Work can take awful toll on paramedics
Public safety a priority as we treat practitioners’ mental health
An encounter with a paramedic is something you rarely plan on, but in your scariest moments, the excellent care these health-care professionals provide can be the difference between life and death. Brave, committed, educated and adaptable, these women and men are vital to Alberta’s health-care system.
There are almost 10,000 registered paramedicine practitioners in Alberta. These dynamic practitioners now permeate all environments in which Albertans receive medical treatment. About one-third of these professionals are employed publicly; the rest work for private contractors, natural resource industries and in dozens of other work settings.
As is the case for other first responders, this daily work can take its toll. A practitioner’s work is primarily defined by helping others in need, while having to ignore their own. Victims of car accidents, domestic abuse, and incidents involving children can have lasting impacts on paramedics. In Canada, it is tragically true that some first responders have committed suicide and many more struggle with depression. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has always been a health risk inherent to paramedicine.
Some recent media reports seem to paint the Alberta College of Paramedics as an uncaring institution. Nothing could be farther than the truth.
Our paramedic registration process contains a series of checkpoints similar in rigour to that which physicians and nurses face. Aspiring paramedics must first complete their education at an approved school and then pass a provincial registry examination before the College issues registration — proof they are legally allowed to practise.
Paramedics have professional obligations throughout their career, such as the duty to maintain and enhance their skill in patient care and an obligation to state any health condition that may affect their ability to care for a patient.
This is no different than any of the other regulated health professions.
We treat each case individually and privately. In particular, a practitioner who declares a health condition, such as severe mental health illness, triggers a legislated process that includes a paramedic committee that, together with the practitioner, determines a strategy on how a return to work best serves the public interest and also supports the practitioner’s health needs. Returning a paramedic to work before they are ready can exacerbate symptoms. Time and space to heal is imperative when any practitioner suffers from a physical or mental condition. Fortunately, the numerous work settings widely available today grant paramedics the opportunity to recover and continue working in the profession.
To date, we have not cancelled a practitioner’s registration due to PTSD. What we have done is put restrictions on their ability to practise but typically with a provision that these restrictions may be removed over time. However, we’re often asked, “Doesn’t the fact that we can limit a paramedic’s work just drive a person with a mental health condition farther from the help they need?”
Our answer is simple: our regulatory processes uphold safe and excellent patient care, but they also guide practitioners dealing with physical or mental health conditions into practice environments that promote recovery before a return to full duty. Just as someone who has a broken leg has limitations affecting the ability to deliver care, someone with diagnosed PTSD should not be placed in triggering situations — for the sake of the public and for the health of that individual paramedic.
As a regulatory body, our goal is to be a driving force behind excellence in Alberta paramedicine care. Committed to the public interest, we strive to govern the profession with compassion and awareness of the issues valued by practitioners. We are currently preparing for consultation to invite feedback from paramedics on how our processes are working and what we can change to better serve both practitioners and the public.
The Alberta College of Paramedics exists to ensure Albertans receive high quality patient care from professional paramedicine practitioners, which starts with ensuring paramedics are capable of providing that care.
The college’s primary function is to ensure that paramedic practice occurs in the best interest of the public. The college is not a union. It does not participate in collective bargaining. Nor are we an association. The college does not put the rights and privileges of paramedics above the needs of the public. For the Alberta College of Paramedics, the public comes first.
The regulatory functions we maintain today are to ensure paramedicine is governed with the public safety as our top priority, but it’s our collaboration with the entire health-care community that will continue to bring the public competent, capable and mentally-ready paramedics.
Our participation in provincial and national projects is rapidly expanding our knowledge and understanding of mental health conditions. We plan to use these leanings to develop programs to further support building strength and resiliency among Alberta practitioners.