'We've been abandoned': Man dies in B.C. town waiting for health care near ambulance station
For the second time in less than a month, a resident of Ashcroft, B.C., died while waiting for health care.
Mayor Barbara Roden told CTV News Vancouver a man was walking his dog Sunday morning when he had a heart attack. The man was within sight of the local ambulance station, but the closest paramedics were about 30 minutes away.
Volunteer firefighters were called, but weren't trained for that kind of medical response. Roden said the firefighters who did have some first aid gave the man CPR until paramedics arrived.
"That's twice in one month now that we've had people in medical distress with no ambulance at the station to give them assistance," Roden said.
"It's frustrating, it makes me incredibly sad for the family and friends of the deceased, it makes me worried for my community because I know that people in the community are worried about it."
Last month, a senior resident at a care home next door to Ashcroft's hospital went into cardiac arrest and died. At the time, the emergency department was closed due to staff shortages.
"No one expects an ambulance parked 24-7 in their driveway in case there's a medical emergency, absolutely. But people do depend on the ambulance service, particularly in rural communities," Roden said.
"We just feel that we've been abandoned."
Roden said she wants to see an effort being made to recruit locals to B.C. Emergency Health Services.
"We're more likely to get ambulance paramedics from rural communities coming to our rural communities to work," she said. "It's going to be hard to attract ambulance paramedics from Surrey or White Rock or Richmond or Delta to come in work in small, rural communities."
Ashcroft's emergency department has faced several temporary closures in recent months, diverting patients to Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops, which is about a one-hour drive away.
Roden said some people are choosing to leave communities like Ashcroft over the unreliable health care.
"Clearly there is something broken with the model," she said.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Angela Jung and Penny Daflos
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
Crypt near Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner could fetch US$400,000 at auction
A one-space mausoleum crypt in the vicinity of Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner will go on auction Saturday, when it is expected to reach between US$200,000 and $400,000.
This Toronto restaurant is no longer accepting tips. Here's how it's going
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Premiers not being truthful about carbon tax, Trudeau says while sparks fly in Ottawa
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Conservative premiers across the country are 'not telling the truth' when it comes to the carbon tax. Trudeau's comments came as fresh sparks were flying in Ottawa at a recalled House of Commons committee.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
What new auto insurance reforms will mean for Ontarians, if they get introduced
Ontario has among the highest rates for auto insurance premiums in Canada -- just below Alberta and Nova Scotia -- however, the introduction of an insurance reform in the provincial budget could soon lower prices.