Municipal leaders in western Manitoba say ambulance staffing shortages have reached a critical point, with some rural residents reportedly waiting up to two hours for emergency medical response as communities struggle to recruit and retain paramedics.
Council for the Municipality of Deloraine-Winchester recently passed a resolution calling on the provincial government to expand training and recruitment efforts for Primary Care Paramedics, citing a reported 43 per cent vacancy rate within Shared Health’s rural EMS system.
The resolution states response times in some rural areas are “well above the 30-minute target,” while ambulance shortages are also affecting service in Brandon.
Reeve Kelly McMechan said council wants to see more support for PCP-level staffing in rural communities instead of increasing reliance on Emergency Medical Responders to fill gaps.
“I see this as a gap stop, and should be hiring and training to PCP levels,” McMechan said in interview comments provided to the newspaper.
The municipality is urging the Association of Manitoba Municipalities to continue lobbying the province for a paid training and employment model that would place trainees into vacant PCP positions immediately while supporting them through their education.
The proposed model would include paid training, mentorship, part-time work opportunities and return-of-service agreements aimed at encouraging paramedics to remain in rural communities long term. Council referenced a similar approach used in British Columbia.
As part of its own recruitment efforts, Deloraine-Winchester council separately approved a $15,000 return-of-service agreement to support PCP training for a local recruit in exchange for a four-year commitment to work in the community.
“We want the EMRs to train to PCP, and remain working in Deloraine,” McMechan said.
Council also raised concerns about barriers to entering the profession after Emergency Medical Responder training requirements increased from 120 hours to 312 hours in 2022.
McMechan said he does not believe the additional training itself is discouraging recruitment, but argued EMR certification should serve as a stepping stone toward becoming a fully trained paramedic.
“I feel this should be a first step,” he said.
The reeve said the province has pointed to shortened EMR training programs as part of its response to rural staffing shortages, but described the approach as only a temporary solution.
“The province keeps reminding us that they have worked with training sites to shorten EMR training,” McMechan said.
He said PCP certification was originally intended to be the staffing benchmark for rural ambulance positions when those services were funded.
“As the PCP level of training is what was budgeted for, and they used to be the benchmark training level, we don’t feel our taxpayers are getting what they have paid for, and are still paying for,” he said.
According to McMechan, Deloraine currently has two EMRs filling positions that were originally intended for four PCPs.
“We will continue to advocate for more PCPs in our local EMS station, and the surrounding area,” he said.
McMechan also raised concerns about the risks associated with relying on two EMRs working together on ambulance calls.
“The two EMRs working together in Deloraine is a disaster waiting to happen,” he said. “It isn’t fair to them or the Deloraine community.”
By Steven Sukkau, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Original Published on Jun 15, 2026 at 21:56
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