Alberta Health Services

Alberta Health Services


Article posted on April 4, 2023

Adding new EMS supports to improve response times

The Medical First Response (MFR) Program is pleased with the additional EMS supports announced April 3rd by the Government of Alberta. As part of a larger plan to make the EMS system in Alberta more sustainable, a $196 million dollar increase in funding over the next three years has been put in place to improve response times and implement recommendations made by the EMS advisory committee and the EMS Dispatch Review Report.

Approximately $6 million has been allocated to enhancements of Medical First Response across the province. These funds will be used to directly support our MFR partners and will ultimately benefit all patients regardless of where they are located.

Increasing the number of frontline paramedics, dispatchers and ambulances will help reduce pressure on the fire departments in Alberta that respond to medical emergencies when Albertans need them most. We are grateful for the work of fire departments across the province, particularly during and since the COVID-19 pandemic, amid staffing shortages and while facing increasing medical call volumes. Thank you for your commitment, resilience and service.

For more information, please see the Government of Alberta’s news release. Some of this work is already underway and we look forward to sharing more specific details with you as soon as they’re available.

Last Updated: Tuesday, April 04, 2023

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Edmonton, Alberta, Canada