18 2019
A shift to the new norm: riding the wave of change MELBOURNE CONVENTION AND EXHIBITION CENTRE
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VOLUME 10 ISSUE 2 2019
06
Ramping: why change needs to happen now
Who is going to answer the call?
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The importance of understanding mental health in emergency services officers
Is an ambulance needed?
AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY Steve Mitchell E: TWUAmbulance@act.twu.com.au P: 02 6280 9353
NORTHERN TERRITORY Erina Early E: erina.early@unitedvoice.org.au P: 0400 030 834
NEW SOUTH WALES Greg Bruce E: GBruce@ambulance.nsw.gov.au P: 0408 020 609
QUEENSLAND Debbie Gillott E: debbie.gillott@unitedvoice.org.au
Ambulance Active Official Publication of National Council of Ambulance Unions
09 19
PUBLISHER Ambulance Active is published by Countrywide Austral. Countrywide Austral adheres to stringent ethical advertising practices and any advertising inquiries should be directed to:
Level 2, 310 King Street, Melbourne • GPO Box 2466, Melbourne 3001 Ph: (03) 9937 0200 Fax: (03) 9937 0201 • Email: admin@cwaustral.com.au
FEATURES 05 We are better together… why change needs to 06 Ramping: happen now 09 Who is going to answer the call? 10
The importance of understanding mental health in emergency services officers
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Say no to abuse
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Ambulance Victoria’s response to the Victorian Ombudsman’s report
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Is an ambulance needed?
SOUTH AUSTRALIA Phil Palmer E: info@aeasa.com.au P: 08 8340 3511 TASMANIA Tim Jacobson E: tim@hacsutas.net.au P: 1300 880 032
VICTORIA P: 03 9235 7777 WESTERN AUSTRALIA Pat O’Donnell E: wa@unitedvoice.org.au P: 08 9388 5400
Disclaimer: Countrywide Austral (“Publisher”) advises that the contents of this publication are at the sole discretion of the National Council of Ambulance Unions and the publication is offered for background information purposes only. The publication has been formulated in good faith and the Publisher believes its contents to be accurate, however, the contents do not amount to a recommendation (either expressly or by implication) and should not be relied upon in lieu of specific professional advice. The Publisher disclaims all responsibility for any loss or damage which may be incurred by any reader relying upon the information contained in the publication whether that loss or damage is caused by any fault or negligence on the part of the publisher, its directors and employees. Copyright: All advertisements appearing in this publication are subject to copyright and may not be reproduced except with the consent of the owner of the copyright. Advertising: Advertisements in this journal are solicited from organisations and businesses on the understanding that no special considerations other than those normally accepted in respect of commercial dealings, will be given to any advertiser.
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This document is issued by Emergency Services Superannuation Board ABN 28 161 296 741 the Trustee of the Emergency Services Superannuation Scheme ABN 85 894 637 037 (ESSSuper). This information is general information only. It should not be considered a substitute for reading ESSSuper’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) that contains detailed information about ESSSuper products, services and features. Before making a decision about an ESSSuper product, you should consider the appropriateness of the product to your personal objectives, financial situation and needs. It may also be beneficial to seek professional advice from a licensed financial planner or adviser. An ESSSuper Income Stream PDS is available at www.esssuper.com.au or by calling 1300 650 161.
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PRESIDENT
Kylie Evans (MFB) Rain Histen (AV).
Tony Walker (AV CEO) Siusan MacKenzie (ESF CEO) Andrew Crisp (Emergency Management Commissioner for Victoria).
Lifesaving Victoria - Michelle Murphy, Brendan Smart, Rain Histen (AV), Annie Coleman.
WE ARE BETTER TOGETHER… IT’S THE MORNING OF THE MCG Stadium Stomp - June 30th in Melbourne, the sun is out and I am feeling a bit uneasy – 7600 steps in total – OUCH! This event is a special one combining all the emergency services together for a united cause to raise funds for the Emergency Services Foundation Charity (ESFC). ESFC is dedicated to providing supportive strategies surrounding first responder mental health and wellbeing. Paramedics often stick together, we know our breed and are quite comfortable with our peers, even in silence. Emotional intelligence is always improving but we can be guilty of “down play” when it comes to our personal stuff – I mean every body else is worse off right? Oh and we know we are terrible patients! AMBULANCE ACTIVE
It’s not all bad though because our culture has improved and we are encouraged to “talk about our stuff.” That’s when we raise our hands and announce that it is check in time - with a professional or a mate over good coffee. This cycle is continuous due to our dynamic work stress and life’s ups and downs. We signed up for it! Sure! Because of our innate Morse code telling us to “help others” you either have it or you don’t. We do. Maybe the other services do mental health different? Or better? How will we ever know unless we ask, interact, connect? There really isn’t time for a catch up at the multi-car accident is there? Not even time to ask, “Are you ok after that?” Like robots we ask for the police service number for our paper work, but that’s as close as we get to a form of connection.
