New service to help with inter-facility transfers to free up ambulances in rural MB

The provincial government is beginning a service for rural Manitobans which will see low-acuity patients transferred from one facility to another without the use of an ambulance.

The request for proposals was issued by Shared Health earlier this month. Chief Medical Officer for Emergency Response Services, Rob Grierson, says for many, many years, in Winnipeg, they have used a contracted stretcher service provider to assist with inter-facility transfers. Only 20 per cent of transfers in Winnipeg are done by ambulance.

"The majority of inter-facility transfers, that go from one facility to another, are not those highly acute patients that could deteriorate at any time and you're going with lights and sirens, by ambulance," says Grierson. "A lot of the inter-facility transfers that occur are much, much more stable. A lot of them are for scheduled diagnostic appointments, specialist consultations, some procedures. So, these are things that are often booked several days in advance."

Rob Grierson, Chief Medical Officer for Emergency Response Services for Shared Health

Right now, nearly all inter-facility transfers outside Winnipeg requires an ambulance, which means the vehicle is not available for a 911 call. As it stands, Grierson would like to see the program come to Portage la Prairie and other communities across the Central Plains. However, before they can run, they must walk. He says starting the program in Brandon, Selkirk, and the Winkler/Morden area, gives them the best chance of seeing early success.

"Our intention is to expand it," says Grierson. "We started with those three locations because when you look at historical volumes of inter-facility transfer of patients, those are our three highest sites outside of Winnipeg."

He says other communities will benefit from this program as more ambulances will be available for unexpected situations. When an ambulance is used for an inter-facility transfer, it is out of commission for hours at a time.

Grierson says he is 100 per cent sure this program will be a safe one that will benefit everyone in some way.