Paramedic with PTSD loses job, may lose house after licence dispute

Mike Lacourciere remembers well that Christmas morning five years ago, when he wasn't an out-of-work paramedic — but a Dad, who could summon magic.

"Santa only brings these kinds of beds for princesses," he and his wife told their then-five-year-old, Alyssa.

She loved to play dress-up to mimic her pretty Disney heroines. And now her mattress was rigged up with a homemade canopy of pink netting. "With this bed, you will always be our princess," her parents told her.

Now, that bed is in someone else's house. The money it fetched last week is a meagre offering toward paying the monthly bills. And tonight Alyssa will sleep with her brother on the couch: one of just two pieces of furniture left in their home.

Lacourciere lost his job last April as a paramedic at an industrial site after revealing he suffered from work-related post- traumatic stress disorder.

For months he was too embarrassed to talk about it. But these days, he feels he has nothing left to lose. He's talking about what happened, he says, in the hope this will make it easier for others.

Third case

In Alberta, professional paramedics apply to an organization called the College of Paramedics to renew or reinstate their registration each year so they can keep working.

That application form includes some Yes or No boxes to tick off in response to some very personal questions.

One question asks: "Have you ever suffered from, or do you currently suffer from a physical, mental or emotional condition or disorder, or an addiction to alcohol, drugs or other chemicals, that may impair your ability or suitability to safely, competently and independently provide professional service?"

Lacourciere ticked the Yes box in answer to that question in December 2014. He had taken time off and successfully completed treatment for work-related PTSD during that previous year.

What happened next follows a pattern similar to claims from at least two other emergency workers in Alberta. They have all told CBC the college penalized them after they disclosed that they sought professional help for work-related mental health issues like anxiety, acute stress or PTSD.

In Lacourciere's case, the college referred his application for a review. They asked personal questions and requested specific details about his condition, including what medication he was taking and "information about pre-existing mental and physical health conditions."

Path to refusal

He refused, sending instead an excerpt from a letter written by a caseworker with the Workers' Compensation Board, which had reviewed his case and cleared him to go back to work as a paramedic.

He also forwarded a copy of a note from his family doctor, who was familiar with his treatment and OK'd him to return.

But the college refused his application. His registration, commonly known as a licence, wasn't renewed, meaning Lacourciere couldn't be a paramedic anymore. His employer, Canadian Natural Resources Limited, offered him a much lower-paying job as a general labourer. On legal advice, he refused it.

Unemployed and without a licence, Lacourciere has not been able to find another job. And with two children to feed and his stay-at-home wife only able to find casual work, the family has been struggling.

"When you're faced with the question of do we pay for our mortgage or do we buy food, you make the choice. You buy food," Lacourciere said.

"But when that question comes month after month, it's unbelievably difficult."

Hiding out

Lacourciere said he believes the college discriminated against him in its handling of the case, because he lives with a mental illness.

He is now trying to formally appeal the board's decision and is a participant in a human rights complaint recently filed jointly by himself and another paramedic who says he also experienced similar treatment from the college. The second complainant got his licence back after threatening to take his challenge to court.

"I'm lucky, I can fight this. But there are others who can't," Lacourciere said. "They're suffering right now and their suffering is going to get worse if they know they can't come forward for treatment without being penalized by the college."

CBC requested an interview with college administration but was refused. A spokesperson said the college does not comment on specific cases. But a short email statement was issued saying the college uses strict guidelines for regulating its registration process, in an attempt to make sure the health care Albertans receive is effective.

"As a regulatory body, it is our responsibility to ensure our processes are aligned with ever changing best practices," reads the statement. "We recognize individual variables that can impact the profession resulting in us adjusting processes where needed and within the confines of legislation."

When contacted by CBC, Alberta health minister Sarah Hoffman said she encourages the college "continue working with this individual to help him return to work."

A spokesperson also said she will call the provincial office that oversees the college, which is called the Health Disciplines Board, to ask that they review Lacourciere's case.