Critical Levels
Episodes
AHA Guidelines - Not Godlines: Drs. Cheskes & Drennan
29 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Zach sits down with Dr. Ian Drennan and Dr. Sheldon Cheskes to dissect the newly released 2025 AHA and ILCOR resuscitation guidelines...
Waveforms Don't Lie - Danny and Rance (DnR)
19 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we explore the science, history, and frontline application of End-Tidal CO₂ (ETCO₂) — a tool that offers real-time insight into...
Pearson MCI: Lessons Learned - Darren and Colin
26 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Delta Air Crash: Paramedics on the Frontline of a Mass Casualty Incident In this gripping episode of Critical Levels, host Zach Cantor sits down with...
What's a Paramedic - Dr. Alan Batt
29 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is a paramedic — really? In this thought-provoking episode of Critical Levels, Zach sits down with Dr. Alan Batt to unpack the evolving identit...
Neonates - Anthony Iacolucci
30 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Neonates are one of the most feared patient populations in EMS—and for good reason. In this episode, Zach Cantor talks with Anthony Iacolucci, a ped...
Data-Driven Resuscitation & Seamless Transitions
31 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Critical Levels, we dive into the cutting-edge strategies shaping pre-hospital and emergency department care. Our guests discuss ho...
K9 Medicine - Dr. Jason Donohoe
04 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
🔹 Key Topics: 🔸 Why medics need to understand K9 trauma care The overlap between human and canine emergency medicine Common injuries in police,...
Frostbite - Dr. Maria Doubova
27 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Critical Levels, we tackle frostbite with Dr. Maria Doubova, exploring its pathophysiology, symptoms, and treatment. From outdoor e...
TXA - Dr Erik Vu
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the first episode of 2025! This month, we're diving into the critical role of Tranexamic Acid (TXA) in pre-hospital trauma care. Dr. Erik V...
Prehospital Blood - Dr. Antevy
30 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we are going to talk about prehospital blood administration with Dr. Peter Antevy Some topics covered are: Historical trauma ...
Trauma-Informed Care for Children Youth - Marita Smith
29 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How prepared do you feel to care for children and youth who have experienced abuse or assault? 1 in 10 Canadians (7.8%) over 15 report at least one ...
CANSOFCOM - Steve & Andrew
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we dive deep into the world of military medicine with special forces paramedics, pulling back the veil of secrecy surrounding...
Paramedic Violence - Dr Justin Mausz
26 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Justin Mausz to discuss violence against paramedics. During the episode, you'll hear us cover: How oft...
Heat Emergencies - Dr Steve Sanders
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Steven Sanders to discuss heat related illnesses. During the episode, you'll hear us cover: Health impa...
BVM - Dr. Bonnie Snyder
29 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Bonnie Snyder to discuss BVM as well her recently published paper in Resuscitation: Association of small ...
TBI - Dr. Katie Lin
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Katie Lin to discuss TBI and the crashing brain. During the episode, you'll hear us cover: head i...
Pediatric Cardiac Arrest - Dr. Janice Tijssen
28 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Janice Tijssen to discuss pediatric cardiac arrest. During the episode, you'll hear us cover: The importa...
Suboxone - Dr Louisa Marion-Bellemare
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we're joined by Dr. Louisa Marion-Bellemare to discuss Suboxone (buprenorphine/naloxone) and managing patients who use illici...
Wilderness Medicine - Matt Smith
30 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we chat with Matt Smith about wilderness medicine. As we shift from a high resource to a low resource setting, there are 3...
Episode 35 - ACS - Dr. Jesse McLaren
28 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On this month's episode, we discuss acute coronary syndrome (ACS) with Dr. Jess McLaren We define ACS, we cover pathophysiology, and some common cause...
Anaphylaxis - Drs. Hendin & Lanoue
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A Dive Into Drowning - Dr. James Gilbertson
31 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On this episode, we're joined by Dr. James Gilbertson with the Ottawa Hospital, and Cst. Caroline Gallant with The Ottawa Police Marine, Dive and Tra...
Substance Use and the Paramedic Role - Jen Bolster
24 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In British Columbia 7 people per day are dying as a result of a highly contaminated toxic supply of drugs. Since the announcement of the public health...
No Statistical Difference - Dr. Ken Milne
24 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
"No statistical difference" On today's episode of Critical Levels, we chat with Dr. Ken Milne of the Skeptics' Guide to Emergency Medicine (https://th...
Preparing Paramedics: Palliative Care - Cheryl Cameron Tyne Lunn
30 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Paramedics receive little education on grief and bereavement. As paramedicine integrates palliative approaches to care, it has become very apparent pa...
Episode 29 - High Performance Cardiac Arrest Management - Adam Perrett and Mike Humphrey
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode, we carry on last month's conversation about cardiac arrest management and care. Recorded at the Paramedicine Across Canada Ex...
DOSE VF with Dr. Sheldon Cheskes
19 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode, we chat with Dr. Sheldon Cheskes, principal investigator of the landmark DOSE VF trial. In this study, published in the New Engl...
Episode 27 - Pediatric Pain with Dr. Samina Ali
21 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Pain is a condition that we often see in the prehospital world, yet for a variety of reasons, we're bad at treating it. On today's episode with pain e...
