News release

Emergency Health Services Employees Honoured

Health and Wellness

NOTE: A list of Emergency Health Services employees receiving the award follows this release.

Emergency Health Services (EHS) front-line staff – including one person with 45 years of service – were honoured through a pre-recorded virtual EHS Long Service Award ceremony.

“The COVID-19 pandemic created many challenges and you stepped up, adapted to the changes, and answered Nova Scotians’ calls for help,” said Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson. “I’d like to thank this year’s award recipients for their many years of service and dedication.”

The annual ceremony recognized 132 people for their long-service commitments with a combined 3,800 years of saving lives and coming to the aid of Nova Scotians across the province.

To qualify for this year’s medal, a staff member needed a minimum of 20 years of accumulated time working in the ground ambulance or EHS LifeFlight programs and had to be registered and in good standing with the College of Paramedics of Nova Scotia.

One paramedic, Judah Goldstein, received the inaugural Tom Dobson Award, named in honour of a highly regarded paramedic who had a distinguished 23-year career at EHS and who passed away suddenly in 2020. The annual award recognizes an employee whose work has helped enhance patient care and enable full scope and utilization of the paramedic profession across Nova Scotia.

Quick Facts:

  • there are 145 ambulances and about 1,200 EHS paramedics in Nova Scotia
  • EHS paramedics respond to approximately 175,000 calls each year for emergencies and patient transfers
  • paramedics in Halifax participate in the Extended Care Paramedic Program, which allows nursing-home residents to be treated in their home rather than in an emergency department
  • a check-in program called VISIT allows paramedics in the Annapolis Valley to check in on some seniors identified by local doctors
  • a community-based paramedic program in Cape Breton Regional Municipality offers support to patients after they are released from hospital

Additional Resources:

For information on becoming a paramedic, visit: https://novascotia.ca/dhw/ehs/becoming-a-paramedic.asp

The following is a list of award recipients:

20 Years:

  • Douglas Allen
  • Jenny Best
  • Jason Billard
  • Christopher Boudreau
  • Gilles Boudreau
  • Michael Bourbonniere
  • Robert Braund
  • Craig Cairns
  • Colleen Carey
  • Jamie Carmichael
  • Stacy Codling
  • Carly Collings-Robertson
  • Lawrence Collins
  • Michael Comeau
  • Anthony Delaney
  • Darcy Delorey
  • Todd d’Eon
  • Amanda Elderkin
  • Tara Galley
  • Gerald Galway
  • Tracy Gardiner
  • Robin Gaudet
  • Judah Goldstein
  • Cynthia Hahn
  • Scott Hamilton
  • Mark Hodder
  • Jan Jensen
  • Bruce Langille
  • Terrence LeBlanc
  • Loraine Lepine
  • Jason Levings
  • Justin MacCulloch
  • Norman MacDonald
  • Peter MacDonald
  • Jamie MacKinnon
  • Scott Mason
  • Jonathan Meneer
  • Charles Mulvagh
  • Roger Owen
  • Andrew Palmeter
  • William Poole
  • Darren Pring
  • Donna Reid
  • James B. Smith
  • Matthew Starratt
  • Jeffery Sturgeon
  • Maureen Sturgeon
  • Jamie Theriault
  • Craig Todd
  • Krista Veinot
  • Andrew Walsh
  • Kenneth White
  • Greg Wolfe
  • Jennifer Zwicker

25 Years:

  • Jonathan Akin
  • John Bignell
  • Thomas Bird
  • Kenneth Caldwell
  • Karen Cress
  • Kevin Davison
  • Allan Day
  • Steve DeWolfe
  • Alan Edmonds
  • Richard Foster
  • Peter Fraser
  • Odette Gaudet
  • Brian Harris
  • Franklin Hubbard
  • John Johnston
  • John Kasemets
  • Shannon Kosick
  • George Kovacs
  • Mike Lockett
  • Jason MacDonald
  • Krista MacDonald
  • Jay Marshall
  • Andrew Pace
  • William Pero
  • Gregory Pineo
  • Chris Renaud
  • Rod Samson
  • John Stewart
  • Peter Tanner
  • Daniel Vachon
  • Scott Veinot
  • Kathy White
  • Chipman Wiles
  • Reginald Wilson
  • Richard Wilson

30 Years:

  • Paul Blake
  • David Clarke
  • Timothy Colburn
  • Paul Dawson
  • Jeanette Diggdon
  • Jeffrey Fraser
  • Paul Gouthro
  • Allan Keddy
  • Dale Langille
  • Derek LeBlanc
  • Owen Lynds
  • Travis MacNeil
  • Allan MacPherson
  • Peter Maillet
  • John May
  • Gordon Moore
  • Dawn Nickerson
  • Christa Rhynold
  • Darren Romkey
  • Wayne Ryer
  • Peter Simms
  • Chris Spencer
  • Greg Theriault
  • Barry Tracey
  • Jay Walker

35 Years:

  • William Brown
  • Brian Bunch
  • Gary Dares, Sr.
  • Joseph Gallant
  • Terrance Lawlor
  • Bruce Leaman
  • Brian MacDonald
  • Stephen McCulloch
  • Terrance Turnbull

40 Years:

  • Stewart Buffett
  • William MacKeigan
  • William Muirhead
  • Victor Murphy

45 Years:

  • William Hodgins

Tom Dobson Award:

  • Judah Goldstein

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