By paNOW Staff

Parkland paramedics donate ambulance to volunteers

Jun 29, 2018 | 2:00 PM

From sick kids to serious car accidents, Candle Lake First Responders provide emergency care in advance of paramedics travelling from Prince Albert.

“First responders are activated by the emergency medical communications team once the responding ambulance paramedics have been sent and with equipment like an AED, we can make a vital difference to the person’s outcome,” said Louise Tarasiuk, coordinator for Candle Lake First Responders.

That response will become even more effective thanks to a donation by the Chief of Parkland Ambulance Care,Trevor Dutchak. A decommissioned ambulance from Parkland’s fleet will become the new emergency response vehicle for the volunteer group. Previously, the first responders would have to use a fire truck for larger equipment and their own private vehicles when attending to a request for help.

“We don’t have to pull our equipment off the side of the rescue truck anymore,” Tarasiuk said. “This ambulance will carry all of our equipment and keep it from freezing and it takes the patients and the responders out of the elements. Now we have a place to treat people until the paramedics arrive.”

The volunteers are dispatched to about 35 calls throughout the year in the Candle Lake area. The addition of the ambulance means everything arrives on scene at once with the first responders themselves – making it a more efficient response.

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“We are extremely excited and so thankful for Trevor Dutchak and Parkland Ambulance Care. We can’t say enough about how thankful we are,” Tarasiuk said.

First responders in the Prince Albert area exist in Candle Lake, Canwood, Shellbrook, Christopher Lake, Meath Park and Birch Hills.

panews@jpbg.ca

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