Part of the summary provided by Lanark County Paramedics to the County focused on the Paramedicine program.
Chief Travis Mellema said last year saw an increase in the number of patients enrolled in the program, which provides in-home services to keep non-urgent cases out of Emergency Rooms. Since 2019, 1,509 clients have been served.
Other program activities included vaccine and wellness clinics for influenza and COVID-19 and a new point of care (POC) diagnostic tool that allows community paramedics to test patients for COVID-19, Influenza, RSV and Strep in their homes.
The service has also joined the External Violence Against Paramedics Program, which helps create a safe working environment with a better understanding of external violence by patients and bystanders paramedics encounter. Mellema said there were 44 external violence incident reports in 2023.
Other highlights of the report include:
• Increased contacts with staff for the Lanark County Paramedic Peer Support team
• An update on operations with the loss of the Almonte base due to fire in March 2023
• Staff promotions and development, along with student practicum placements and recruitment efforts
• A summary of the more than 11,400 hours of training completed
• Community outreach activities, including a long-service and save pin ceremony, active shooter training with the OPP, the inaugural Lanark County Female First Responders Camp, food drives and more
• Response time standards
