean also expressed his disappointment with government’s hand-picked consultant whose poorly researched report was the basis for moving the air ambulance out of St. Anthony. “We know the consultant’s report is very weak and ignored very important aspects of the provincial air ambulance service. However, in this week’s Northern Pen, the consultant refused to answer questions about his report or provide any justification for his conclusions. Another hand-picked friend of this government, placed on the government payroll, but is unwilling to answer questions about their reports.

“It is certainly telling when a consultant refuses to comment on their work that has such significant ramifications on health care delivery in this province, especially if he truly believes in the recommendations he put forward. By hiding from public scrutiny and refusing to do proper research on the issue, it once again tells me that this government asked for these conclusions before the report was even commissioned.”

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