Emergency Health Services (EHS) front-line staff – including one person with 45 years of service – were honoured through a pre-recorded virtual EHS Long Service Award ceremony.
“The COVID-19 pandemic created many challenges and you stepped up, adapted to the changes, and answered Nova Scotians’ calls for help,” said Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson. “I’d like to thank this year’s award recipients for their many years of service and dedication.”
The annual ceremony recognized 132 people for their long-service commitments with a combined 3,800 years of saving lives and coming to the aid of Nova Scotians across the province.
To qualify for this year’s medal, a staff member needed a minimum of 20 years of accumulated time working in the ground ambulance or EHS LifeFlight programs and had to be registered and in good standing with the College of Paramedics of Nova Scotia.
One paramedic, Judah Goldstein, received the inaugural Tom Dobson Award, named in honour of a highly regarded paramedic who had a distinguished 23-year career at EHS and who passed away suddenly in 2020. The annual award recognizes an employee whose work has helped enhance patient care and enable full scope and utilization of the paramedic profession across Nova Scotia.
Quick Facts:
— there are 145 ambulances and about 1,200 EHS paramedics in Nova Scotia
— EHS paramedics respond to approximately 175,000 calls each year for emergencies and patient transfers
— paramedics in Halifax participate in the Extended Care Paramedic Program, which allows nursing-home residents to be treated in their home rather than in an emergency department
— a check-in program called VISIT allows paramedics in the Annapolis Valley to check in on some seniors identified by local doctors
— a community-based paramedic program in Cape Breton Regional Municipality offers support to patients after they are released from hospital
Additional Resources:
For information on becoming a paramedic, visit: https://novascotia.ca/dhw/ehs/becoming-a-paramedic.asp
Source: Release
