About the Emergency Medical Assistance Team

Health emergencies can sometimes overwhelm the health care system of an affected community or region. If any jurisdiction in Ontario finds that it does not have the capacity to respond effectively to a health emergency, the EMAT may be requested to help through the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s Emergency Management Branch.

The EMAT is a mobile medical field unit that can be deployed anywhere in Ontario with road access and within 24 hours. The EMAT can set up a 56-bed unit that provides a staging and triage base, and has the capability to treat 20 acute care patients and 36 intermediate care patients. In addition, the EMAT can provide:

• Patient isolation in the case of an infectious disease outbreak;
• Medical support and decontamination in the case of a chemical, biological or radiological incident; and
• Case management and triage of patients in a mass casualties situation

The EMAT is the first of its kind in Canada and is operated by the Centre for Prehospital Medicine at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre – a world expert in emergency and prehospital care.

More information about the team is provided by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care at this link: Emergency Medical Assistance Team (EMAT)