Sylvan Lake’s team of paramedics is about to grow thanks to help from the Alberta government. 

In fact, a lot of communities in Alberta will be receiving more medical help thanks to a $29 million increase for emergency medical services in 2018’s budget.

The goal is to take pressure off of emergency rooms and decrease emergency response times in the province. Sylvan Lake specifically will be receiving four new paramedics, as well as gaining 24-hour emergency service compared to the original 16 hours.   

Dale Weiss, Executive Director of Operations for AHS said by looking at the numbers it was clear that help was needed in the Sylvan Lake area and central Alberta in general.

“I think it’s a substantial step for Sylvan Lake area for sure, two units were available for 16 hours a day 7 days a week but that’s been upped to 24 hours.”

Ambulances will also be added to other communities along with more than 100 paramedics. They will also invest $1 million into helping EMS workers take care of their mental health.

“The government has added some funding to the budget for EMS and then we went through a process of deciding where would be the most beneficial and most places in need of resources and Sylvan Lake was one of them,” says Weiss.

The Alberta Health Budget for EMS for 2018-19 is around $524 million.