About Ornge

A vital part of Ontario’s medical system, Ornge provides sophisticated medical transport for very ill and critically injured patients, in the air and on the ground. The challenges are varied in a province 1,076,395 km² in total area (the size of France, Spain and the Netherlands combined.) In this environment, it is little wonder Ornge is one of the largest and most intricate transport medicine organizations in North America.

Ornge has more than 400 employees, including paramedics, paediatric transport paramedics, transport medicine physicians, and a team of educators and researchers.

We currently own 11 Sikorsky S76 helicopters and four Pilatus PC-12 airplanes. In addition, we have also purchased 10 state-of-the-art AgustaWestland 139 helicopters; the first of which went into service in Sudbury in December 2010.

We have access to more than 50 airplanes, operating out of a number of bases across Ontario. Ornge also operates a critical care inter-facility land transport program in Ottawa, Peterborough and Toronto. As a result, in 2007 Ornge became the only Canadian transport medicine provider to earn accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems in all three modes of transport – helicopters, fixed wing aircraft and land ambulances.

What We Do

A not-for-profit, charitable organization, Ornge is responsible for operations including the contracting of flight service providers, medical oversight of all transport medicine paramedics, and screening all transfers of patients between hospitals in Ontario.

Ornge’s helicopters, fixed wing aircraft and land vehicles have the capabilities of a mobile hospital, and handle approximately 20,000 transports every year. The majority are transfers between medical facilities, allowing the patient to access a higher level of care. Ornge also responds to ‘scene calls’ – with transport medicine paramedics responding to the scene of accidents or injuries, for example traffic accidents.

Unlike emergency medical service providers, Ornge is not accessible to the public through 911. The coordination of Ornge services is the responsibility of the Ornge Communications Centre (the OCC). The OCC provides communication services as defined in the Ambulance Act. When requested by local land ambulance dispatch centres, an Ornge helicopter will be deployed to respond to an accident or travel to a remote area, if the patient meets the established guidelines for transport.

On-board medical care is made possible by a system featuring round-the-clock teams of transport medicine paramedics with specialized training to care for acute patients in the aero medical environment. Through a multi-system communication network, transport medicine paramedics have constant access to transport medicine physicians on the ground for consultation and to receive medical orders.

Through the Ornge Academy of Transport Medicine, Ornge also offers one of the only Canadian Medical Association (CMA) accredited Critical Care Flight Paramedic program in Canada, as well as a CMA-accredited Advanced Care Flight Paramedic program. All educational programs are based on innovative and flexible models that integrate different types of learning into each program. Students participate in classroom sessions, videoconferences, seminars, patient simulations (using a technology based mobile simulation unit that includes a METI Human Patient Simulator capable of dynamic cardiovascular, pulmonary and pharmacological responses), on-line learning, placements in hospitals and in helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft and land ambulances.