Plans have been revealed to ask firefighters to take on extra responsibilities traditionally seen as NHS roles.
Welsh Government deputy minister Hannah Blythyn announced the proposals, saying they would give the fire and rescue services "a wider role in keeping people safe".
She said that firefighters had been so successful reducing risk and severity of fires that "demand on the service is now so low, the service is increasingly under-occupied in many parts of Wales".
And she proposes asking the fire service to support the NHS to "respond to medical emergencies" or help "prevent accidents like falls at home".
She said many rural fire stations now respond to only a handful of fires a month, which makes it difficult to recruit and retain the on-call firefighters on which most of Wales relies, and risks jeopardising the sustainability of the service in rural areas.
Ms Blythyn, deputy minister for housing and local government, said: “Firefighters are highly trained to deal with a wide range of incidents besides fires, and have the expertise and respect to raise awareness of and prevent non-fire threats too.
"There is clear potential for the service to make a real contribution to supporting the NHS in particular, whether in terms of responding to medical emergencies or helping to prevent accidents like falls at home; and clear evidence that this can secure better outcomes and significant savings. There are many impressive examples of this happening, but they are often small-scale and piecemeal.
“I believe we need to go further, and to do so more consistently and strategically. I want to see a Fire and Rescue Service which deals with a range of threats to people’s health and safety, both in terms of prevention and emergency response, complementing not duplicating the work of other professionals. Only by doing so can we maximise the Service’s public value and secure a sustainable future for it.
“There is real potential to capitalise on the success the Service has already achieved and to maximise its value to the people of Wales. I will make a further announcement in due course on the way ahead.”
She proposed a "robust and strategic agreement" between the fire service and NHS to the fire service "can be deployed where they are most needed"
