North Bay cuts ribbon on new call centre

People in the districts of Nipissing, Parry Sound and Temiskaming who are in need of emergency medical services won't notice much of a difference, but for the communication officers and support staff at the North Bay Central Ambulance Communication Centre (CCAC), the new $3 million building they moved into December 1 is a dream come true.

The ambulance communication centre's 20 employees handle approximately 30,000 calls a year within a 60,000-square kilometre area stretching from Kirkland Lake to Sundridge and from West Nipissing to Bisset Creek, halfway between Mattawa and Deep River. 

The new 6,000-square-foot facility is equipped with state-of-the-art computerized telecommunications technology to streamline response times and provides an improved work environment for communication centre staff.

Calls within the region are handled initially by a Central Emergency Response Bureau that routes callers to police, fire and ambulance communication centres, depending on the nature of the emergency.

Once an ambulance communication officer takes a call, he or she has 45 seconds to determine if it's a life-threatening emergency, "but they usually do it much quicker than that," said Marc Picard, manager of the North Bay CACC. "The dispatcher then has one minute and 15 seconds to activate the nearest resource."

There are usually three officers on duty at any one time, but the centre is equipped with four desks and has sufficient space to expand to eight stations if necessary.

Communication officers are able to dispatch calls to 20 ambulances on a typical day shift. Calls from smaller, more remote communities like East Ferris, Redbridge and Field are dispatched to first response teams staffed by volunteers trained in first aid and CPR.

"Redbridge, for example, is 20 kilometres away from North Bay and there isn't an ambulance stationed there all the time," explained Picard.

A prompt and accurate response to a 911 call depends to some extent on the composure of the caller and the communication device being used.

"The most important thing is to listen to the questions we ask and to stay on the line until we tell you to hang up," said Picard.  "People in a traumatic situation tend to be excited and panic. There's a lot of technology out there now to help locate people, but it's not always 100 per cent."

Ambulance communication officers at the North Bay CACC are trained to provide callers with first aid advice, telephone assisted CPR, choking protocols and emergency childbirth instructions.

There are 19 Central Ambulance Communications Centres located throughout the province, including Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care operated centres in Sudbury and Thunder Bay, hospital-operated centres in North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Kenora and a municipally operated facility in Timmins. Moosonee and Parry Sound are served by locally based Ambulance Communications Services (ACS).