Report To: Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board
From: Paul Myre, Chief (A) of Paramedic Services
Date: January 28, 2021
Re: 2021 Deployment Plan Pilot - Update
On October 22, 2020 the Board approved the 2021 Deployment Plan Pilot - Issue Report in principle and the Board directed the Finance Committee to consider the Deployment Plan Pilot during the 2021 budget deliberation.
The proposed pilot program would see trial staffing enhancements for our Gore Bay and Chapleau Paramedic Services Stations where staffing would be increased to include 24/7 onsite coverage for a period of 16 weeks. The pilot also included additional staffing enhancement for the LaCloche and Manitoulin Island areas by way of an extra transporting ambulance from 9:00am to 9:00pm for the seasonally busier period between mid-May to mid-September 7 days a week. The upstaff resource would operate for a period of 18 weeks in LaCloche and Manitoulin Island areas.
During 2021 budget deliberations, staff were required to revisit the original modelling for the proposed pilot due to forecasted budget pressures and the unknowns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. As previously mentioned, the original model deployed the pilot at the Chapleau and Gore Bay Paramedic Services stations to 24/7 deployment for a 16-week period, from mid-May to early September. The LaCloche/Manitoulin pilot deploying an additional Paramedic transporting ambulance from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm would operate for a period of 18 weeks.
In order to deal with budget pressures for the 2021 calendar year, the pilots have been reduced to 14 weeks for all three areas. Additionally, the pilots will be staggered during identified peak call volume periods as opposed to a defined mid-May to mid-September time frame. This staggering in the schedule will permit for a strategic deployment based on call activity data and is vital to ensure the efficacy and the success of the pilot.
Chapleau for (14 weeks):
| days | staff | hours/day | weekly hours | Total hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 2 | 12 | 168 | 2,352 |
Gore Bay (14 weeks):
| days | staff | hours/day | weekly hours | Total hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 2 | 12 | 168 | 2,352 |
LaCloche/Manitoulin Upstaff (14 weeks):
| days | staff | hours/day | weekly hours | Total hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 2 | 12 | 168 | 2,352 |
Preparations and modelling activities continue to progress as we enter the 2021 calendar year. While the pilot continues to move forward in planning, staff are very cognizant of the current fiscal climate and the many unknowns that surround it. Staff are approaching the planning process in a very prudent manner and continue to assess the viability and practicality of deploying this pilot during an unprecedented period of uncertainty.