Frontenac Paramedics - A Plan for the Future

Frontenac Paramedics serve more than 164,000 residents across almost 4,000 sq/km of Eastern Ontario. About 150 Paramedics and a fleet of 17 ambulances (12 of which are in service at peak times) from seven stations attend some 23,000 calls per year. Response times and the other numbers we use to measure our performance over time meet or exceed pre-pandemic provincial guidelines and are competitive among those of other Paramedic services in Ontario. Even though patients are often living their very worst days when they meet and interact with Paramedics, we measure a 99.9 percent satisfaction rate among those we serve.

It’s a record of which we are individually and collectively proud. Virtually all that success is due to the individual contributions of Paramedics and the direct care they provide on-scene. Ours is a group of dedicated and highly trained women and men working together under sometimes very difficult conditions to help people solve big, life-threatening, problems.

Another part of our success involves putting time and resources into predicting, preparing for, and adapting to long-term change as it happens. We know for example that the population in our region, especially in the west end of Kingston, is increasing at a rate well beyond the national average. We also know that almost 70 percent of our patients are senior citizens and that the population as a whole is skewing older over time. Our most recent information predicts that the number of calls to Frontenac Paramedics is expected to rise by at least 4.5 percent every year for at least the next decade. There are already indications that we may exceed that rate, so we have approval to add eight new full-time paramedic positions and two new regular 12-hour paramedic shifts to the City of Kingston in 2023.

We know that vehicles, buildings, and equipment age, become obsolete and need to be continually maintained, refreshed, and eventually replaced. We're building a new Frontenac Paramedics station in 2023 on Frontenac County campus just north of 401 at Kingston. Plans are underway for another one in the west end of Kingston in the next couple of years.

The closest available paramedic crew to any given emergency responds no matter where they're stationed. In times of high demand in the city, that means crews stationed in rural areas are likely to be drawn to Kingston. These added new resources and facilities will serve Kingston residents as the city grows and they will also serve residents outside the city by keeping paramedic crews in rural areas more often.

We know that Paramedicine continues to change, too. Forty years ago, Paramedics were trained and equipped only to apply basic first aid and to transport patients to the nearest hospital. Contemporary paramedics administer more sophisticated and ever-evolving life-saving treatments. They are increasingly called upon to learn and master useful emerging life-saving technologies, so we have invested in autonomous IV program training to equip some paramedics to quickly administer medications in the field that were previously only authorized for hospital. We also added new computer software and processes to make patient data entry faster and more accurate for Paramedics so they spend more time with patients and less time on paperwork.

Paramedics have a broader role in their communities, too. They operate our growing Community Paramedicine Program to help our senior citizens and most vulnerable residents to navigate the complexities of the healthcare system and to live safely in the comfort of their own homes for as long as possible.

All those things we can see on the horizon imply that we need to continuously prepare so that Frontenac Paramedics are properly resourced in the future.

The 2023 Frontenac Paramedics' operating budget is about $21 million. Our plan for the future is to balance response times with the most cost-effective and efficient delivery model. We need to do all this while respecting taxpayers’ investment and with the appropriate foresight needed to expect and account for otherwise unexpected costs along the way.

This is where you come in.

The right column on this page is filled with information and resources you can use to equip yourself with the necessary knowledge to make informed and valuable contributions to funding and planning processes. Below on this page you will find a suite of tools you can use to interact with your fellow citizens, councillors, and municipal staff. This is a place to share and shape your knowledge, ideas, opinions, and stories. Your input on this page and at public meetings will all go into shaping Frontenac Paramedics' future course.

The provision of Paramedic services is all about you, your families, and your future. Your guidance, expertise, and engagement is critically important if we are to work together to ensure Frontenac Paramedics are ready when you need them, whether it be today or 10 years from now.