Justice Institute of British Columbia (JIBC) actively contributes to the advancement of paramedicine and prehospital care through applied research that is defining and describing paramedic theory and practice.
Paramedicine is a rapidly evolving discipline and paramedics are taking on new roles and responsibilities to better serve their communities and to support an increasingly stressed health care system. Paramedics and other prehospital care providers excel at the core of their profession providing emergency care to the ill and injured.
But paramedics are now practicing in a growing range of practice settings, including industry, mass gatherings and the military, as part of interprofessional teams in emergency and other hospital departments, supporting other health professionals in clinics and medical facilities, and providing primary and extended care in the community.
JIBC faculty and staff provide research and real-world experience and expertise in research ranging from the classroom to defining the discipline.
Projects
Mass Gathering Health (MGH)
Mass gatherings occur when groups of people meet for a specific purpose in sufficient numbers to strain the resources and response capabilities of the host community. Examples include sporting events ranging from single-day triathlons to multi-week Olympic Games, music concerts and multi-day festivals, and large-scale religious and political events.
JIBC is working with partners from UBC’s Mass Gathering Medicine Interest Group, the Torrens Resilience Institute at Flinders University, Griffith University, University of Newcastle to better understand the impact, planning, operations, and outcomes of mass gatherings.
Together, this group has proposed models for key concepts and practices in MGH, a minimum data set for MG research, and explored several areas of providing care in mass gatherings. The group has published over a dozen peer-reviewed articles and conference abstracts and has given presentations on three continents.
Defining and Describing Paramedic Practice in Canada
JIBC is currently leading a national research initiative to define the information needs of key stakeholders in Canadian Paramedicine and publish the first Standards for a national Canadian Paramedic Information System.
Dr. Ron Bowles (Interim Dean, Office of Applied Research & Graduate Studies)is the principal investigator for the project, with JIBC members Kathy Harms (Director, Health Sciences Division) joining our partners from the BC Emergency Health Services, Paramedic Association of Canada, Paramedic Chiefs of Canada, Regional Paramedic Programs of Eastern Ontario, Canadian Standards Association Group, and the Canadian Organization of Paramedic Regulators.
Canadian Paramedic Profile
The Paramedic Association of Canada released an updated Canadian Paramedic Profile in 2016. JIBC faculty were active participants in the overall project and JIBC housed the research study that supported the development of the new profile. The profile is available on the Paramedic Association of Canada’s website and a peer-reviewed article is available on the JIBC Vault.
Who are we? Paramedic practitioners, educators, and students
JIBC has initiated a long-term research project to better understand the demographics, careers, and characteristics of paramedics. The initial study examined the career and education pathways taken by current JIBC students and faculty. Future projects will explore current and future capabilities and educational needs for the practitioner, leadership, education, and research roles in paramedicine.