Alan M Batt

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Verified

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• PhD PGCME MAcadMEd SFHEA
• Associate Professor of Paramedicine (adjunct) at Monash University (Australia)

The addition of a Policy and Strategy pathway to the Career Framework for Paramedics in Canada represents a pivotal advancement for the profession, attempting to address our longstanding absence in senior health policy roles. In this commentary we explore the concept of paramedics in policymaking, emphasizing the perspectives paramedics bring to st...

Paramedicine is a domain of practice and health profession that specialises in the provision of health and social care across a range of settings including, but not limited to, emergency and primary care. Paramedics work in a variety of clinical settings such as paramedics services, hospitals, and clinics, in the community as well as non-clinical r...

Introduction: Paramedic practice is highly variable, occurs in diverse contexts, and involves the assessment and management of a range of presentations of varying acuity across the lifespan. As a result, attempts to define paramedic practice have been challenging and incomplete. This has led to inaccurate or under-representations of practice that...

Community paramedic roles are expanding internationally, and no review of the literature could be found to guide services in the formation of community paramedicine programmes. For this reason, the aim of this restricted review was to explore and better understand the successes and learnings of community paramedic programmes across five domains bei...

Competency frameworks are developed for a variety of purposes, including describing professional practice and informing education and assessment frameworks. Despite the volume of competency frameworks developed in the healthcare professions, guidance remains unclear and is inconsistently adhered to (perhaps in part due to a lack of organising frame...

This chapter seeks to demystify and dispel your anxiety related to philosophical perspectives by providing you with accessible descriptions and encouraging you to take time to delve into and grapple with these concepts. There is no pattern of where you necessarily ‘sit’ or ‘should sit’ on the spectrum of paradigms. Much like political views, you ma...

This chapter seeks to (i) provide advice on the foundational elements of pursuing a research career in paramedicine, (ii) outline various education programme choices, (iii) offer insights into the requirements and expectations at each level of study, (iv) provide structure to determining research topics, and (v) demonstrate the relationship between...

Introduction: Traditional rapid-assessment models may not be fully suited for the complex non-acute presentations that paramedics commonly encounter. As paramedicine evolves to meet non-acute patient needs, extended practice community paramedic roles are emerging to deliver holistic and collaborative community-based healthcare. Purpose: This commen...

The evolving role of paramedics presents a unique opportunity to enhance care for people who use drugs, a population disproportionately affected by systemic barriers and inequities. With today’s healthcare systems often fragmented and difficult to navigate, paramedics are well-positioned to bridge gaps in the care continuum through enhanced system...

Delphi studies in disaster medicine lack consensus on expert agreement metrics. This study examined various metrics using a Delphi study on chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) preparedness in the Middle East and North Africa region. Forty international disaster medicine experts evaluated 133 items across ten CBRN Preparedness Ass...

This tool guides the assessment of community health and social needs, as well as resource and workforce capacity when developing community paramedicine programs. English - https://www.healthcareexcellence.ca/en/resources/welcome-to-the-community-paramedicine-needs-assessment-tool-cpnat/

This tool guides the assessment of community health and social needs, as well as resource and workforce capacity when developing community paramedicine programs. French - https://www.healthcareexcellence.ca/fr/ressources/bienvenue-dans-l-outil-d-evaluation-des-besoins-en-paramedecine-communautaire-cpnat/

Background Research is challenging in the unpredictable out-of-hospital setting and internationally research capacity and culture in paramedicine has developed slowly. In Ireland significant progress in education and research has been made in recent years and a national research strategy is currently being developed by the statutory regulator, the...

INTRODUCTION • Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) incidents pose increasing transborder risks globally, necessitating enhanced health sector preparedness. • No published study has proposed a prototype for a unified healthcare readiness checklist or cohesive training and response guidelines for CBRN incidents across the Middle Ea...

Objective Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) incidents require meticulous preparedness, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. This study evaluated CBRN response operational flowcharts, tabletop training scenarios methods, and a health sector preparedness assessment tool specific to the MENA region. Met...

Introduction Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) incidents pose a significant threat globally, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region due to its complex geopolitical differences and fragile health infrastructure in most countries. Despite notable efforts to enhance CBRN preparedness in MENA countries, thes...

