My name is Mike. I am a Paramedic working in rural Manitoba. My journey into the world of pre-hospital emergency care started in 1978 when I became a lifeguard at the YMCA in downtown Winnipeg. CPR was introduced to us in our National Lifeguard course. From there, I moved on to a long career in commercial wood frame construction, but I always kept my CPR and First Aid current, and followed the latest changes in care guidelines.
Fast forward to 2004 when I enrolled in an Emergency Medical Responder course at Red River College, and then started teaching BLS and First Aid for a small Winnipeg company called Heart Beat Inc. Two years later, I became the Director of Training, and immediately set out to expand the training horizons of the company, under the watchful eye of the owner, Marilyn Hunter. We started offering ITLS and ACLS courses, as the market grew for advanced training.
In 2008, my youngest daughter was in search of a career, and after deciding that four years of nursing school was not for her, she decided to explore paramedicine. She completed her EMR course, and then enrolled in a Primary Care Paramedic course. I suggested that she first take an Anatomy and Physiology course at My Red River to better prepare for the PCP program. She agreed, as long as I took the course as well, as she needed a study partner. One thing led to another, and we both completed the PCP program, and are currently Paramedics in rural Manitoba. In fall of 2019, I completed the Advanced Care Paramedic program at Red River College, and after passing the COPR exam in November of that year, I am now licensed as an ACP. My oldest daughter is the account administrator for a large architectural firm in Winnipeg. My wife has recently retired from 33 years of full time nursing, and has recently completed her Nursing Foot Care Course.
When I am not searching out new information on pre-hospital emergency care, you can find me fishing, playing guitar and piano, exploring my Scottish heritage (I am also the Manitoba Commissioner for the Clan MacKenzie Society of Canada), tending a large vegetable garden with my wife, or in my kitchen learning about cooking from a good friend who just happens to be a red seal chef. I am also still active teaching BLS, ACLS, PALS, ITLS and various lay rescuer courses with Heart Beat Inc. whenever I can. And I now have three wonderful grandsons to help keep me young (and tired).