County of Renfrew Paramedic Service

Our SIERRA Team is made up of existing County of Renfrew Paramedics who are experienced in wilderness settings in various backgrounds.

Through intense training, they have become the go-to team for rural responses, augmenting the professional services the County of Renfrew Paramedic Service presently provides.

Through their training they offer a specialized skill set, utilizing the latest rural technology. They also have advanced communications which gives them the ability to summon other elite agencies (such as search and rescue) to assist in patient removal from hostile environments, with the ultimate goal of improving patient survival.

The County’s Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) program focuses on enabling emergency responders with the best that this technology has to offer. We have multiple aircraft that have various mission-configurable capabilities, including the ability to:

• carry and deliver medical supplies such as defibrillators, medications, personal floatation devices, or satellite phones
• scan the ground or buildings using sensitive infrared cameras
• provide high definition video of a scene or remote location to incoming responders or allied agencies
• fly complex grid patterns with GPS high accuracy for search and rescue

The County has partnered with Indro Robotics, a high-tech engineering company specializing in aviation to continue developing the capability of our RPAS program to meet the needs of our region as the technology itself evolves. Our pilot program focuses on safety, with aviation developed standard operating procedures to keep our responders and the public safe during RPAS operations.

Our Honour Guard was first established in 2013, thanks in large part to two of our retired Paramedics, Dave Ostroski and Richard Slater. 

Traditionally, the role of an Honour Guard is to be involved at the funeral of a line of duty death. The Paramedic Honour Guard will establish a vigil during the visitation, escort the spouse of the deceased, and are called upon to be pallbearers or will salute the deceased at the exit of the church following Mass. Honour Guards also participate in parades, Line of Honours, municipal gatherings, memorial services and more. 

Our Honour Guard has adopted the Canadian Armed Forces Drill manual as a mandatory skill, which unites and defines our Guard. It requires a significant time commitment as members pride themselves on their quality of skills and presentation.

For more information about our Honour Guard, or to request the presence of our Guard at a funeral or event, please contact us using the link below. 

The Pioneer Program is a way for the Service to bring together past and future retirees and show our respect for the many years of dedication and commitment they provided to our Service and to the communities they served.

It was a priority for the County of Renfrew Paramedic Service to promote the involvement of retirees in current Service events and the community by volunteering at public relation events like fairs, parades, medal ceremonies and wellness clinics. 

This was an opportunity to draw on the years of combined service and experience – a valuable resource when discussing the future of the Service, including future endeavors, further advancements and addressing possible challenges.