Paramedic with PTSD allowed to drive again
Marie-Julie Cosenzo was back in the driver’s seat Friday after the province reinstated her licence.
Cosenzo, a local paramedic with post-traumatic stress disorder, lost her driver’s licence in early September when the Ontario Ministry of Transportation suspended it after reviewing information about her medical condition. Her F-class licence, which allowed her to drive ambulances and regular passenger vehicles, required her doctor to disclose any medical information to the MTO.
When Cosenzo called the MTO on Friday to check on the status of her request for reconsideration, she learned the department is allowing her to have a G-class licence, which covers regular vehicles.
“I was crying on the phone,” Cosenzo said. “It’s been humiliating not being able to have my licence.”
The mother of two has relied on family and OC Transpo to attend appointments and run errands. On her first trip back behind the wheel she took her daughter shopping.
Nepean-Carleton MPP Lisa MacLeod brought up Cosenzo’s case with Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca during question period in the provincial legislature.
Cosenzo believes the public attention helped.
“That definitely added pressure,” she said. “Everything happened in a month. That definitely was very helpful. It brought my issue to light.”
Cosenzo is a paramedic with the Coopérative des Paramédics de l’Outaouais. She has been on medical leave since October 2015 after a traumatic call for a teenage suicide.
The 36-year-old Barrhaven resident said she has received support from politicians and paramedic advocates since she went public with her licence problem.
Cosenzo said she will worry about getting her F-class licence back when she’s ready. Her next battle is with the Quebec workplace insurance agency to recognize her PTSD.
“One fight at a time,” she said.