'Fire-medics' proposal worries Sudbury paramedics
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A proposal by the Ontario Fire Fighters' Association will compromise paramedic services' response and increase risks for the public, a Sudbury paramedic says.
Rick Sasseville and other Sudbury paramedics will join paramedics from across Ontario at a rally on Monday 12:30 p.m. outside Ottawa City Hall to bring attention to the proposal.
The Ontario Fire Fighters' Association wants the provincial government to let firefighters with 20 hours of training respond to emergency medical calls.
That would "like playing Russian roulette with the public," Sasseville, who is with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario, paramedic group, said in a release.
While the trend has been to increase the qualifications and skills of paramedics, the fire proposal "dramatically reverses that trend to high-calibre medical training. The consequences of an increased fire role will likely be serious," says Sasseville. "Paramedics treat patients in emergency situations where lives are in peril. This fire proposal amounts to a dramatic reduction in expertise. Symptom relief skills should only be provided by a fully certified paramedic, not by those who are focused on a completely different profession."
The fire initiative, which must receive provincial government approval before it goes forward, calls for "fire-medic" instructors to undergo 16 hours of training. Upon successful completion of this training, they would train and certify a quarter of the current firefighters through a 20-hour course.
Currently, Ontario paramedics are graduates of approved two-year programs and must pass Ministry of Health certification.
While the province needs to approve the changes fire is looking for, municipal governments that directly deliver emergency services will also be impacted by additional costs, should the changes be made.
"Governments that implement such measures must answer for this policy when problems occur," Sasseville said.
CUPE represents more than 6,000 paramedics and emergency response communications staff across Ontario.
sud.editorial@sunmedia.ca