ESTEVAN - Working with Estevan Emergency Medical Services (EMS) has proven to be a rewarding and at times unpredictable career for Bobbi-Jo Davis.
She started working as a primary care paramedic (PCP) in Estevan in June 2003, about a year after she graduated from the Estevan Comprehensive School. In an interview with the Mercury and SaskToday, she said she wasn't sure what she wanted to do once she finished at the Comp. until a school counsellor suggested a career with the EMS.
"It was something that she had thrown out there as an idea, and it seemed like a good one, so I went to school for it," Davis recalled.
After graduation, she worked briefly before starting school at Saskatchewan Polytechnic in December 2002. She graduated in May 2003.
"It's very fast-paced," said Davis. "It's set up like a 9-5 type of education. You don't have breaks. You wouldn't take a class in the morning and then have a three-hour break. It's class all day … it's very busy, and they cram a lot in."
The course has changed a lot since she was a student, and she believes it now takes a year to complete.
"Back when I went to school, you had to have an 80 per cent to pass, and it was per item, every final, every mid-term, everything had to be over 80 per cent," said Davis.
When she started, her role was still listed as an emergency medical technician. She has a hard time believing it's been nearly 21 years already, since, as she said with a laugh, "I'm definitely not old enough."
Her experience also makes her one of the most tenured members with the Estevan EMS team, which consists of 12 people.
Davis said she enjoys supporting and helping people in the community during challenging times. And much like other first responder professions, she pointed out that no two days are the same.
"It keeps you on your toes, and means that you have to adapt to changes on the fly. And we always work in a team. There's always two of us, so you're always working with somebody that you spend a lot of your time working shift work with, and on call," said Davis.
Her shift partner changes roughly once per year, but that partner will inevitably need to take time off during the year for a holiday or illness, so she will wind up working with a few different people.
Davis is thankful to be able to work with great people at Estevan EMS. They sometimes spend very long stretches of time together, and everyone has a role to play that they do well.
Working as a paramedic requires her to continually refresh and upgrade her training. When she was an EMT, she had to secure her National Occupational Competency Profile 2011, which added a bunch of skills to her repertoire.
"We weren't able to give IVs, nebulize medication and things like that prior to then, so they increased our skill level, and then every year we have to do continual education to keep our licence with the College of Paramedics," said Davis. "They have a bare minimum requirement of different areas."
Each year they take courses for CPR, documentation and mental health, and there's a trauma life-support program every two years.
"From that, you have a more variable area that you can pick and choose what you want to refresh on education or renew, and it could be on anything from childbirth to burns," said Davis.
As a PCP, Davis said there are a lot of things they do that the public would understand, but there are other things that people might not be aware of. They work with the local palliative care program. They provide treatment to people who choose not to be transported to the hospital.
"In some situations, we're able to help you at home, and you don't need further care. We don't always travel to all of our calls with our lights and sirens on. The majority of our calls, you wouldn't even know. We're just driving to them with no lights and sirens on," said Davis.
She said a career in EMS has proven to be rewarding. When she decided to go to school in 2002, she was only 18, so she didn't know what to expect.
"There are definitely moments where it is very rewarding, how you can help someone and change things, or just be there and support them in a challenging time for them," Davis said.
In recent years, Estevan EMS has had its Spooky Ambulance promotion at Halloween, which proved to be a hit with people in the community. Staff members decorated one of the ambulances in a Cars theme one year and a Ghostbusters theme in another. They have also had a display at the Woodlawn Regional Park's Festival of Lights.
Estevan EMS has occasional tours for school kids in their facility attached to St. Joseph's Hospital, and other times an ambulance will be taken to schools, daycares or camps so kids can tour it.
"They're usually very excited, and typically they're able to come into the trucks and touch and see. And usually, there's somebody in the group that wants to tell their story of how they rode in an ambulance, and they're usually quite happy to see us," said Davis.
"I know we enjoy doing it because it makes it a safe place for kids, so if they are to need the ambulance, it's not big and scary. They're somewhat as familiar as they can be with the situation that they're in."
Davis said the majority of people are appreciative of Estevan EMS's efforts. They have to deal with people in stressful situations, and people can be emotional, but Davis said the EMS crews understand people's reactions aren't personal.
Call volumes for Estevan EMS have definitely increased from 20 years ago, she said, but it's a great career that she would recommend to anyone who is interested, especially since they and other units in the province are short-staffed, like other health-care professions.