First Responder Mental Health with Dr. Simon Hatcher
08 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Join us this month as we chat with Dr. Simon Hatcher, psychiatrist at the Ottawa Hospital and Ottawa Inner City Health, about First Responder Mental H...
IveGotYourBack911
31 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
IVEGOTYOURBACK911 was started by paramedics Jill Foster & Shaun Taylor in 2014. The goal of the campaign is to spread social awareness worldwide in re...
Prehospital Trauma Care with Dr. Brodie Nolan
28 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode, we chat with Dr. Brodie Nolan, an emergency physician and trauma team leader at St. Michael's Hospital (one of Canada's largest tr...
PICU & Organ Donation with Dr. Sonny Dhanani
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode we sit down with Dr. Sonny Dhanani, Chief of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario...
Human Trafficking - Dr. Lindsay Cheskes
31 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The United Nations (UN) defines human trafficking (HT) as "the recruitment, transport, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of a person by such means as ...
Canadian Medical Emergency Response Team with Lt. Col. Leilani Doyle MD
28 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After the War in Afghanistan, the Chief of Defence Staff of the Canadian Armed Forces decided to create a brand new forward aeromedical evacuation cap...
Good Medicine in Bad Places – Sierra Team & SAR Techs
27 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Not all paramedics respond to just 911 calls. On today's episode, we're chatting with Matt Cruchet and Sgt. Gregory Hudson Matt is a key member of the...
ROSC with Dr. Kyeremanteng
29 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode with Dr. Kyeremanteng, we're covering all things ROSC: what is ROSC? How do we optimize our patient's physiology (the A-B-Cs) post-...
Prehospital Obstetrics with Dr. Glenn Posner
17 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Obstetrics. Arguably one of the scarier and uncomfortable things we do as paramedics, at least that's what I think. If you're looking for a way to m...
Stroke with Dr. Grant Stotts
20 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
CVA are amongst the top 5 causes of death, and number 1 cause of disability in N.A. Given the associated morbidity and mortality, rapid recognition an...
Critical Care Paramedicine and ORNGE with Natalie Lavergne
03 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Join us as we sit down with Critical Care Paramedic Natalie Lavergne with ORNGE - to discuss exactly that: critical care paramedicine and ORNGE, the O...
The Hamilton Verdict | A Legal Analysis with Chris Robertson
21 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
On June 8th 2021, The Honourable Mr. Justice H.S. Arrell gave his judgment finding 2 Hamilton paramedics, Christopher Marchant & Steven Snively, guilt...
Bruises, Breaks, and Burns: Child & Youth Maltreatment with Dr. Michelle Ward
22 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Is it an accident or is it abuse? Tune in with Dr. Michelle Ward, Division Head of Child and Youth Protection at the Children's Hospital of Eastern ...
Managing the Critically Ill Paediatric Patient with Jon Lee
10 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Tune in with Jon Lee, formerly from the ORNGE Pediatric Critical Care Transport Team as he discusses his approach to the critically ill child
The ABCs of Cardiac Arrest Management with Dr. Ian Drennan | Part 2
18 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Continue our conversation with Dr. Drennan about cardiac arrest care. We've reached the end of our algorithms - what can we do next?
The ABCs of Cardiac Arrest Management with Dr. Ian Drennan
12 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We claim to practice evidence-based medicine, but what does the evidence actually say about how we manage our cardiac arrests? Tune in to our discussi...
Tactical Paramedicine with Benoit Jolicoeur
30 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Tactical paramedicine, rescue task force, tourniquets, and massive life-threatening hemorrhage. Tune in to our conversation about these topics with Be...
Cognitive Bias and Metacognition with Dr. Vanessa Bohn
02 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How do we make decisions? How does our bias impact patient care? Listen in to our conversation with Dr. Vanessa Bohn as we discuss cognitive errors, m...
COVID-19: What Paramedics Need to Know!
25 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Join us as we chat with Jason Buick, the lead author of the recent article published in the Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine (CJEM) - COVID 19: ...
We Speak For The Dead: Dr. Louise McNaughton-Filion
08 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Louis McNaughton-Filion, Regional Supervision Coroner for Eastern Ontario. We cover death investigations, what p...
Calming the Chaos with Will Johnston - Part 2
30 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In part 2 of our conversation with Will Johnston about Calming the Chaos, we discuss the importance of a pre-brief, the zero-point survey, communicati...
Calming the Chaos with Will Johnston - Part 1
20 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Listen to part 1 of our conversation with Will Johnston about Calming the Chaos. In this episode, we cover some of the physiological responses to stre...
Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) with Dr. Vera Etches from Ottawa Public Health
14 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Tune in as we chat with Dr. Vera Etches, Medical Officer of Health from Ottawa Public Health about coronavirus, how OPH is preparing, and how local he...
Pediatric Respiratory Illnesses with Dr. Allan Shefrin
30 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Join Dr. Allan Shefrin, a pediatric emergency physician at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) discuss pediatric respiratory illnesses....
Episode 1 - An Introduction
05 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Check out our first episode - a brief introduction to the new "Critical Levels" podcast series - a podcast directed at paramedics, for paramedics, wit...
Pediatric Concussion with Dr. Roger Zemek
03 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Join Dr. Roger Zemek, a pediatric emergency physician at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) and researcher at the CHEO Research Institu...