The BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) is recruiting paramedics in-community with training costs to be covered. Join the BCEHS to provide care for your community members.

This unique opportunity offers significant benefits to participants, including:

  • Gaining lifesaving skills
  • Learning opportunities
  • Flexibility to take your career anywhere in BC Career advancement opportunities
  • Comprehensive benefits including pension option
  • Employee perks program
  • Support in obtaining Class 4 driver’s license

The BCEHS Join Us link is the go-to for all information, and a breakdown of information is below:
https://joinus.bcehs.ca/

Online
Application

Assessing your qualifications to
become a paramedic

Career Pathways With BCEHS

Who are we? BC Emergency Health Services (“BCEHS”) provides pre-hospital emergency services and inter-facility patient transfers throughout the province.

Why BCEHS ?

  • The ability to help and serve your community
  • Working in a team environment
  • Continuous learning and growth opportunities
  • Career advancement
  • Great employer, servicing all of BC (view map)

Paramedic Career Pathways

  • Emergency Medical Responder (EMR)
  • Primary Care Paramedic (PCP)
  • Indigenous Patient Navigator (IPN)
  • Community Paramedic (CP)
  • Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP)
  • Paramedic Specialist (PS)
  • Critical Care Paramedic (CCP)
  • Infant Transport Team (ITT)

Dispatch Career Pathways

  • Emergency Medical Call Taker (EMCT)
  • Emergency Medical Dispatcher (EMD)
  • Patient Transfer Network (PTN)

Dispatch Centers

Currently three dispatch centers for BCEHS

  • Vancouver
  • Kamloops
  • Victoria

Prerequisites for EMCT

  • Valid CPR-C
  • Standard First Aid or higher
  • Grade 12 diploma
  • Ability to type 40 words p/min
  • 19 years of age
  • Good geographical knowledge of BC
  • Medically Fit / Completed Criminal Record Check(CRC)
  • Legally eligible to work in Canada
  • Able to work shift work

Emergency Medical Call Taker (EMCT)

  • As an EMCT, you receive inbound 9-1-1 calls, gather critical information from the caller and use approved protocols and systems to assess the patients. 
  • During the call, you may be required to deliver life-saving instructions such as CPR and Childbirth

Emergency Medical Dispatcher (EMD)

  • Prioritizing and dispatching 9-1-1 calls for basic and advanced life support ambulances as well as communicating with other first responder agencies. 
  • EMDs provide vital information to paramedic crews and hospitals. Work closely with other EMD’s and EMCT’s to ensure the best patient care possible. 

Patient Transfer Network (PTN)

  • The Patient Transfer Coordinator (PTC) works with health care facilities to coordinate interfacility transfers of patients across the province to either a higher or lower level of care based on the patients needs and acuity.

Patient Transfer Coordinator

  • Grade 12 Education
  • Medical terminology
  • Graduation from a Nursing Unit Clerk/Medical Office Assistant program
  • One year of recent related experience or equivalent combination of education, training, or experience.

Emergency Medical Responder

  • Course Duration: 2 – 3 weeks/ External
  • Licensed to administer basic life-saving emergency medical care.

Primary Care Paramedic

  • Course Duration: 8 months full time or 18 months part time/ External
  • Licensed to administer more advanced patient care including IV Therapy and some lifesaving drugs.
  • Most paramedics in BC are PCPs.

Indigenous Patient Navigator

  • The IPN role is purposely to ensure the provision of patient centered care that is culturally safe for both indigenous patients and their health care providers.
  • Facilitating and coordinating access to health care services

Community Paramedic

  • Course Duration: 14 weeks / Internal
  • Licensed at the PCP-IV level or higher Provide non-emergency and scheduled care to patients as part of an integrated healthcare team.
  • May respond to some emergency calls

Advanced Care Paramedic

  • Course Duration: 18 months / External
  • Specialize in advanced care of medical and trauma patients with a focus on advanced cardiac resuscitation.

Paramedic Specialist

  • Course Duration: 16 weeks / Internal
  • Advanced Care and Critical Care paramedics who provide on-scene technical support for high-risk situations, mass and complex patient events as well as telephone support to paramedics and patients throughout the province. 

Critical Care Paramedic

  • Course Duration: 18 months / Internal
  • Highest level of specialized care with a focus on acute interfacility care, transport, air medical response, and infant, child, and perinatal care.

Further Career Opportunities

  • Specialty Teams
  • Preceptor For New Paramedics
  • Practice Educator
  • Instructor
  • Unit Chief
  • Patient Care Delivery (PCD) Manager

Special Events

  • An opportunity to work at various events throughout the province
  •  

  • 19 years of Age
  • Class 4 Drivers License 
  • Drivers Abstract(Driving Record)
  • Medical License(EMR, PCP…)
  • Criminal Record Check(CRC)
  • Fitness Assessment
  • New Employee Orientation(NEO)
  • Vaccinated-mandatory in the medical field

*Special conditional hires may be obtained for remote and rural communities.(obtaining specific requirements during probation)

Few tips for expediting and gaining knowledge and experience:

  • Class 4 DL Required-
    • Do not delay working on obtaining your Class 7/5
    • After doing the written for your Class 7-taking professional driver training will knock off 6 months of the 2-year probationary “N” thus making you eligible to get Class 4 – 6 months sooner.
  • Medical License-
    • Get First Aide training right away and volunteer to get valuable first aid experience
    • Emergency Medical Responder(EMR)- is the minimum medical license to be hired with BCEHS, it can be obtained prior to 19 years of age with a restriction of underage.

BCEHS Web Page Link:
http://www.bcehs.ca/

1. Apply

Candidates are required to complete the BCEHS Paramedic and Emergency Medical Responder Application for Employment Form.
 
Within your application, please also attach the following required documents:
On the application form, applicants will have the option to indicate the stations they would like to be considered for as opportunities arise. For more information, please see the Map of BC Ambulance Service (BCAS) Stations and Districts (PDF). The BCEHS Careers Help Desk may contact applicants to discuss information that requires additional clarification.

2. Panel interview for suitability

Short-listed applicants will be invited to participate in an interview to assess the skills and abilities required to be a paramedic. The interview format is behaviour-based and will explore how candidate skills and abilities make them the best applicant for the job.

3. Reference checking

Applicants successful in the interview process will be notified that they will have their references contacted. Individuals who are in a position to judge an applicant’s work, such as their current and previous supervisor, are required choices for references.

 

4. Offer of employment

Applicants successful in the interview with positive references may receive a conditional offer of employment. This conditional offer is subject to a satisfactory pre-employment medical and criminal record search. BC Ambulance Service will reimburse applicants for the cost of the pre-employment medical at the time a formal job is offered. Applicants are responsible for the cost of the criminal records check conducted by the Ministry of Justice.

 

5. Hiring pool and formal job offers

Applicants who have completed their paperwork and pre-employment medical will be placed on an eligibility list. Formal job offers are made to applicants on the eligibility list as positions become available. Applications remain active on the eligibility list for one year.