Community Paramedicine Program Aims To Improve Quality of Life for Greater Sudbury Residents

The City of Greater Sudbury Paramedic Services, in partnership with Health Sciences North and the North East Community Care Access Centre, is pleased to launch a new program that aims to provide additional health care for residents discharged from hospital.  Two ten month pilot programs in the areas of Transitions Care and Health Promotion, funded in part by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC), have been launched in Greater Sudbury to help seniors and vulnerable populations live independently for longer and to help prevent hospital readmissions and emergency department visits.

“I am delighted that Greater Sudbury will be delivering this program. When we are able to provide more care to individuals at home, we are making it easier for them and taking pressure off the system,” said Mayor Brian Bigger.  ”This program will reduce unnecessary emergency room visits and hospital admissions, enabling paramedics to do an even better job for the people they already serve so well.”

Under the Transitions Care program, select patients discharged from hospital with specific conditions will receive care and monitoring by paramedics in their own homes, while the Health Promotion program focuses on education.
“Three of our Paramedics have been reassigned and have received specialized training to support and operate the two projects,” said Tim Beadman, Chief of Fire and Paramedic Services. “These Paramedics will work closely with health care providers and community partners to create care plans, geared specifically to the individual, to help increase the success of staying in their own home.”

 “Meeting the growing demand for home care is going to take some innovative thinking and clever approaches, and the paramedicine pilot program is a great example of the City, the CCAC, and HSN working together to tackle one of our key health care challenges in the city,” said David McNeil, Vice President of Patient Services and Clinical Transformation and Chief Nursing Officer at Health Sciences North/Horizon Santé-Nord.

“These partnerships recognize that the continuum of care does not stop at any one door in the health care system. Extending links across this continuum ensures smooth transitions between care providers and that we are using all available resources to provide a better patient experience,” affirmed Richard Joly, CEO, North East CCAC.
The program is funded in part by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. In November 2014, the MOHLTC announced funding for the program in the amount of $402,900, as part of a $6 million investment in the expansion of 30 community paramedicine programs in Ontario.

More on the Community Paramedicine in Greater Sudbury:

The Transitions Care Program: in partnership with Health Sciences North and the North East Community Care Access Centre, will see Paramedics providing follow up care and monitoring for select patients in their own homes after being discharged from the hospital with a chronic condition such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart failure, diabetes and dementia.

The Health Promotion Community Paramedic Program: aims to reduce demand for paramedics and health costs through focusing on education surrounding injury prevention and early recognition of illness. The program will assist older adults and the vulnerable population, including the homeless, by providing wellness checks at seniors’ housing as well as soup kitchens and emergency shelters.

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