Española Hospital paramedics were delayed in responding to seven emergency calls and one hospital-to-hospital patient transfer call between May 5 and 10, according to a Hospital ambulance call log.
The Hospital’s two ambulance crews were both busy with transfers to Albuquerque and Santa Fe and emergency calls in Española, Alcalde and Chimayó when calls came in, causing delays lasting from six minutes to an hour. The patient awaiting transfer from the Hospital to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque waited for eight hours, according to the call log.
A note in the call log states that there were no Hospital paramedic crews available for two and a half hours May 8.
Former Hospital administrator Derrick Yu ordered cuts to paramedic’s overtime starting March 9, reducing the Hospital’s daytime ambulance fleet from three to two crews. Yu had predicted that the policy would not cause emergency response delays.
As of Monday, Hospital paramedics have been delayed or unable to respond to at least 35 calls in the three months since the cost-saving policy went into effect, the log shows.