Stroke: Brain Attack!

by Marika Listenmaa, Superintendent of Professional Standards for Superior North EMS. The ability to recognize the FAST signs of stroke and act fast by calling 9-1-1 or your local emergency number can mean the difference between life and death. It can also mean the difference between a full recovery and a lasting disability. When one thinks of paramedics and ambulances, the first thought associated is often “car accidents and heart attacks”. Paramedics want to bring the messaging forward that having a...

ONTARIO PARAMEDICS RECOGNIZED FOR ACTIONS ABOVE THE CALL OF DUTY

The Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs (OAPC) has recognized five worthy paramedics with Awards for their actions to preserve public health and safety in Ontario and to advance the profession of paramedicine. Darrell Drew and Perrine Corman from Ottawa Paramedic Service, who received The Dr. Norman H. McNally Award: This Award recognizes acts of conspicuous bravery by paramedics in the performance of their duties. It was established in 1976 to honour its namesake who, as Director of the fledgling Ambulance Service Branch,...

115 Ontario Paramedics recognized for excellence in Paramedic Services

The Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs will conclude its 2019 Annual General Meeting at an Awards Dinner in Windsor this evening recognizing worthy paramedics awarded the Governor General’s Emergency Medical Services Exemplary Service Medal. The Emergency Medical Services Exemplary Service Medal was created in 1994 by the late Governor General Romeo LeBlanc, as a component of the Canadian Honours System. The Award is presented to paramedics who have served for at least twenty years in a meritorious manner, characterized by the...

Frontenac County Paramedics traveled to Switzerland for Job Swap

by Alison Shorey   In March 2019, the paramedic service I work for, Frontenac Paramedics, received a unique and exciting invitation from a German TV production company asking if they would be interested in participating in a reality TV show called Job Swap.  Job Swap is a show in which people from Germany or Switzerland switch jobs with other people in foreign countries. They were planning an episode where two Swiss paramedics would exchange jobs with two Canadian paramedics, and Frontenac Paramedics...

Thriving against the odds thanks to the swift response of Dufferin County Paramedic Services

When 20-year-old Brianna came home to Orangeville on a two-week break from college in Hamilton, she had no idea she wouldn’t be returning to school next semester. On May 11, 2019 Brianna woke in the middle of the night with discomfort in her stomach. Her mom, Mary-Jane, checked on her sensing something was wrong, and Brianna explained “I’m fine Mom - my stomach is just upset from the burgers we had last night.” Mary-Jane kissed her and went to work not...