The Hastings-Quinte Paramedic Service is making great progress in fulfilling staffing requirements.
Paramedic chief Carl Bowker told Hastings County’s Emergency Services Committee on Wednesday that 19 new paramedics were hired into both full-time and part-time roles along with three new part-time Superintendents.
In a report to the committee, Bowker stated a need has been identified for an additional 40 more paramedics to stabilize staffing requirements by spring 2026.
Ambulance staffing was increased by 12 hours a day, 7 days a week on July 1st with an additional increase to 24 hours a day, 7 days a week effective October 1st, which will provide better response times in high volume urban areas like Belleville and Quinte West.
However, Bowker stated the additional staffing requirements have resulted in a short-term impact on the ability to grant time-off.
He says the service is actively hiring with the hopes of recruiting another 10 paramedics this Fall and members will be attending a paramedic-specific job fair in the GTA in October looking to recruit additional full-time staff.
Additionally, the province rolled out the new Medical Priority Dispatch System that more effectively triages patients in need of a rapid ambulance response earlier this year.
This has helped create capacity to respond to high acuity patients while ensuring paramedics receive meal breaks and reducing unnecessary overtime.
(BROCK ORMOND)
