The County of Simcoe unveiled its new 200 square-metre paramedic post in Springwater Wednesday, part of its Building Up initiative.
Located on Snow Valley Road, just west of Bayfield Street, the new facility supports quicker 9-1-1 call response times. It's the 24th active paramedic post within Simcoe County.
"In all the years that I've heard people talk, I've never had anybody say, 'gee, I wish that ambulance hadn't got here so soon,'" Warden Basil Clarke said at the opening.
He added that the paramedic service has now serviced 530,000 residents in 18 municipalities, receiving more than 8,700 calls a year. That's an average of around 24 calls per day over a calendar year.
"Minutes just seem like hours when you're in that situation, and it's such a relief when you hear the siren or even just see the lights coming up the driveway."
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This facility represents a continuation of the County of Simcoe Paramedic Services’ long-term emergency response strategy. It follows a 'hub and spoke' model endorsed in 2008.
"We have spokes strategically placed throughout the city of Barrie and on its periphery to improve our response times and get into the community faster," Director and Chief of Paramedic Services Sarah Mills said to Barrie360.
County paramedics begin and end their shifts at the Barrie Emergency Services Campus. Paramedics use the many satellite posts as rest and support stations.
The cost of the post on Snow Valley Road cost $3.8 million, and was built over the last year.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
A priority of the County was to ensure the new facility meets the needs of a growing local population. It also made sure to limit the environmental footprint where possible while providing high-quality service.
BENEFITS AND FEATURES
- Pneumatic air-controlled doors enable faster vehicle exit, helping reduce emergency response times
- An internally developed RFID sensor system enhances security and integrates seamlessly with the County’s entire fleet
- Designed and constructed to produce zero greenhouse gases and is a net-zero carbon building
- A rooftop solar array offsets emissions from any electricity drawn from the provincial grid
- High efficiency electrically powered equipment provides heating of space and water, and a high-performance insulation and low flow plumbing contribute to reduced energy and water consumption
- For added public safety, the site also includes an externally mounted 9-1-1 phone and AED for emergency use
FUTURE PLANS
This is the second of five planned paramedic post builds within Barrie and surrounding areas. The first completed is on Ross Street in Barrie, and the St. Paul's neighbourhood is set host a future post.
Midhurst's new facility is advantageously next to the site of a yet-to-be completed Springwater fire hall.
"They're part of our tiered response system, so on some of the medical calls that we respond to, they will be responding also, " Mills added. "But, our planning is done very specifically for paramedic services."
Mills added that the paramedic services don't necessarily plan
"Our paramedics play a vital role in protecting the health and well-being of our communities," Clarke said in a news release. "We're proud to continue building up a stronger, safer Simcoe County. This new Springwater post reflects our commitment to investing in modern infrastructure that supports faster response times and better care for our residents."