We can learn a lot from our emergency services extended family, and give a lot too. After all, there is plenty of time to talk on all those stairs! See you at the next one. Rain Histen
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RAMPING: WHY CHANGE NEEDS TO HAPPEN NOW Early June this year, Perth experienced the worst case of ramping outside emergency departments of major hospitals, for more than 1000 hours over the week, making it the worst week on record. Ambulances were ramped for 1056 hours in the week leading up to June 2nd, including 224 hours on May 31st.
THE PREVIOUS WORST WEEK OF ambulance ramping was the week ending May 26th, with paramedics spending 804 hours parked outside emergency departments (ED’s) with patients. This equates to a 31.5 per cent jump over a two-week period. Ramping refers to the time ambulances are located at a hospitals ED, while paramedics care for their patient until they can be handed over to the care of the ED hospital staff. New figures show the reality of some Perth patients who are spending more time in ambulances or on trolleys in hospital entrances. In January 2018, ambulances were ramped for a total of 778 hours. This year, the figure has risen to 1789, showing a 130 per cent increase.
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Last year, there was not an occasion in Western Australia where ambulances spent more than 100 hours waiting outside hospitals, according to the Australian Medical Association. Already this year, there have been 12 days where ramping exceeded 100 hours. David Mountain, former Australian Medical Association president and experiences emergency physician, says, “If an ED is already full, this will lead to patients lining corridors or being inappropriately placed in waiting rooms…in addition, patients stuck in these poorly configured areas are in a situation where the staff and resources of the ED’s are already stressed and over stretched. That could unfortunately lead to serious patient harms.”
Hospitals are set to cancel elective surgeries in effort to cope with the steep increase in patients filling up the ED’s and hospital wards. With the flu season upon us and an amplified pressure on hospitals, there were already just under 25 000 patients on the elective surgery waiting list as of April. This is expected to worsen as we get further into winter. Health Minister Rodger Cook said reducing ambulance ramping times is a high priority, but was difficult due to an ageing population and general practitioner (GP) availability. He says “Like many emergency departments across Australia, our hospitals continue to experience a high level of demand… In Western Australia, contributing factors for this demand include AMBULANCE ACTIVE
an ageing population and a shortage in federally funded GP’s and the availability of GP’s that offer bulk billed services.” Opposition health spokesman Sean L’Estrange said each hour an ambulance is ramped was an hour that they could not respond to emergencies within the community. He says “It’s clearly an issue which is across all season now, and it’s a symptom of a hospital sector, particularly the emergency departments, which have been under resourced by the McGowan state labour government… With a growing and ageing population, the McGowan government must budget for the increasing demand and pressures ageing and growing populations puts on hospitals.” In Tasmania, paramedics say ambulance ramping is causing undeniable psychological injury. In April of this year, a paramedic from Tasmania wrote a letter addressed to Ambulance Tasmania’s CEO Neil Kirby, warning that ambulance ramping is causing their colleagues psychological injury. The letter details that six per cent of their colleagues have considered self-harm, while 42 per cent want to leave their job. The letter describes ambulance ramping as “unmitigated crisis, with consensus amongst front line staff that is entirely unworkable”. The letter details the affect AMBULANCE ACTIVE
this crisis has on the physical and mental health of the ambulance and hospital crew, reducing individuals to tears on a daily basis. The letter’s author conducted a survey of 71 of Tasmania’s southern region of paramedics, those 71 people representing 40 per cent of the workforce. The survey found that 90 per cent says ramping has a negative impact on their mental health, as well as indicating that 79 per cent say ramping was affecting their mood outside of working hours, effecting their personal lives. 56 per cent said that this negative impact effected not only their mood, but their difficulty sleeping before a shift, as a result of stress about ramping. Following this, ramping makes 69 per cent of paramedics anxious about coming to work, with 38 per cent having taken sick leave to avoid it. The over all consensus, that being 97 per cent, felt that Ambulance Tasmania was not doing enough to manage the impact of ramping on paramedics. The letter says, “Staff are routinely pressured into clinical situations which are unsafe and inappropriate, with reported safety issues being routinely dismissed or ignored.” On May 1st, Rebecca White, Labour Opposition leader, asked questions based on the letter. She asked Health Minister Michael Ferguson, “What do you say to those ambulance paramedics who are at
their wits end, with a distressing 6 per cent identifying they have contemplated selfharm as a consequence of the pressure they are facing?” Ferguson’s response dismal, saying only that the government was going to employee another 42 paramedics; a solution that will not reduce the immense amount of pressure paramedics are facing on a daily basis, nor will it help with the lack of hospital beds, or end ambulance ramping. Mental health in our emergency service workers cannot be over looked, or its importance be neglected. Simone Haigh, paramedic educator for Ambulance Tasmania says, “psychological impact on the paramedics. It is not uncommon for all of the urban and semi-urban crews to be ramped. This means that cases may have a long-distance response or no response at all. Know there are P1 cases waiting with no response is quite harrowing at times for paramedics. Knowing that someone needs emergency care leaves them feeling helpless. The health system is broken, and it is leaving paramedics with what seem to be no light at the end of the tunnel. People are feeling helpless and are losing hope and with the stress and anxiety of not only the repercussions of ramping, but the cumulative effect of high stress exposure is resulting in mental distress with some people considering self-harm.”
