Do you need an ambulance? Starting Saturday, call 911 – not your local phone provider's number.

Newfoundland and Labrador's many private ambulance providers will be integrated into the public system starting Saturday, meaning their old phone numbers will no longer be available.

As of June 1, anyone in the province needing an ambulance must call 911.

Until now, the provincial government had to rely on over 60 private ambulance service providers, a system that the health minister described as “fragmented.” The change is intended to remedy this.

“It will help provide a more modern system, resulting in shorter waiting times and better service on board,” Tom Osborne said during a virtual press conference on Thursday.

The 500 workers who worked in the ambulance sector in the province before Saturday will be re-employed in the public sector, which in some cases means huge salary increases as well as social benefits and pensions.

Cassie Chisholm, vice-president for the province's health system transformation, said it would create a level playing field and level expectations.

A key recommendation from the province's Health Accord report was to integrate air and road ambulances into a statewide system with a central operations center.

The last straw was a strike last year in which more than 100 workers from seven companies walked off the job in January. All seven companies were owned by Clarenville businessman Bob Fewer.

The workers protested against their wages and the lack of pensions, as well as against working conditions in the predominantly rural supply areas.

Ambulances in Newfoundland and Labrador will be placed under the control of the Health Authority starting June 1. Telephone numbers for private services will no longer be available. (CBC)

There were also concerns that businesses would not be able to maintain minimum levels of care in communities such as Trepassey, where the employer said a shortage of workers was making it difficult to maintain care.

WATCH | Here's what happens when you call 911 instead of your local ambulance service:

Chisholm said many of those concerns have now been addressed as the operation is in public hands.

“We will set a standard and expect people to meet that standard,” Chisholm said.

While the health authority currently oversees the ambulances, there is a tender for an operator to run the entire integrated air and road ambulance system. Osborne said two qualified applicants had come forward and their proposals were being reviewed.

More community-based care planned

“Right care, right place, right time, right provider” is the philosophy behind the new approach, Chisholm said.

This means an expanded area of ​​operation for paramedics, especially in rural areas.

Chisholm said more places will adopt the “community paramedicine” approach currently in use in some places in central and western Newfoundland. That means paramedics could be used for things like palliative care or wound care.

The goal is to provide as much care as possible to patients and keep them out of hospitals when they don't need to be there. Paramedics can also use virtual tools to consult with doctors or nurses, providing even more services.

“There are many puzzle pieces that can be put together to help individuals exactly where they are,” Chisholm said.

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