Paramedic

What is a Paramedic [change]

Ambulance from Urgences-Santé Montreal

In the province of Quebec, paramedics are healthcare professional who works in different case of emergency. They provide care for medical emergencies and trauma. They use different techniques and protocols to stabilise the patient and taken by ambulance the person to a Hospital. They assume their evaluation functions to the patient with specific materiel they have to prevent condition deterioration before they are taking in charge by the staff of the Hospital. The most exciting thing about being a paramedic is to be 100% trusts by the population,being the reference in case of emergency care and to be part of every kind of unstable situations and emergencies^[1]

Fire truck from Service Incendie Montreal (SIM)

Laval Police crest

Montreal and Laval ambulance organisation [change]

In Montreal and Laval, Urgences-Santé is the emergency medical service who covers the all territories. Urgences-Santé treats around 40%-50% of the emergency calls of the province of Quebec. They are the most important and the biggest medical service organisation of Canada. Paramedics need specific qualities to give the best service possible like leadership, stress resistance, good communication and team spirit. In Québec, 11 cegeps offer the pre-hospital emergency care - 181.A0 program^[2] Paramedics can give five medications to stabilise patients until they get to a hospital. They inject medication by intra-muscular way with needles, by the mouth or with an oxygen mask for respiratory problem. Most of the time paramedics give primary or basic care.

Montreal has for the moment around 8 paramedics who give advanced care. These paramedics use different techniques and give more than 30 medications and treatment. Most of the time , advanced life support team works alone or in a team of two and they choose which emergency calls they will go for. They use a specific vehicle like a minivan cause they don't do transport of patients.

First responders [change]

In Montreal, firefighters are first responders; they have more stations on the island so they can get on 911 calls faster than ambulance. In Laval it is (SPVL) police service who is first responders. First responder are especially useful in case of cardiac arrest where every minutes count.The formation of first responder is offered by certified instructor from Urgences-Santé. All the vehicles are equipped with defibrillator monitor. Finally , with first responder, population never feel alone on a long period of time in case of distress or emergencies.

First responder history [change]

Before 2007, 8 stations of the island of Montreal offered the service of first responder. Having studied attentively the similar projects somewhere else in the world, Montreal chose to be equipped with a service of fire brigades first responder to serve the totality of the territory of the urban area. From April, 2007 till December, 2009, They gradually implanted the department of fire brigades first responder everywhere on the island. All the stations of the island offer from now this service to the Montreal population^[3]