On Saturday April 1st. 2006 the Durham Paramedic Association held it’s 4th Annual Paramedic skills Competition.
The Competition saw Paramedic teams competing in multiple emergency medical scenarios throught the day.
The competition was based on a train into a car scenario that saw teams competing all day in simulations utilizing the Laerdal SIMMAN Human patient simulator, Human actors and an outdoor auto wreck area.
The Competition in all hosted 22 teams in Whitby Ontario this year including 2 teams from Alberta and one from the Canadian Forces.
“This is the best job in the world,” said Colleen Johnstone Paramedic in the Toronto Star.
Speaking on her experiences during the competition she went on to say that this years event was the best in its four-year history and attracted the attention of local and federal politicians.
“It’s important for the public to come out and see what we do,” they are our customers...that’s who we serve” said Johnstone.
The results are as follows:
Advanced Care Paramedic category
1st. Place Parkland EMS Alberta Team 1
2nd. Place Parkland EMS Alberta Team 2
3rd. Place Durham Region EMS Ontario
Primary Care Paramedic category
1st. Place Durham Region EMS Ontario
2nd. Place Waterloo EMS Ontario
3rd. Place Windsor EMS Team 1 Windsor Ontario.
College Paramedic Student category
1st. Place University of Toronto Toronto Ontario
2nd. Place Loyalist Team 1 Bancroft Ontario
3rd. Place CTS College # 2 Barrie Ontario.
In an interesting turn of events the U of T team had withdrawn from competition just prior to competition start due to equipment problems. Durham EMS was able to help the team out at the last minute and U of T went on to win 1st. place in their category. The U of T team is unique. This being their 1st. Paramedic competition, the University of Toronto’s four-year Primary Care Paramedic Bachelor of Science program is a first of its kind in Canada.
We were also quite proud to have the Canadian Military with us this year. Next year, we would really like to have some teams from the United States come up and compete.
Other Emergency services competitions are well attended by the public and we are just begining.
“Being a Paramedic has changed a lot over the years, it’s no longer just a ride to the hospital. It’s quick and reliable access to first class Emergency Health Care brought right to you”, and I think the public who attended this year’s event really saw that,” Said Rob Johnstone a Paramedic with Durham Region EMS in Ontario.
“I think they were really impressed by our technology,” It is a big part of this job now, we find advances every year,” Johnstone went on to say.
We are looking forward to next year and thank everyone for there support.