Saskatchewan Professional Firefighters And Paramedics Association

Saskatchewan Professional Firefighters And Paramedics Association Welcome to the Official page for the Saskatchewan Professional Firefighters and Paramedic Association.

03/17/2026

Grading MHSW the same as Canada’s "Top 100 Employers”
Report Card, Day 2

Work Atmosphere and Communication: F

Any remaining shreds of a positive work atmosphere result solely from staff supporting one another. Our social committee is entirely staff-run and staff-funded through voluntary payroll deductions; without our own financial contributions, there would be no budget for social connection.

When management communicates, it’s through long-winded emails that say very little and profoundly tone-deaf "positivity” slideshows in our daily briefing. While the annual long-service awards ceremony is a welcomed gesture, it comes with the demoralizing caveat that spouses and "plus-ones” are not invited, which hardly celebrates the sacrifices our families also make.

Between a record of gaslighting, unapproachability, and a lack of meaningful engagement, management has effectively abdicated its responsibility for workplace culture. For these reasons, we give Work Atmosphere and Communication a grade of F.

03/16/2026

Grading MHSW the same as Canada’s "Top 100 Employers”
Report Card, Day 1

Work Environment: D

Our crew quarters are furnished with dilapidated chairs and plagued by annual pest infestations; most recently, staff shared their workspace with mice. Furthermore, we must address the ongoing saga of the garage doors. While management is quick to issue discipline for not parking ambulances inside, the door openers themselves are chronically inoperational. Despite staff reporting these failures daily, management gaslights employees by insisting the equipment is operational.

We are awarding the Work Environment a grade of D. This "passing” mark is salvaged only by the availability of parking for staff and vehicle plug-ins, a basic necessity we recognize is a rare luxury not shared by our colleagues in nursing, but one that hardly compensates for the state of our facilities.

03/08/2026

👩‍🚒To the dedicated women who protect and serve our communities every day the says thank you.

The example you set for future generations makes the fire service stronger for everyone.

Happy ! 🔥🚒

03/05/2026

After years of advocacy, the British Columbia Professional Fire Fighters Association (BCPFFA) is celebrating

03/05/2026

“Most people see the lights and sirens and think of the “save.” They don’t see the 3:00 AM calls where the atmosphere shifts from medical emergency to a threat on our lives in seconds.

Recently, we responded to a seizure call in Saskatoon. We arrived and were immediately met with graphic threats of violence. We were told, in detail, how we would be “scalped” and “skinned” because of our tattoos. He bragged about gang affiliations and challenged us to “call the police to make it a fair fight.” This is the “office” for Saskatoon medics in 2026. We had to make the choice to retreat for our own safety.

We were able to get ourselves and our patient the help they needed without any physical injury.”

03/03/2026

“I’ve personally had a hand gun pointed at me, had knifes pulled. I’ve been threatened with a metal gravel rake. Been kicked, punched, bitten and spat on. Called all kind of unacceptable names. I’ve located machetes, knives, hatchets, brass knuckles and bear spray on individuals I’m transporting. Additionally on scene I’ve located a firearm as well as countless machetes and knives. I’ve performed treatment next to needles and various other biohazards just to name a few of the risks.

On the completely other end of the spectrum I’ve been able to shake the hand of a gentleman and his family, including his children. This was a year after resuscitating him during a cardiac arrest. He was able to attend his son’s high school graduation because of this which was a great feeling seeing the impact you can have on people and the community.”

02/28/2026

“I answer 911 calls. If you call 911 for an ambulance, chances are you talk to me. I’m with you when you are alone in your emergency, I make sense of the chaos that I hear happening on your end of the phone. I’ve heard you scream for your loved one that has hung themself. I’ve been the voice for you to cling to when you’ve lost your baby. I’ve been with you when you wake in the night, alone and afraid with crushing chest pain. And let me assure you, it’s my privilege to be there with you. Taking your calls is the best part of my job, because I know that I am helping people in what is often the worst days of their lives. And I don’t need thanks or recognition - I just need time. I need more time on the phone with you, waiting with you for the ambulance to arrive, to provide the guidance you need in your emergency, to help calm your fears. Instead, I have to hang up as quickly as possible, because there are more calls coming in, more calls holding than ever before. I just need time - time to sit a moment and process the pain I heard in your voice, to find an appropriate place in my memories for the screams at the accident that I’ll never forget. But there isn’t time anymore. There are too many calls and too few of us. Many of my coworkers have left over the last few years, simply unable to carry this mental load any longer, the stress of watching calls have to hold for longer and longer, having to call back to those people who are waiting for help and try to explain to them why their emergency isn’t quite important enough. We are here to help; we want to help. It’s just getting harder and harder with less and less support. I watch my coworkers leave broken, and I no longer wonder IF it will happen to me. I wonder WHEN it will happen to me.”

