At a recent meeting, officials with the Cochrane District Services Board said a cultural shift is underway among paramedics, as abusive language and violence are no longer being accepted as part of frontline work. Since 2022, Cochrane District Paramedic Services has introduced several measures to protect staff, including adding signage inside ambulances to make it clear that abuse will not be tolerated. “There have been issues of threats … and verbal abuse towards paramedics. It’s been ongoing for a long time,” said Marc Renaud, chief of Cochrane District Paramedic Services. Renaud said those behaviours are no longer being treated as an unavoidable part of the job. Paramedics are being encouraged to report incidents involving patients, family members or bystanders. “We need to increase the number of reports that we’re getting,” said Renaud. “We’re trying to show staff that we are here to support them, but we also need more issues reported. It is not normal to have somebody spit on you or try to cause you harm.” Recently, two individuals were charged following complaints from paramedic services staff. “There have been a few more serious cases in the last few weeks where police felt charges needed to be laid,” said Renaud. Timmins Police Deputy Chief Darren Dinel said he can’t divulge details about the recent incidents. But he said such complaints are taken seriously. “I expect that a lot of this involves a small number of individuals engaging in criminal behaviour,” Dinel said. “We will address those cases individually with the intention of preventing it from happening and ensuring the safety of paramedics and other service providers in the community.” He is also encouraging all health-care workers to report abusive or violent behaviour they experience on the job. Dinel said police are working with various sectors in the community to raise awareness. “We’re not noticing any significant increase in these incidents,” he added. “We’re hoping reporting continues so we can better understand whether it’s increasing year over year, decreasing or remaining under control.” Renaud said additional training focused on de-escalating potentially dangerous situations will be offered to paramedics this fall.