Health and social needs exist along a dynamic continuum. Recognising that health status is inextricably impacted by social determinants of health, community paramedicine has opportunities and a responsibility to reduce inequities. The objective of this scoping review was to investigate the peer-reviewed and grey literature to explore how community...

Health and social needs exist along a dynamic continuum. Recognizing that health status is inextricably impacted by social determinants of health, community paramedicine has opportunities and a responsibility to reduce inequities. The objective of this scoping review was to investigate peer-reviewed and grey literature to explore how community para...

Introduction Community paramedics provide care in a diverse range of settings that address the needs of the communities they serve. Their practice may include the provision of primary health care, health promotion, chronic and episodic disease management, clinical assessment, and needs-based interventions. There is an ongoing need for national guid...

Background Paramedicine is a dynamic profession which has evolved from a “treat and transport” service into a complex network of health professionals working in a diverse range of clinical roles. Research is challenging in the paramedicine context, and internationally, research capacity and culture has developed slowly. International examples of re...

Introduction Despite high prevalence, access to mental healthcare for Canadian youth is limited, with less than 20% receiving adequate treatment. Marginalised and at-risk youth face particular challenges, including cultural misunderstandings, long wait times and negative care experiences. A competency framework for mental health clinicians working...

A key component to the continued development of any profession is a strong research culture. For paramedicine, a research culture that acknowledges the uniqueness of the out-of-hospital setting allows clinical practice to develop. Recent international publications investigating paramedicine research outputs demonstrated that Ireland was not strongl...

Background Paramedicine research and education has progressed significantly over the past two decades in Ireland. The Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council recently commissioned a research team to develop a new National Research Strategy for Irish paramedicine. The strategy will serve to build research capacity and establish research priorities into...

The objective of this scoping review is to explore existing psychoeducational training programmes that prepare family members of first responders to a) recognise the signs of declining mental health in their loved ones and b) provide basic psychosocial support following difficult workplace events. We will also examine how these training interventio...

The Career Framework for Paramedics provides all paramedic stakeholders guidance and clarity on the roles and abilities of paramedics in Canada. The framework promotes paramedicine as a career option for a wide range of individuals as well as giving a clear sense of the ways in which to progress throughout a career, including degree level education...

Paramedics are increasingly being subjected to violence, creating the potential for significant physical and psychological harm. Where a patient has a history of violent behavior, hazard flags—applied either to the individual, their residential address, or phone number—can alert paramedics to the possibility of violence, potentially reducing the ri...

Violence against paramedics is widely recognized as a serious, but underreported, problem. While injurious physical attacks on paramedics are generally reported, non-physical violence is less likely to be documented. Verbal abuse can be very distressing, particularly if the harassment targets personal or cultural identities, such as race, ethnicity...

IntroductionParamedicine is a domain of practice and health profession that specialises in the provision of health and social care across a range of settings including, but not limited to, emergency and primary care. Paramedics work in a variety of clinical settings such as paramedics services, hospitals, and clinics, in the community as well as no...

Introduction: Paramedic practice is highly variable, occurs in diverse contexts, and involves the assessment and management of a range of presentations of varying acuity across the lifespan. As a result, attempts to define paramedic practice have been challenging and incomplete. This has led to inaccurate or under-representations of practice that c...

Paramedic practice requires highly educated, skilled, compassionate, and professional paramedics, which the profession strives to produce by continuously evolving education and professional requirements. However, the portrayal of paramedics in mass media has not evolved to match, and indeed the profession itself is complicit in some of these inaccu...

Violence against paramedics is increasingly recognized as an important occupational health problem, but pervasive and institutionalized underreporting hinders efforts at risk mitigation. Earlier research has shown that the organizational culture within paramedicine may contribute to underreporting, and researchers have recommended involving paramed...

Health and social needs exist along a dynamic continuum. Recognizing that health status is inextricably impacted by social determinants of health, community paramedicine has opportunities and a responsibility to reduce inequities. The objective of this scoping review was to investigate peer-reviewed and grey literature to explore how community para...

