Author Archives : admin

** Saskatchewan medics to go to mediation after contract talks break down

** New Hampshire medic given 90 day jail term on drug charges

** A breakdown in contract talks between the Saskatchewan government and the union representing paramedics and other health care workers will likely result in mediation. That is the word from CTV Saskatoon (June 12) which quoted Health Sciences Association of Saskatchewan spokesman Karen Wasylenko as saying an impasse is now in place. Wasylenko said the Minister of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety must now appoint a go-between for the two sides. She also said a strike would be a last resort option. In April, union members voted 85 per cent to strike. The 3,600 person strong union, which also represents pharmacists and occupational therapists, has been without a contract since March 2013.

** The former clinical director of a New Hampshire ambulance service will serve 90 days in jail on drug charges. The Monadnock Ledger-Transcript (Dave Anderson/June 13) said Peterborough Fire and Rescue Department medic Jeremy Bouchard was sentenced Friday following his August 2013 arrest. According to the newspaper, Bouchard had worked for the service since 2009. He pleaded guilty this past February to both possession of morphine and possession of fentanyl. Bouchard admitted he had pilfered the meds from his service for personal use. Along with the jail time, he must also continue drug and alcohol counselling and will be on probation for three years. Additionally, he will pay a $620 fine and will have his paramedic licence permanently revoked.