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WHO IS GOING TO ANSWER THE CALL? ONE IN FOUR ILL OR INJURED PEOPLE in a critical condition are waiting more than 10 minutes for ambulance paramedics to reach them. NSW paramedics are inundated with calls. An increased number of call outs and a decline in response times in NSW have called for the NSW union to ask for more resources and staff in Western or Central NSW. 200 new paramedics joined the ranks, yet none started work in the areas that are desperate for help and support. As we know, the difference between life and death in a situation requiring paramedic assistance can be only minutes. These new figures display longer wait times, but paramedics are already being pushed to their limit has emergencies increase and hospital emergency departments get busier. Dubbo region paramedics have seen a 19.4 per cent increase in responses, from 4009 in January to February 2018, contrasted to the same time period this year, with numbers sitting at 4788. In Orange, response times increased 10.8 per cent, from 2767 to 3067. The same occurred in Bathurst, response times jumping by 7 per cent, from 2005 to 2146. Mudgee and Lithgow paramedics experienced an increase of 3.7 per cent of callouts, from 2232 to 2314. AMBULANCE ACTIVE
Combining the regions affected, the increase in callouts was 1, 772, totalling to an increase of over 60 per cent. This incline in callouts lead to a longer average wait time for an ambulance to reach the emergency. Diane Watson, Bureau of Health Information chief executive says, “while we did see an increase in response times for the broader emergency category, the median response times for life-threatening cases (P1) remained stable and seven and a half minutes.” A key concern of paramedics in NSW is that they are not only working harder than ever, but they are travelling much further to get to their patients, which can lead to an increased risk of fatigue and a probability of accidents. Paramedics are being drawn into centralised locations, taking patients to emergency departments. From this, paramedics are staying at hospitals longer due to ramping and extended wait times. Susan Pearce, NSW Health Deputy Secretary said despite a rapid increase in emergency room patients, hospital performances across the state maintained a high standard, saying, “These results are a testament to the effort
of our doctors, nurses and paramedics, but NSW Health continues to urge people to get their flu shots to protect them during the cold days ahead.” In June of last year, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced a $1 billion investment into ambulance services, consisting of 750 new paramedics and staff over a four-year period. APA president Chris Kastelan said paramedics in Western NSW were doing their best to cope with the extreme workload, but were frustrated with the slow introduction of new paramedics, and that the paramedics who serve the community every day are being let down badly. He says, “The latest figures on response times show that NSW Ambulance is failing to provide adequate front-line services to the public.” “NSW Ambulance is struggling to meet the demand because they have failed to match the numbers of crews with the increasing numbers of calls from the public” “We can’t wait another three years for the new paramedics to joint the ranks. We need them on the job now to cope with a serious upsurge in patients during the current flu season.”
