Smooth was never fast.

A recent article from CBC news pinged my email news alert related to my career. It was an unfortunate situation out of Yorkton, SK. A Paramedic crew responded to a male patient in status seizure and upon arrival had to remove themselves from the scene to don proper PPE. The family alleges this process took ten minutes and upon returning into the scene with the right gear the patient went into cardiac arrest five minutes later. The patient was later pronounced dead.

Yorkton family says delay as paramedics dressed in COVID-19 protective gear contributed to son's death.

This unfortunate scenario plays out each and every day in Ontario's approximately 60 Paramedic Services. Trust me when I say that it is a thorn in the side of each and every one of some 8000 Paramedics across this province who perform their duties admirably in very stressful working conditions, both pre-COVID-19 and even more so today. But this is simply the nature of the system that we are working in today. I grieve with this family on this loss. My heart pours out to them. But while the minute details are locked in secret and may be for some time what I can say confidently is that these Paramedics did what they had to do for their own safety and the safety of the public. In the midst of a pandemic Paramedics and all emergency responders must take the appropriate safety measures to protect themselves and every member of the public they come in contact with, be it the patient themselves, bystanders, family members, etc. We utilize screening tools developed primarily from local and provincial public health agencies. We wear some degree of PPE into the scene (your mileage may vary depending on policy) and when a patient fails the screening tool or new clinical assessment information surfaces we remove ourselves from the scene and "upgrade" our PPE if you will. This is important. This is necessary. To this family, I'm sorry it hurt you or made it seem like your son was not a priority - he was. Every single patient encounter is a priority for Paramedics. That's why they do the job they do. But the number one priority is safety. Imagine for a minute a Paramedic contracting COVID-19 and unknowingly spreading it to sixteen more families over the next few days until they become symptomatic. Everybody knows healthcare workers are considered high risk based on their job description and as such we must take what sometimes seems like extreme measures to protect ourselves.

There's an old saying that goes "Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast". The reality is this saying has always been a bit of a misnomer, because smooth isn't usually fast at all. It's "calculated". And calculated is exactly how you should expect and want your paramedic, nurse, doctor, etc. to perform. It's not fast, and it never will be, but it's important.

As I perused social media comments and banter on this article I came across two very distinct groups: 1) Those involved in some degree of emergency services who stand by the Paramedics in this story, and 2) The public who is extremely upset at a broken system and vilifying the Paramedic crew. But neither of those polarized viewpoints are beneficial and is akin to arguing religion. Instead we must examine the middle ground. We must empathize with a grieving family and understand their loss. Grief makes people say some things they don't really mean out of anger. They look to blame. We must allow this family to feel this way and ask for an investigation. That is their right - we must respect and honour their wishes to ask for such and not belittle them. Let them ask questions and obtain answers. Let them be informed. On the flipside the public needs to be educated and understand why their Paramedics are doing the things that they do. When they understand they become less frustrated at a system that is operating in slow motion. I've seen some great media releases to the general public from Paramedic Services on the process of how a call will go in current ongoing pandemic. But these were very few and far between and we could probably do better. Get on the TV, get on the radio, get on social media and explain the "Why". We can't assume because people see COVID-19 news everyday on their television that they know how a call to 9-1-1 will go down in their own home. So let's work together and find the middle ground in this situation: One that allows a family to be hurt, ask questions, and find out if there is anything that could be improved upon. And one that uses this as an opportunity to work with the public and inform them of what can - and must happen at every single medical emergency until this pandemic is behind us.

Some other members of the public commented that we should just wear PPE the entire shift, "like police officers do", to speed things up. This is simply not a solution in any way shape or form. At this point I feel the majority of the public has to be aware of the ongoing PPE shortage in the healthcare industry in North America and around the world. Ontario has thousands of Paramedics working at any given time in this province. Every time a Paramedic puts on their PPE, one of them will be for the last time that shift. And that last time will result in discarded gowns, masks, gloves, etc. Within one week this alone would number in the tens of thousands of wastage of valuable gear. It's simply not an option, I can't elaborate any further. Secondly there is an issue of cross contamination. Yes Paramedics make a conscious effort to remain clean, however we encounter many environments throughout the course of our day. We frequent take-out fast food restaurants. We stand, sit, type, etc at our stations. They are not exactly sterile environments. Would you want a Paramedic entering your home in PPE that has seen hours of wear around a variety of environments and then coming close to your ailing family? The answer is a resounding absolutely not.

To the Jacobs family: I'm sorry this occurred. I'm sorry this pandemic is going on. I'm sorry for the loss of your son. But on the surface it appears that no Paramedic or "system" failed your son. A life-threatening seizure did. Would extra minutes on your side have helped? Maybe, maybe not. But have confidence the next time you call 9-1-1 your Paramedics will continue to respond and fight with every ounce of well being they have for the health of you and your family. That's what we do.