06/04/2026
A one of a kind program that we are happy to help with by providing driver training to the Physicians for their emergency response.
Well done to the whole team, this program needs to catch on in other jurisdictions!!
Dr. Nic Sparrow - Medical Director
BEHIND THE STATISTICS: A Preview of the KERPA 2025 Annual Report:
For 13 years, the Kootenay Emergency Response Physicians Association (KERPA) has been working in close, long-standing collaboration with BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) to deliver on-scene physician support and advanced critical care. As Canada’s only ground-based physician EMS to hold full Special Operations Medical Retrieval accreditation from CAMTS, we hold ourselves to the highest international standards of safety and clinical excellence.
With our 2025 Annual Report releasing shortly, we want to share the reality of what pre-hospital physician care looks like in our rural geography.
In 2025, we were available for a record 478 immediate threat-to-life emergencies. This volume highlights both the growing demand and our expanded reach across the Kootenay's, now having two fully equipped Emergency Response Vehicles (ERVs) and a car stationed in Nelson and the Castlegar base.
Out of 367 dispatches, our team was cancelled 179 times. To the public, a ~49% cancellation rate might seem high, but clinically, it represents a highly effective, integrated system. In threat-to-life emergencies, early activation is critical. We are dispatched immediately. If paramedics arrive, stabilize the patient, and determine that advanced level intervention is not required, we are cancelled. This ensures that our volunteer physicians and specialized resources are preserved for the absolute highest-acuity cases while maintaining a constant safety net for the region.
Our actual clinical impact on scene during our 171 Primary Missions speaks for itself:
Advanced & Critical Care: We utilized specialized medical expertise or equipment at 112 calls, including advanced airway management, rapid sequence intubation, continuous positive pressure ventilation, and intraosseous access.
Continuity of Care: We directly assisted paramedic crews by transporting 30 high-acuity patients to regional hospitals (including Kootenay Lake, Kootenay Boundary, and Castlegar hospitals) and escorted ambulances on 46 occasions to assist in the event of patient deterioration. We attended 36 'critical' patients which included 12 patients in cardiac arrest, 12 medical emergencies and 12 trauma related patients. In 2025, our joint efforts achieved a 33.3% Return of Spontaneous Circulation (ROSC) rate in pre-hospital cardiac arrests.
5-Year Legacy: Over the last five years, we have transported 153 critical patients to local hospitals and escorted 192 ambulances. We've attended 51 patients in medical cardiac arrest and 11 patients in traumatic cardiac arrest. Over the past 5 years we have treated 158 critical patients (including medical / trauma related cases and arrests). We have been there and supported the emergency services and families.
KERPA receives no operational funding from the government. We rely entirely on the generosity of our community, public donations, and grants to keep our physicians on the road.
We look forward to sharing our complete 2025 Annual Report with you soon. Thank you to the local emergency services, and our community for making this life-saving work possible and likely one of the best resourced rural areas for Pre-Hospital Care in the Province of British Columbia.
