Primary Care Paramedic (PCP)

Primary Care Paramedics (PCPs) are the backbone of the EMS system in British Columbia. They possess a strong foundation in emergency prehospital care and are trained to work in unpredictable and dynamic environments while ensuring safe, proficient and efficient patient care and transportation.

PCPs are often the first EMS resource on the scene of an emergency. They are highly skilled in call management, patient assessment, treatment, triage, inter-agency response, scene management and safe, timely transport.

Primary Care Paramedics are educated and equipped to handle many events ranging from routine elderly and community support (including lift assists and wellness checks) to complex medical and traumatic emergencies requiring technical skills and interventions.

PCPs can perform a variety of skills and procedures ranging from symptom relief management to critical life-saving interventions, such as;

• • Assessment and monitoring of all patient presentations, obtaining vital signs including blood pressure, pulse oximetry and glucose levels, and intervening in all critical primary survey interventions.
  • Airway and respiratory management, including the use of airway insertion, Bag-Valve Mask (BVMs), continuous positive airway pressure devices (CPAP), extraglottic airway devices (iGels) and oropharynx suctioning.
  • The initiation and maintenance of intravenous fluids, including normal saline, D10W and various other medications.
  • Cardiac arrest management with the use of an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED)

In addition to their Primary Care Paramedic education from an accredited post-secondary institution, PCP’s have been trained in Basic International Trauma Life Support (ITLS), Airway Intervention and Management in Emergency (AIME) and Prehospital Care for Pediatric Patients (PEPP).