The Coopérative des techniciens ambulanciers de la Montérégie (CETAM) is pleased to announce that on Saturday, January 14, two daily teams of advanced care paramedics (ACPs) were added to the territory.

With these new teams, the entire CETAM territory, including the Suroît sector, will be covered by APCs, whereas the service had been offered in the greater Longueuil area since 2021. This is a major step forward for the Montérégie population in the ambulance service territory, as advanced care paramedics will be able to intervene in critical situations with additional care options before hospital arrival.

Helping patients, a priority

Convinced that advanced care would benefit patients, for years CETAM has been working
has been working rigorously to demonstrate the relevance of advanced care paramedics. The project, initially funded entirely by the ambulance cooperative, had to demonstrate its relevance so that the the Centre intégré de santé et services sociaux de la Montérégie-Centre (CISSSMC) to accept that this service be made permanent in the Greater Longueuil area. Now it's the turn of CISSS de la Montérégie-Ouest (CISSSMO) to authorize the service on its territory, for the benefit of its residents!

Advanced care is a clear added value for the region's population. With the additional care they can administer, more lives can be saved, more care can be given, and hospital stays can be shortened, with the added benefit of reducing the workload for hospital staff. In the same vein, PSAs can accompany patients on inter-hospital transfers, replacing nurses who can then remain on their hospital teams to provide care to the patients there. The benefits are many, and CETAM is proud to support the healthcare network, which all too often sees its hospital emergency departments overwhelmed.

New patient careTwo new advanced care vehicles will be on display in the region. PSAs work with patients as a duo. "Assisting primary care paramedics (PCPs), they offer expertise and authorization for procedures normally performed in hospitals.Not only do they help save lives, they also reduce the risk of major after-effects, and potentially shorten hospital stays. In a way, patients will have access to a part of the emergency room right on their doorstep," explains Jérémy Ménard, Assistant General Manager at CETAM.

The advanced care paramedics have all been trained at the Université de Montréal for a two-year university major offered there since 2016 by the Faculty of Medicine. Thanks to this training, they can, among other things, interpret an electrocardiogram, establish the appropriate care plan, administer the required substances and medications intravenously or intra-orally, perform manual defibrillation, apply external cardiac stimulation or cardioversion.Much of the stabilization offered to patients by the emergency department will now be provided by CETAM paramedic teams on site.It is with great pride, therefore, that CETAM has proceeded to extend PSA throughout its territory, thanks to the invaluable collaboration of CISSS Montérégie-Centre and Montérégie-Ouest!