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THE IMPORTANCE OF UNDERSTANDING MENTAL HEALTH IN EMERGENCY SERVICES OFFICERS VICTORIAN AMBULANCE PARAMEDICS, police officers and staff will be the first workers in the state to receive extra mental health support. The sad reality that many paramedics would experience mental health issues, whether that is during or after their career. Following the current system, workers have to wait for their WorkCover claim to be assessed before they can access support, that being financial and psychological. The time it takes to process the claim causes workers to incur out of pockets costs, which can discourage workers from seeking medical treatment, as well as add to a worker’s stress and have a negative impact on their wellbeing. The Victorian Government will fund the pilot scheme to support emergency workers through early intervention; by providing access to mental health treatment as soon as a problem is identified. A survey undertaken by Beyond Blue, found that one in three emergency workers have very high phycological stress, more than double all adults in Australia, being one in eight. The pilot scheme introducing the extra help is 12 months long, and will cost the state government $2.5 million. The scheme allows Victoria police and ambulance Victoria to cover more medical experiences, such as psychologists, medications and general practitioners (GP’s). It is this scheme that will treat mental health issues as if they are a physical injury, and once a claim is put through to their employer, they will be able to immediately access support. If a claim is rejected, the applicant will continue to have their expenses covered by the pilot program for up to 13 continuous weeks from the date the claim is committed. The first stage of the 12- month pilot commenced on the 17th of June, available to Victoria Police and Ambulance Victoria staff and volunteers. The second stage commenced on the 1st of July, and will be available to CFA and SES staff, as
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“ Our emergency workers put themselves on the line and are exposed to incredibly challenging situations every day that can take a heavy- and often hidden- toll on their mental health…
”
well as public sector nurses, midwives, forest firefighters, MFB, child protection workers, including corrections and youth justice staff. Jill Hennessy, Minister for Workplace Safety, says “Our emergency workers put themselves on the line and are exposed to incredibly challenging situations every day that can take a heavy- and often hiddentoll on their mental health…
These landmark changes ensure emergency services workers suffering from mental injuries have access to quick and effective support for their mental health, so they don’t have to suffer in silence.” Mental health awareness is important nationwide. Paramedics Australasia, an organisation representing practitioners who provide paramedic services to the community, represents the interest AMBULANCE ACTIVE
of paramedics on matters including education, training, professional development and health policies. A piece was written in regard to the Senate inquiry into the role of governments in addressing the mental health of first responders. The response details the underlining causes and nature of the mental health conditions of first responders, emergency service workers and volunteers. A key psychological disorder is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A review found that levels of PTSD were higher in rescue workers, compared to the general population. This was found by examining worldwide data drawn from ambulance, fire and police services. Paramedics had the highest levels of PTSD, sitting at 14.6 per cent, compared to fire fighters, being 7.3 per cent and 4.7 per cent for police. Links have been made between the paramedic role and the perceived need for negative coping mechanisms, which, if left untended, lead to the potential for mental illness in the future. Paramedics Australasia recommends that mental health programs are delivered across all emergence service organisations, educating individuals on mental health, illness, support and self-care. Suicide is a topic that may be uncomfortable to talk about, but necessary in order to offer support for those who may be experiencing suicidal feelings or thoughts. Attempted suicide in the paramedic population is underreported,
help to those who may be experiencing suicidal thoughts themselves, an example being Beyond Blue. The South Australian Ambulance Service (SAAS) has many avenues for reporting and talking about mental health conditions. The SAAS provide support options to staff to ensure an all-inclusive approach to workplace mental health and wellbeing. Support options include programs specific to mental wellbeing to physical wellbeing programs, aimed at promoting physical and psychological wellbeing among emergency service workers.
“ Suicide is a topic that may be uncomfortable to talk about, but necessary in order to offer support for those who may be experiencing suicidal feelings or thoughts.
”
yet if we follow the findings of the general population, it is found that for every person who commits suicide, there are 20 to 30 people who attempt suicide. As a group, the available data shows that paramedics are at a higher risk for suicidal thoughts, attempts and consideration. A key way to prevent this is to run programs detailing signs of people who may be experiencing suicidal thoughts, as well as offering groups and programs that offer
AMBULANCE ACTIVE
A key program the SAAS runs in the peer support program, made up of staff (PSO’s) who have undertaken training specific to helping colleague cope with personal or work-related difficulties. The PSO’s offer assistance, information and a possible referral regarding issues including: • Traumatic events • Loss/grief • Emotional • Domestic violence
• Substance abuse • Family/relationships • Work pressure Following this the SAAS provide a chaplaincy service for staff members who wish to receive a more spiritual approach to their issue. The chaplain provides nondenominational pastoral care, and may assist staff through • Pastoral care • Hospital visitation • Support through grief The SAAS do not receive a large number of psychological claims, with 8 in 2015-16, 10 in 2016-17 and 11 in 2017-18, making up only 3.6 per cent of all claims submitted. Of the claims submitted in the last financial year: • 54 per cent were related to work pressure. • 28 per cent were related to exposure to occupational violence. • 9 per cent related to harassment or workplace bullying. • 9 per cent related to exposure to a traumatic event. • Results of the psychological claims were: • 64 per cent found to have anxiety and stress disorder. • 19 per cent presented with PTSD. • 19 per cent presented with depression. Mental health and wellbeing is something that cannot be overlooked in professions where staff undergo extreme amounts of stress, anxiety and potential trauma. If you, or someone you know is seeking help, the following are contacts that help with mental health issues. Beyond Blue offer 24/7 support on 1300 22 4636.