Violence against paramedics is increasingly recognized as an important occupational health problem, but pervasive and institutionalized underreporting hinders efforts at risk mitigation. Earlier research has shown that the organizational culture within paramedicine may contribute to underreporting and researchers have recommended involving paramedi...

Paramedics are increasingly being subjected to violence, creating the potential for significant physical and psychological harm. Where a patient has a history of violent behavior, hazard flags - applied either to the individual, their residential address, or phone number - can alert paramedics to the possibility of violence, potentially reducing th...

Violence against paramedics is widely recognized as a serious, but underreported, problem. While injurious physical attacks on paramedics are generally reported, non-physical violence is less likely to be documented. Verbal abuse can be very distressing, particularly if the harassment targets personal or cultural identities, such as race, ethnicity...

Background and aims: Paramedics attend an unprecedented number of drug poisoning events daily in British Columbia (BC), Canada, due to the ongoing public health crisis related to an increasingly toxic and unregulated street supply of illicit drugs. Paramedics have the potential to support alternative models of care to reduce harm, but their perspec...

Introduction: Health and social needs exist along a dynamic continuum. Recognizing that health status is inextricably impacted by social determinants of health, there exists opportunities and a professional responsibility to better understand how community paramedicine can address social needs in effort to reduce healthcare inequities.Aim: The prim...

Background and Aims: Paramedics attend an unprecedented number of drug poisoning events daily in British Columbia (BC), Canada due to the ongoing public health crisis related to an increasingly toxic and unregulated supply of illicit drugs. Paramedics have the potential to support alternative models of care to reduce harm, but their perspectives to...

Paramedicine's identity is evolving. As paramedicine strives for professional recognition, part of this process must involve defining and understanding the boundaries of the profession which will in turn inform its identity. This editorial explores the evolving identity.

The ability to communicate well is the single most important skill for a paramedic. But, despite an emphasis on communication in paramedicine assessment and standards, there has never been a resource specifically tailored to the unique environments in which paramedics practise. This new book fills that gap. Communication in Paramedic Practice is d...

Violence against paramedics has been described as a ‘serious public health problem’ but one that remains ‘vastly underreported’, owing to an organizational culture that stigmatizes reporting–hindering efforts at risk mitigation in addition to creating a gap in research. Leveraging a novel reporting process developed after extensive stakeholder cons...

Objective: This study aims to investigate the experiences of individuals involved in implementing and delivering community paramedicine programmes across several different regions internationally, in order to identify key themes that can inform ongoing development and introduction of community paramedicine programmes. Methods: In this study, partic...

Violence against paramedics has been described as a ‘serious public health problem’ but one that remains ‘vastly underreported’, owing to an organizational culture that stigmatizes reporting – hindering efforts at risk mitigation in addition to creating a gap in research. Leveraging a novel reporting process developed after extensive stakeholder co...

Introduction British Columbia Emergency Health Service (BCEHS) trialed the use of intranasal (IN) ketamine given by Primary Care Paramedics (PCPs). Prior to this practice change, the PCPs had not performed weight-based drug calculations, given medications intranasally, nor been responsible for controlled and targeted substances. This study aimed to...

In this editorial, we will make the case for engaging with theory and conceptual frameworks, and secondly, discuss ways in which paramedicine researchers can incorporate theory and/or conceptual frameworks into their work and subsequent publication in Paramedicine. Drawing on our own research we aim to provide practical insights and guidance on how...

describes a mixed methods program of research undertaken in a single paramedic service in Ontario, Canada, following the introduction of a novel, point-of-event violence reporting process. Broadly, the research seeks to describe (1) the prevalence and characteristics of violence against paramedics; (2) its contributing circumstances; and (3) risk f...

Introduction Violence against paramedics has been described as a “serious public health problem”, but one that remains “vastly underreported” - in part, owing to an organizational culture that encourages paramedics to ‘brush off’ violent interactions as ‘part of the job’. A lack of reliable reporting data hinders risk mitigation strategies. Followi...

Introduction As the paramedic profession continues to grow and evolve, a shift from purely reactive to holistic patient care models is required. As the first and often the only point of medical contact for many patients from marginalised and under-served populations, the paramedic role and its potential future implications in caring for these patie...

