Ambulance crews have been left “incensed” over planned cuts to night-time provision in the area.
Plans are afoot to reduce crews between midnight and 5am at the Vale of Leven’s ambulance depot.
The changes will see the current three crew provision cut back to two overnight from April but three ambulances will remain at weekends.
Stations in Paisley and Greenock will also be hit by changes, which come in the wake of a Demand and Capacity Review carried out by a private contractor on behalf of the Scottish Ambulance Service.
The move has been slammed by disgruntled workers.
One insider told the Lennox: “The SAS are reducing this to two ambulances at night and increasing cover during the day.
“A cardiac arrest is responded to by two ambulance crews, a road traffic collision is normally attended by two crews plus obese patients, difficult extractions et cetera often require two ambulance crews to convey patients from home into an ambulance .
“Does this sound safe?”
The insider added: “Crews in all stations are incensed by this review as management are simply not listening to our concerns.
“This is a dangerous reduction in night time cover, we are all concerned for the welfare and safety of staff, family and friends living in these areas.
“It’s a seriously dangerous move.”
The Scottish Ambulance Service handed out contracts to English-based ORH Ltd and Working Time Solutions to probe demand and capacity, which insiders claim was hoped to identify cost reductions such as reducing overtime payments.
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie said any cuts to the service could risk lives.
She said: “I am deeply concerned about any suggestion that ambulance provision could be cut in West Dunbartonshire, or in Helensburgh and Lomond.
“Many people in this area have experienced long delays for ambulances and, without an A&E unit locally, any cut could put lives in serious danger.
“Paramedics are a crucial part of our health service and this sector has been underfunded for years under the SNP’s watch. Recruitment drives are welcome but the crews need to be in the right place at the right time to be able to respond quickly and appropriately.
“Rather than a reduction in service as a result of the Demand and Capacity programme at the Vale and in Helensburgh, I want to see additional capacity at both ambulance stations.”
But the Scottish Ambulance Service played down concerns, saying: “No areas are losing an ambulance crew; rather additional staff are being recruited and trained across the country.
“As part of our Demand and Capacity Programme, we have already introduced an additional response vehicle at Paisley and have introduced a new location in Johnstone with funding for twelve extra staff to deliver a 24/7 service.
“We are also aligning rosters to better meet patient demand. This will result in a change in shift patterns in these locations to fit with the periods that experience the most pressure on our service.”
They added: “As a national service, we are also ensuring we maximise shift coverage by accelerating recruitment through our Demand and Capacity Programme to increase the number of new staff to 566 by March 2022.”
The Johnstone station was set up in late 2021 as a base for the service’s West Special Operation Response Team (SORT), designed to be an additional resource to help the area meet response times, say insiders.
It also provides training for newly-qualified paramedics who require to work alongside experienced staff.
The insider added: “These extra staff are to cover sickness, holidays etc to reduce the massive overtime budget. They are not putting on additional crews but moving crews from nights to day shifts.”
