Region makes progress on Paramedic Services Plan
York Region Paramedic Services has expanded its fleet by four ambulances and added 21,840 annual ambulance hours over the past few years.
It has also added 68 full-time equivalent staff and completed a new station in Markham to provide equitable response times across the Region since implementing the Paramedic Services Master Plan 2021 to 2031.
“York Region is committed to providing high-quality paramedic care to our residents,” says Chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson. “Advancements made in the Paramedic Services Master Plan demonstrate our dedication to meet growing demand and ensuring timely responses.”
The Master Plan is designed to support an eight-minute response time target for life-threatening calls 70 per cent of the time equitably across all municipalities. To achieve that goal, the plan considers such factors as population growth, demographic trends, call demand, staffing, hospital offload and paramedic call time.
Also, according to an update provided to York Regional Council, two new stations are in the planning stages: one in Vaughan and the other in Georgina. The Region is also planning to replace a station in East Gwillimbury and another in Aurora.
This past spring, the Region launched Improving Patient Access and Care in the Community Program. The new model of care integrates paramedics into the broader health care system to provide on-scene treatment, discharge patients at the scene, transport patients to appropriate non-hospital destinations and coordinate care with health partners.
It also installed anti-idling technology in ambulances, saving about $360,000 and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 226 tonnes since 2020. The Region plans to add the first electric ambulance to its fleet by the end of the year.
“Paramedic Services strives for continuing to find innovative and efficient ways to enhance services to serve the community members when and where they need it most,” says City of Vaughan Regional Councillor Gino Rosati, Chair of Community and Health Services. “By having a long-term plan, we proactively identify factors affecting future program delivery and develop possible mitigation strategies to address them.”
An updated Master Plan for 2026 to 2031 will be presented to Regional Council for approval in 2026 and will incorporate changes based on evaluation of the new Medical Priority Dispatch System. The new system, being implemented in November by the Ministry of Health, which operates the Georgian Dispatch Centre, promises to improve paramedic resource deployment and prioritize patient needs without affecting overall response time performance, the Region reports.
As York’s population continues to grow and age, the demand for paramedic services is projected to increase to more than 163,600 calls per year by 2031. For more information on Paramedic Services, visit york.ca/Paramedics.
Photo of York Region Paramedics Ambulance outside Markham Ambulance Station at 280 Church St. courtesy of The Regional Municipality of York Region.
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