Paramedics in Waterloo region say resources are starting to 'match the demand for our service'

Karis Mapp · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 15, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

It was lone a fewer years agone erstwhile paramedics successful Waterloo portion were sounding the alarm astir being overworked and lacking indispensable resources to efficaciously bash their jobs, but precocious they accidental there's hope. 

At the extremity of 2022, Waterloo portion experienced play Code Red events, meaning determination were nary ambulances disposable to respond to exigency calls.

This was caused by a assortment of factors including being understaffed, agelong offloading times astatine hospitals and the wide summation for work request that was brought connected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

John Riches is the main of Waterloo region's paramedic services. He says things are looking overmuch better.

"In 2022, we were astatine a spot of a precipice wherever yes, investments were being made, but the fig of Code Zero oregon Code Red events were inactive significant," Riches explained. 

"What we're seeing present aft the twelvemonth of 2024 and inactive seeing it present into 2025, is that the fig of resources we person are starting to beryllium capable to lucifer the request for our service."

Though Code Reds, present known arsenic Code Zeros, are inactive happening erstwhile successful a while, it's obscurity adjacent the severity that it was during the highest of the pandemic. 

In 2022, Waterloo portion had  210 Code Red events, totalling astir 76 hours, according to the region's show measurement indicators update from that year. 

A stark quality compared to 2024's year-to-date update released successful September, indicating astir 14 hours were spent successful codification red.

Riches attributes overmuch of the improving metrics to the Region of Waterloo's assembly supporting an enlargement for paramedic services.

Back successful September 2023, it was announced that section paramedic services would person $4.4 cardinal to prosecute much staff. 

The portion besides received an further $1.65 cardinal from the state for a designated offload caregiver program.

"During highest deployment, we present person 40 unit resources disposable connected the roadworthy and overnight that drops to 20, evidently due to the fact that telephone request drops overnight portion radical are sleeping."

As a result, exigency effect times person besides improved. 

On average, determination paramedics were responding to calls successful 2024 wrong 9 minutes and six seconds. That's 22 seconds faster than 2023, erstwhile they were responding wrong 9 minutes and 28 seconds. 

"We bash sometimes spot effect times lengthened retired successful the agrarian townships due to the fact that there's a wide geography retired determination and it takes longer to get the calls," Riches explained. 

LISTEN | Local paramedics spot a alteration successful ambulance delays:

Hospital offload delays

Although determination are inactive disposable ambulances, infirmary offload delays proceed to stay long, though Riches says they're importantly decreasing.

Offload clip refers to the play that begins erstwhile paramedics get astatine the exigency section and ends erstwhile their diligent is placed successful a furniture and attraction is handed implicit to ER staff. 

As of June 2024, paramedic services had mislaid an mean of 47 hours implicit a 12 period play owed to offload delays. This is equivalent to astir four, 12-hour ambulance shifts per day.

"I deliberation the biggest alteration that I've seen successful the 2 years that I've been with the portion is that our infirmary partners are afloat invested and progressive astatine a elder enforcement level to amended ambulance offload clip wrong the exigency departments," said Riches. 

"It's nary longer conscionable an exigency section contented to woody with, they're asking the full infirmary to enactment the work. So that benignant of buy-in to addressing the occupation has astir apt been the azygous biggest happening that has improved ambulance offload times."

Burn retired and exhaustion

As moving conditions proceed to amended for paramedics owed to resources becoming much accessible, workers are feeling the benefits arsenic well. 

During the pandemic, determination were galore reports crossed the country of paramedics feeling burned retired and exhausted from the demands of their work. 

Now, Riches says determination are indications his medics are dilatory but surely recovering.

"They enactment successful truly challenging circumstances, successful antithetic situations successful which the situation tin beryllium unsafe and they bash an astonishing occupation everyday," helium said.

"I surely americium proceeding from paramedics that they're not missing repast breaks … We're besides seeing reduced extremity of displacement overtimes, which is besides an indicator that we person assets availability truthful we tin get our paramedics disconnected connected time."

While those factors amusement a inclination successful the close direction, Nick Desclouds says they're not retired of the h2o conscionable yet. 

"Mental wellness is inactive thing that we truly person to powerfully advocator for," said the President of CUPE Local 5191, the national representing Waterloo region's paramedics. 

Desclouds is besides a paramedic himself. 

"The vocation is hard truthful having ways that we tin enactment each different successful the workplace and not having that overwhelming measurement each azygous time we amusement up to work, it's decidedly going to assistance amended that," helium added. 

The Region of Waterloo's Paramedic Services has a 10-year maestro program that outlines investments wrong that clip period. The existent program expires astatine the extremity of 2027.

"Things person changed truthful overmuch coming retired of the pandemic and colonisation growth, which results successful an summation of 911 calls," Riches explained.

"We are engaging successful a caller maestro program improvement and erstwhile that maestro program gets adopted and approved by council, that would instrumentality implicit for the existent maestro program and would commencement successful 2026 to 2035."

Within that clip frame, the Region of Waterloo plans to unfastened a caller infirmary located connected the University of Waterloo campus. Something Riches says would beryllium a large alteration successful presumption of the work paramedics volition beryllium capable to present to residents.