In summary, we encourage an understanding of professional autonomy that examines power and control in nuanced terms and that draws on a range of theoretical insights. In this way, professional autonomy is most appropriately conceptualized as an emergent concept that should be understood by considering the economic and socio-cultural relationships b...

The paramedic profession in Canada has undergone significant evolution in the professional scope of practice, contexts of paramedic practice, paramedic education, paramedic research and relevant standards development in the last decade. This rapid evolution, along with emerging issues within Canadian society have led to new standards work, increase...

Introduction: As the paramedic profession continues to grow and evolve, a shift from reactive to holistic patient care models is required. As the first and often the only point of medical contact for many patients from marginalized and under-served populations, the paramedic role, and its potential future implications in caring for these patients n...

PAC has partnered with the CSA Group to manage the renewal of the existing National Occupational Competency Profile (NOCP) and incorporate it into a new standard following accredited processes of the Standards Council of Canada – the National Occupational Standard for Paramedics (NOSP). In this article we will provide a further update on the develo...

The National Occupational Competency Profile (NOCP)-the competency framework for paramedics in Canada-is presently undergoing revision. Since the NOCP was published in 2011, paramedic practice, healthcare, and society have changed dramatically. To inform the revision, we sought to identify emerging concepts in the literature that would inform the d...

The National Occupational Competency Profile (NOCP) – the competency framework for paramedics in Canada – is presently undergoing revision. Since the NOCP was published in 2011, paramedic practice, healthcare and society have changed dramatically. To inform the revision, we sought to identify emerging concepts in the literature that would inform th...

Background In 2020, there were 4,352 people waiting for organ transplantation in Canada. A rise in demand has led to national exploration of non-traditional pathways for organ donation to increase the potential pool of donors and subsequent transplant recipients. Donation after Cardiac Death (DCD) has become a promising option across Canada and in...

Background Already well situated in the community, paramedics work collaboratively with other community partners to ensure patients receive the services that they require and the high quality in-home and in-community care they deserve. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the prevalence of social inequities in Canada, particularly in alrea...

Background : Irish health policy emphasises the role of Primary Care and General Practice however, there is a growing shortage of General Practitioners (GPs) in Ireland. Paramedics have traditionally focused on emergency care in the community. More recently Paramedics have taken on roles in General Practice in international jurisdictions, but not y...

https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=ud9-EAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA23&ots=vEdiPKYLnP&sig=vBYnX07h6T3B5NtqRH-wIxqnG-Y#v=onepage&q&f=false

Competency frameworks typically describe the perceived knowledge, skills, attitudes and other characteristics required for a health professional to practice safely and effectively. Patient and public involvement in the development of competency frameworks is uncommon despite delivery of person-centered care being a defining feature of a competent h...

PAC has partnered with the CSA Group to manage the renewal of the existing National Occupational Competency Profile (NOCP) and incorporate it into a new standard following accredited processes of the Standards Council of Canada – the National Occupational Standard for Paramedics (NOSP). Following on from our earlier update in March, in this article...

Background : Irish health policy emphasises the role of Primary Care and General Practice however, there is a growing shortage of General Practitioners (GPs) in Ireland. Paramedics have traditionally focused on emergency care in the community. More recently Paramedics have taken on roles in General Practice in international jurisdictions, but not y...

Competency frameworks outline the perceived knowledge, skills and other attributes required for professional practice. Competency frameworks have gained in popularity, in part for their ability to inform health professions education, assessment, professional mobility, and other activities. Previous research has shown inadequate reporting within rep...

INTRODUCTION The declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, and the subsequent public health measures across Canada demanded a change in service delivery models from many health care professions, including paramedics. This change particularly challenged community paramedicine programs in terms of meeting the needs of most vulnerable popula...

INTRODUCTION Canada spans approximately 9.98 million km2 of land (which equates to approximately 40 times the size of the UK) and is comprised of a geographically diverse federal system of 10 provinces and 3 territories. It has a total of 12 Organ Transplant Centres (OTCs) (Figure1), however these are not located in every province and territory. I...

Commissioned by the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (Ireland).

