A busy year for paramedics 

The Kahnawake Fire Brigade’s ambulance crew responded to a record number of calls last year, more than any prior year. That figure includes 1,568 calls – up from 1,488 in 2023 – representing over 2,800 hours of service, according to new statistics released by the brigade.

Interim fire chief Wihse Stacey said it comes down to a growing population on the territory. Non-locals that work or pass through the community also represent a significant portion of those treated by their paramedics, he said. 

“We have a population that increases during the day. People come here to work, so there's an increase there, people who are traveling through the territory, to the gaming establishments,” Stacey said. 

He said pre-pandemic, their paramedic crew would generally field about 1,200-1,300 calls per year.

There were more calls last year for assaults in comparison to the prior year, the statistics released last week reveal. Last year, paramedics provided care for victims of assault 31 times. In 2023, this happened 11 times. 

The jump coincides with more assault and domestic violence files being opened by the Kahnawake Peacekeepers. There were 102 assault cases opened by the police force last year, up from 79 in 2023, alongside 59 domestic violence files, up from 34 the year prior.

“It’s our job to ensure that victims of crime also have the care that they require,” police chief Dwayne Zacharie said. “Whether it’s domestic violence or an assault that’s not related to domestic violence, we ensure that people receive the care that they need.”

As for why there are more assault and domestic violence reports being made, Zacharie said more awareness of their services, and more willingness from victims to come forward, could explain the trend. 

“We have that domestic violence officer that’s dedicated to that now, so we have a lot more people that are coming in and making those reports,” Zacharie said. 

That’s not to distract from the possibility that violence has gone up - it’s just hard to pinpoint, seeing as how violence often goes unreported, the police chief said. 

“Don’t get me wrong, the assaults are still occurring in our community, and that gives us pause,” Zacharie said. “We definitely review our statistics all the time, and we want to understand how these trends happen, and we want to find a way to mitigate them.” 

As of late 2023, the police service has had the option to add flags to reports indicating additional categories, another factor which could have influenced trends year over year.

Paramedics also provided more hospital transfers last year, and responded to more falls than typical. 

“Kateri Hospital has grown. They have more patients, and therefore there’s more of a need for those patients to get to doctor’s appointments,” Stacey said. 

As for the reason there have been more falls, he said it’s harder to say why exactly. He said there isn’t one particular demographic that’s overrepresented in this category either. It’s something that might be attributed to the growing number of calls the bridge is fielding in general, Stacey added. 

Outside of that, the type of medical events paramedics responded to last year remained largely consistent with those they responded to in 2023. The highest number of calls - 566 - are recorded in their category for general sickness, the one opted when an incident doesn’t fit any of the other listed categories.

There are a total of three paramedic crews at the brigade. That includes one 24/7 hour crew that’s always stationed at the brigade, one there Mondays to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and another on-call crew that responds when the two others can’t.

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