02/27/2026

(1/2) “I have proudly served as an Advanced Care Paramedic in Saskatchewan for over a decade. Throughout my career, I have responded to thousands of emergencies, cared for critically ill patients, supported families on their worst days, and worked alongside some of the most dedicated healthcare professionals in this province.

Paramedicine is not just a job — it is a calling. We show up in blizzards, in the middle of the night, in moments of trauma and crisis. We are expected to be calm, clinically
sharp, and emotionally steady, no matter the circumstances. But the system we are working in is not sustainable.

Over the past several years, we have experienced increasing call volumes, staffing shortages, delayed response times, extended off-load delays at hospitals, and overtime. These pressures do not just affect paramedics — they directly impact patient care and community safety.

I am currently off work on mental health leave. This was not an easy decision. Like many in this profession, I pushed through exhaustion, stress, and operational strain for as long as I could. Eventually, the cumulative impact became too much.

I am also juggling family life alongside this profession. My spouse works shift work as well, and together we have worked hard to balance unpredictable schedules, childcare, and the emotional demands of two healthcare careers. There have been birthdays, school events, evenings, and milestones that I have missed because I was on shift, on overtime, or too exhausted to be fully present. That is a reality many paramedics and their families live with every day.

There have been numerous times where I have seriously contemplated leaving this profession in search of a better work-life balance for myself and my family. That is not something I ever imagined I would consider when I first chose this career.“

02/26/2026

(2/2) “These are human beings performing CPR in living rooms at sunrise while families scream and collapse around them. They see horrible deaths. They revive overdoses. They hold hands. They deliver babies. They absorb shock, grief, panic and then they are immediately dispatched to the next crisis.

And we expect them to just keep going.

They are not asking for luxury.
They are asking for 20-30 minutes after a traumatic call to debrief.
To breathe.
To regulate.
To talk to their partner about what they just witnessed.
To eat a meal in a 12-hour shift.
To be paid appropriately for their work.

This career changes how they see their own city. A park isn’t a park, it’s where a child died. A street corner isn’t just an intersection, it’s where CPR didn’t work. The weight follows them everywhere all the time.

We cannot keep celebrating first responders publicly while privately running them into the ground.

If we want compassionate, sharp, capable paramedics showing up when we dial 911, then we must protect them before they break.

This job action is not selfish.
It is not dramatic.
It is not entitled.

It is survival.
It is dignity.
It is saying, you cannot continue to demand that people save lives while ignoring the cost to theirs.

I love a man who would give everything to help someone else.
I will not stay quiet while a system slowly takes everything from him in return.

They deserve better.

And I will stand beside them until they get it.”

02/22/2026

“When people ask me what my husband does for a living I feel a sense of pride saying “he’s a paramedic” But what most people don’t see is the hidden cost that comes with that title - the toll it takes on a marriage and every day family life.

My husband and I met at 18 years old. He was always drawn to medicine but was unsure of the path. Im the one that encouraged him to apply to paramedic school, never imagining how deeply this would affect our lives and future children’s.

Paramedics not only sacrifice at work but also in their family life. Missed time with family and friends, holidays, birthdays, and lost moments of their kids childhoods. I have watched my husband change into a different person over the years and at times he dislikes the way the job has changed him. Sleep deprivation, repeated trauma and too often lack of real support at work it all adds up.

Our boys idolize him and my oldest often comments how he will grow up to be a paramedic “just like Dad”. We smile and nod but inside we hope he never does. This isn’t a life we’d choose for our children. People say “someone’s gotta do it” and thats true but at what point does the cost become too much.”

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Saskatoon, SK

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