BC Ferries Assists Coastal Communities with Emergency Medical Support

BC Ferries is dedicated to the safety and well being of customers and crew, which includes dealing with medical incidents such as passenger illnesses and injuries. Trained employees handled 196 medical emergencies last fiscal year and completed 143 requests for assistance from BC Ambulance Service (BCAS), operated by BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS).

In the past several weeks alone, a departure of the Baynes Sound Connector was delayed by 12 minutes to wait for a patient on Denman Island requiring medical attention on Vancouver Island; the MV Tachek held at dock to assist with an emergency transport and was delayed; and crew were assembled for the Powell River Queen to run an unscheduled emergency sailing for BCAS in the middle of the night.

“Safety is paramount at BC Ferries and we are dedicated to ensuring the well being of our passengers and employees,” said Corrine Storey, BC Ferries’ vice president of Customer Services. “I am very proud of our trained staff members and crew who assist passengers in medical distress or respond to the call to assemble a crew for an extra unscheduled sailing. While these incidents can sometimes cause delays, we are happy to provide a safe environment as well as transportation for critical patients from the smaller coastal communities we serve.”

BC Ferries has more than 800 trained occupational first aid attendants (OFAs) across the company. OFAs receive their first aid training from certified first aid training agencies, such as St. John Ambulance, and BC Ferries ensures they are familiar with the environment they are working in by conducting hands-on training across the fleet. BC Ferries is also dedicated to the health and wellness of its employees and ensures that after each incident or medical emergency, all affected employees are offered counselling services.

For more serious incidents on board the vessels, crew will make public address announcements requesting assistance from registered medical professionals such as doctors or nurses who are travelling on board, and also call BCAS to have paramedics meet the patient at the terminal. BC Ferries appreciates the assistance all of these professionals provide.

BC Ferries also works on requests for BCAS that range from assembling a crew to make unscheduled sailings for medical patients to holding a vessel in dock or turning one around for ambulances, which can cause vessel delays. BC Ferries is often called upon to make unscheduled emergency sailings to transport patients from smaller island communities for BCAS. These requests can occur at all hours and BC Ferries does its best to assemble a crew. BCAS covers the cost of the

“Our working relationship with BC Ferries is an important part of our provincial health care delivery system,” said Jodi Jensen, chief operating officer for BCEHS. “With the help of BC Ferries, our paramedics are able reach our patients in coastal and remote communities and provide them with the emergency medical care that they need.”

BC Ferries takes pride in the safe environment it provides at its terminals and on board its vessels. Medical emergencies are often unexpected and can sometimes cause vessel delays. The company does its best to notify customers of delays through service notices and appreciates customers’ patience in these situations.

Under contract to the Province of British Columbia, BC Ferries is the service provider responsible for the delivery of safe, efficient and dependable ferry service along coastal British Columbia.