Meet Rob Schembri, a Critical Care Flight Paramedic. We had the chance to chat with Rob about his background in different sectors of emergency care, his professional achievements, and the education he received at Ornge.

Can you begin by introducing yourself, how long you’ve been at Ornge, and your current role at Ornge?

My name is Rob Schembri. I have been with Ornge since 2006, and I am currently a Critical Care Paramedic working out of the GTA Critical Care Land Ambulance (CCLA) Base.

What do you do in your role? 

In my current role as a Critical Care Paramedic, I provide inter-facility and occasionally, pre-hospital care to the provincial community. In this role, I also regularly provide team support to my Critical Care Paramedic (CCP) partners in their provision of care for critically ill and injured patients.

What is the one thing you like the most about working at Ornge?

Primarily, I enjoy the colleagues who I work with. I am fortunate to be a part of a great team at the GTA base. My coworkers are like family, and I benefit from the wealth of clinical experience, administrative leadership, guidance and friendship.

What positions did you hold before arriving at Ornge?

I have been a Paramedic for 34 years. Throughout my career, I have been lucky to hold several different positions. I have been a Primary Care Paramedic, an Advanced Care Paramedic (ACP), an ACP instructor with Humber College, and a Lead ACP Preceptor and Tactical Paramedic Operator and Instructor. In 2010 I left full-time EMS to pursue a career in policing. I held several positions in the police service with a strong investigative focus. I retired after 13 years as a Detective Constable from the Intelligence Bureau. During that time, I maintained part-time employment with Ornge.

You have a diverse background in different sectors of emergency care, what are some things you learned in those positions that carried over to your role at Ornge?

The most important thing to me is the ability to work as a member of a highly skilled, dynamic team. Our patient demographic is nowhere near routine, so the ability to integrate treatment plans and logistical solutions, collaborate, communicate, and maintain effective relationships with allied agency staff and family members is paramount. Additionally, effective communication, de-escalation and people management skills are highly advantageous in my day-to-day work.

For 13 years you worked as a Paramedic at Ornge and a Police Officer with Peel Region at the same time. How did you balance these two positions and how did/do you take care of your mental well-being in these challenging work environments?

The balance was sometimes quite a chore. During this time, the monthly part-time availability and shift requirements were sizable compared to those today. For the last several years of co-employment, I worked a modified 40-hour work week at my full-time job and worked weekends at Ornge to satisfy part-time requirements and maintain certification.

Regarding maintaining mental well-being, I will again defer to my colleagues at the GTA base. Having a group of people who are always available to talk, switch shifts or facilitate a smoother work experience has definitely been a key factor in negotiating two busy schedules in challenging work environments. 

Throughout your career you’ve had many achievements to be proud of, such as receiving multiple awards, but what is the one thing you are the most proud of in your medical career?

It’s hard to pick just one thing to be proud of. I have great pride in the dozens of Peel ACP students I taught at Humber College and a great sense of satisfaction and pride in receiving the Governor General Exemplary Medal. I am looking forward to attaining critical care paramedic certification in the next several weeks as the cherry on top of my EMS career.

Rob’s awards include:
•    Community Hero Award
•    Police Service Board Award (two)
•    Officer of the Month Awards (several)
•    Commendations with Peel Police
•    Exemplary Service Medal with Ornge

Can you speak on the academic side of things and briefly explain the education you’ve gone through?

I have always been a proponent of education and always sought out educational activities and took advantage of those opportunities when they were presented to me. I self-funded my ACP education in 2000 and was a successful recipient of an ACP(F) scholarship in 2006. Policing offers a constant learning curve accentuated by new job paths within the service. I obtained a bachelor’s degree through Guelph University and upon leaving policing and commencing full-time employment with Ornge, I enrolled in their CCP program.

Something that stood out to me is the multiple paramedics training you’ve experienced throughout the years. How has the education offered at Ornge different from other institutions?

Education tends to be as good as the educators presenting the information. We are lucky to have excellent educators at Ornge. The concepts, skills and clinical expectations have been challenging. The educational format I completed had a large quantity of self-directed education which had to be incorporated into an already busy work-life balance. The support afforded by educational managers and instructors made this challenge a lot easier than it sounds.

In your opinion, why is Ornge important to Ontario’s healthcare system? What sets Ornge apart from other healthcare infrastructures?

Ornge and the Critical Care Transport Unit offer an intra-hospital level of care that no other EMS system in Ontario offers. The wide scope of practice, coupled with the various transport platforms ensures that all provincial communities have access to the highest level of care and expedient transport. Critical care transport by Ornge can be facilitated by two Paramedics whereas without Ornge, healthcare facilities would likely need to utilize a nurse, respiratory therapist, physician and transport crew at the very least.
 


--
 
At Ornge, our staff work every day around the clock to ensure the patients of Ontario receive the best care available. Learn more about the people behind #teamornge.

• Inside Ornge