Dufferin community paramedics Josselyn Hudasek, Krystle Neumann and Cara Burleigh.
SAFE at HOME ROSEMARY HASNER
Instead of rushing them to hospital, community paramedics are helping patients stay in their own home. BY GAIL GRANT
T
hinking back, Joan McDonald was aware the living arrangement she shared with her husband, David, occasionally put the couple in a vulnerable position. Both in their 70s, they loved their relatively isolated rural property in Mono, but for a few months during the winter of 2020, the ice buildup in the courtyard outside their door made them virtual prisoners. Joan was in line for hip replacement surgery and used a cane to get around, while David’s medical conditions meant he was somewhat unsteady on his feet. Friends and family were keeping an eye on them, and they were grateful for home grocery delivery. One blustery morning in February, Joan, a registered nurse and elder-care consultant, phoned David’s doctor with a question about a new symptom. The doctor needed
bloodwork to make an effective diagnosis and offered to fax the requisition to the lab in Orangeville. But with neither Joan nor David able to navigate the ice field surrounding them, they couldn’t get to their car. Then Joan remembered a chance conversation with a friend about a community paramedicine program offered by the Dufferin County Paramedic Service. She found a phone number online, made the call and, later that day, a sympathetic and knowledgeable paramedic was on their doorstep. The paramedic took David’s vitals, drew blood and, after consulting by phone with David’s doctor, administered an electrocardiogram. He faxed the ECG results to the doctor and dropped the blood samples at the lab in Orangeville for analysis. Early the next day, with up-to-the-minute information in hand, the doctor was able to advise the couple, C O N T I N U E D O N N E X T PA G E
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