We performed a scoping exercise of 34 community paramedicine programmes in Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the Republic of Ireland. We report on scope of role (including medication prescribing as appropriate); methods of service delivery and program design; entry requirements; education...

A systems thinking approach may enable us to identify the contexts of paramedic practice, the differing features of such contexts, and in turn further our understanding of paramedic practice.

Introduction Healthcare practice has become increasingly diverse with healthcare professionals expected to possess a high level of technical skills, clinical acumen, leadership, situational awareness, and the ability to interact with progressively complex networks of interprofessional healthcare systems with technologies that are constantly evolvin...

Competency frameworks are developed for a variety of purposes, including describing professional practice and informing education and assessment frameworks. Despite the volume of competency frameworks developed in the healthcare professions, guidance remains unclear and is inconsistently adhered to (perhaps in part due to a lack of organising frame...

Competency frameworks are developed for a variety of purposes, including describing professional practice and informing education and assessment frameworks. Despite the volume of competency frameworks developed in the healthcare professions, guidance remains unclear and is inconsistently adhered to (perhaps in part due to a lack of organising frame...

Already well situated in the community, paramedics work collaboratively with other community partners to help ensure patients receive the services that they require and the high quality in-home and in-community care they deserve. Community paramedicine programs aim to allow patients in all stages of life (e.g., older adults, persons with disabiliti...

Introduction Competency frameworks provide a link between professional practice, education, training, and assessment. They support and inform downstream processes such as curriculum design, assessment, accreditation and professional accountability. However, existing guidelines are limited in accounting for the complexities of professional practice...

Background Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is a major cause of mortality worldwide. Recent studies demonstrated low survival rates in Middle Eastern countries. Anecdotally there are unique demographic, cultural and logistical challenges in this region. However, there remains a paucity of data published on OHCA in the Middle East. In order to...

Introduction Paramedics are frequently present at the death of patients and are in a position to provide grief support to family members who are suddenly bereaved, but existing education and system resources have failed to provide paramedics with the necessary tools to do so. Although the literature emphasizes the importance of providing grief trai...

The development of competency frameworks in healthcare professions is characterised by potentially inadequate descriptions of practice, variable developmental approaches, and inconsistent reporting and evaluating of outcomes. This may be in part due to limited existing guidance, which neglects broader contexts, lacks organising frameworks, and fail...

Introduction Competency frameworks provide a link between professional practice, education, training, and assessment. They support and inform downstream processes such as curriculum design, assessment, accreditation and professional accountability. However, existing guidelines are limited in accounting for the complexities of professional practice...

In this editorial, I discuss the importance of understanding social determinants of health to paramedic practice, and outline some 'hidden' elements of paramedic practice that remain poorly understood due to a lack of understanding of what we do. I suggest that a 'ground-up' rethink of what paramedics need to know might be worth considering.

Paramedics are frequently present at the death of patients and are in a position to provide grief support to family members who are suddenly bereaved, but existing education and system resources have failed to provide paramedics with the necessary tools to do so. Although the literature emphasizes the importance of providing grief training from ini...

Background Competency frameworks serve various roles including outlining characteristics of a competent workforce, facilitating mobility, and analysing or assessing expertise. Given these roles and their relevance in the health professions, we sought to understand the methods and strategies used in the development of existing competency frameworks....

Paramedics are frequently present at the death of patients and are in a position to provide grief support to family members who are suddenly bereaved, but existing education and system resources have failed to provide paramedics with the necessary tools to do so. Although the literature emphasizes the importance of providing grief training from ini...

Research indicates students of lower socioeconomic status (SES) are educationally disadvantaged. We sought to examine differences in paramedic student academic performance from counties with varying SES in the United States. Student performance data and SES data were combined for counties within the states of California, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tex...

Background/Purpose Competency frameworks serve many roles including outlining characteristics of a competent workforce, facilitating professional mobility, and structuring curriculum and assessment. Given their significance in health professions, we sought to understand the strategies used in the development of existing competency frameworks. Meth...

Background/Purpose The nature of clinical practice is ever-changing, varies according to the attributes of those enacting it, and poses complex questions that must be considered within context. As such, healthcare professionals need the ability to understand and respond to the larger contexts of the healthcare system. Existing approaches to descri...