Paramedic

Overview

As a member of the military, Paramedics work with a variety of health care professionals including Medical Officers, Nursing Officers, Physician Assistants and Combat Medics to treat the sick and injured in various Canadian Armed Forces' operations and units.

• Provide initial care and transfer of care for patients;
• Provide basic to advanced life support care independently and as a senior medical authority to a Combat Medic while working as part of a multidisciplinary team;
• Administer lifesaving interventions and treatments to trauma casualties;
• Interview and record patient medical histories;
• Instruct soldiers on medical courses;
• Manage soldiers’ medical readiness, supplies and equipment;
• Administer intravenous therapy;
• Take and monitor patients’ vital signs;
• Administer and dispense medications in accordance with their scope of practice;
• Provide medical support during environmental operations;
• Recover casualties from the point of injury and transport them to a medical facility by wheeled or tracked ambulance, or by air;
• Participate in rescues from crashed vehicles, tanks, ships, aircraft and damaged buildings;
• Give basic advice on disease prevention, hygiene and sanitation;
• Perform specific environmental health and preventive medicine duties;
• Collect specimens and perform basic laboratory procedures;
• Operate and maintain medical and life-support equipment;
• Perform electrocardiograms; and
• Initiate, maintain and distribute medical records, documents, reports and returns.

Paramedics spend most of their careers working in Canadian Armed Forces medical units within Canada, on ships at sea, and deployed on international missions. They will also work on-car with civilian Emergency Health Services to maintain clinical competencies. In the field, overseas and on ship, they usually work in shifts and, occasionally, on call. In Clinics, they generally work regular hours.

If you choose a career in the Regular Force, upon completion of all required training, you will be assigned to your first base. While there is some flexibility with regards to postings (relocations), accommodations can’t always be made, and therefore, you can likely expect to move at some point in your career. However, if you decide to join the Primary Reserve Force, you will do so through a specific Reserve unit.

Outside of training, your chosen Reserve unit will be your workplace on a part time basis, and you will not be obligated to relocate to a different base. As part of the Primary Reserve Force, you typically work one night per week and some weekends as a minimum with possibilities of full-time employment.

• Direct Entry Options
• Paid Education Options

To enroll as a Direct Entry, the applicant must have a certificate or diploma from an accredited Paramedic program and a current registration, license, or certification (active status) to practice as a Paramedic from a Canadian provincial or territorial regulatory authority.

Non-commissioned Member Subsidized Training and Education Plan (NCMSTEP)

Because this position requires specialty training, the CAF will pay successful recruits to attend an accredited Paramedic program at an approved Canadian college. NCMSTEP students attend basic training and on-the-job training during the summer months. They receive a full-time salary including medical and dental care, as well as vacation time with full-pay in exchange for working with the CAF for a period of time.

If you choose to apply to this program, you must apply and be accepted to both the CAF and a Paramedic program at an appropriate accredited College.

HSRecruitin

The first stage of training is the Basic Military Qualification course, or Basic Training, held at the Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec. This training provides the basic core skills and knowledge common to all trades. A goal of this course is to ensure that all recruits maintain the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) physical fitness standard; as a result, the training is physically demanding.

Paramedics complete a Primary Care Paramedic program and then proceed to their basic occupation training at the Canadian…