November 3, 2020
Province Amending Legislation and Regulations to Create New College of Paramedics
The Manitoba government is making amendments to existing legislation and regulations that would allow for the creation of the College of Paramedics, Health, Seniors and Active Living Minister Cameron Friesen announced today.
“Paramedics are highly skilled health-care professionals who provide quality, life-saving care on the front lines right across the province,” said Friesen. “Our government committed to establishing paramedicine as a self-regulating health profession and this is the last step in the process. It will improve the quality of care provided to Manitobans, support the professional growth of paramedics and increase transparency in the regulation of the profession.”
Currently, paramedicine is not self-regulating like some other health professions in Manitoba. Instead, paramedics are licensed by the province under the Emergency Medical Response and Stretcher Transportation Act.
Establishing paramedics as a self-regulating profession under the Regulated Health Professions Act (RHPA) would enhance the quality of care provided by paramedics across Manitoba by ensuring more accountability for the competency of practice, uniform maintenance of practice standards and increased transparency in the regulation of the profession.
“The College of Paramedics of Manitoba is honoured to become the regulatory body for the profession of paramedicine in the province of Manitoba,” said Dr. John Wade CM, chair of the transitional council of the College of Paramedics of Manitoba. “We will protect the public interest by regulating the practice of paramedicine in Manitoba in accordance with the Regulated Health Professions Act, the Practice of Paramedicine Regulation and the College of Paramedics of Manitoba General Regulation, while respecting our values of leadership, collaboration, accountability, transparency and integrity.”
The RHPA is umbrella legislation that sets out consistent rules and processes for governance, registration, complaints and discipline, and regulation and bylaw making authority for health profession regulatory colleges. For paramedics to be regulated under the RHPA, changes must be made to several pieces of legislation and regulations including:
• making amendments to the Practice of Paramedicine Regulation and the Regulated Health Professions General Regulation, as well as enacting the new College of Paramedics of Manitoba General Regulation under the Regulated Health Professions Act;
• proclaiming specific sections of bill 14 to amend the Emergency Medical Response and Stretcher Transportation Act and the Testing of Bodily Fluids and Disclosure Act; and
• amending the Air Emergency Medical Response System Regulation, the Land Emergency Medical Response System Regulation and the Stretcher Transportation Services Regulation.
“Self-regulation will allow paramedics to provide services as members of interdisciplinary care teams and to deliver services consistent with Manitoba’s Clinical and Preventative Services Plan,” said Friesen. “These legislative amendments will activate the College of Paramedics of Manitoba and provide it with the authority to be the regulatory body for paramedicine in Manitoba.”
Changes to the proposed legislation are expected to come into effect on Dec. 1.
Other recent investments and initiatives in emergency services provincewide include:
• purchasing 65 new ambulances, which will represent a refresh of approximately one-third of the province’s overall fleet when delivered;
• reducing ambulance fees in the past four years by approximately 50 per cent to $250, making emergency care more affordable and accessible; and
• creating an additional 149.2 full-time equivalent (FTE) paramedic positions since 2016 including 35 FTE positions in the past year.
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