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SAY NO TO ABUSE BEING VERBALLY AND PHYSICALLY abused, sworn at and spat on is not a part of an ambulance employee’s job, and should never occur. Ambulance paramedics serve and protect our community, and should never be the punching bag for a bystander or a patient. Aaron Harper, a former paramedic says, “no person deserves to feel afraid of work.” These assaults may cause an injury that require time off to recover, as well as the possibility of mental stress. If the persons involved require time off from work, this can result in financial stress. If the assault involved the ambulance employee’s exposure to bodily fluids, for example, being spat on, blood tests are required. These tests can have significant impacts on an individual’s personal life, as they can take up to 6 months to be finalised. In conjunction with this, the time the judicial system takes to prosecute the individuals can be 1-2 years, causing further stress. In the south east of Queensland, assaults of paramedics have increased 40% since last year, resulting in 38 recorded cases in the 2018-19 financial year. The Queensland government has a zerotolerance response to violence against the Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS). Being spat on, sworn at, verbally abused and physically assaulted is not part of an ambulance employee’s job description and should never take place.
AMBULANCE ACTIVE
Steven Miles, the Minister for Health and Minister for Ambulance Services, commented on this in a media statement released in April of this year, saying, “I want to make it clear that there is no place for threats, abuse or assaults for local ambos going about their work.” Attacks against paramedics in Townsville remain static, which is why the QAS chose to run a localised campaign. The ‘Respect Our Staff’ campaign shows the lives paramedics have beyond their work, displaying that violence in the workplace affects more than the individual; it affects family, friends, health and wellbeing. Robbie Medlin, Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) assistant commissioner of the Townsville local ambulance service network (LASN) says the network is doing all it can to protect staff from incidents of occupational violence, saying “I have recently formed a local Paramedic Safety Management Committee compromised of frontline staff to further ensure that all possible strategies to protect our staff here in Townsville are being considered.” The committee will gain insight from senior staff, to first year graduates, as well as union representatives, to ensure all views are heard and represented. John “Randy” Erquhart, Vice President of the National Council of Ambulance Unions says, “Whilst the QAS and
UV have done a lot of work surrounding public education, paramedic education surrounding situational awareness de-escalation techniques and some basic self defence strategies along with high profile campaigns, leading to an overall reduction. Any assault on any paramedic or individual performing their daily work is unacceptable regardless of who you are or what your work is.”
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AMBULANCE VICTORIA’S RESPONSE TO THE VICTORIAN OMBUDSMAN’S REPORT AMBULANCE VICTORIA PROVIDES A service to our community that is invaluable and vital, providing medical response to over 5 million residents, with over a million incidents recorded in the last financial year. Ombudsman, an independent officer of parliament, investigates the actions of public authorities, including State Government departments, hospitals, schools and local governments. Ombudsman is a body that provides accessible and low cost means for the community to resolve their disputes in a timely manner. In May of this year, an investigation was launched about a complain directed at ambulance Victoria. Majority of the complaints received my Ombudsman are in relation to fees. Many Victorian’s are not aware that the ambulance service is not free, as it is in Queensland and Tasmania, provided you are a resident of that state). A survey found that 25 per cent of Australians believe that the ambulance service is covered by Medicare. In states, other than QLD and TAS, ambulance services are covered by private health insurance, a membership with the ambulance or are out-of-pocket costs. The out-of-pocket costs vary from each state, with some charging fee’s per kilometre travelled, and others charging a single set fee depending on the type of emergency call.
VIC • Membership fee to Ambulance Victoria • Free cover for pensioners and lowincome earners
NSW • Call-out charge plus a per-kilometre travelled charge • Government subsidies 49 per cent of fee
NT • Call-out fee and per-kilometre travelled fee
WA • Fees ranging between $473 for patient transfer vehicle and $967 for a lifethreatening or urgent call out • Pensioners entitled to free services AMBULANCE ACTIVE
Billable Treatment without Transportation cases in the 2017-18 financial year
The patient was billed
17, 758
The patient was an AV subscriber and therefore not billed
20, 587
The patient was a pensioner and therefore not billed
53, 468
The patient was not billed because of their mental health
• Membership fee to SA Ambulance • Call-out fees of up to $967 plus kilometre fee of $5.60 per kilometre
ACT • Set call-out fees of up to $959 • Free ambulance service for pensioners
QLD • Fees covered by State Government
TAS • Fees covered by State Government The complaint received by the Victorian Ombudsman involved a man who was involved in an altercation, which led to someone else calling the ambulance for him. Even though he declined the emergency services workers, and did not take the ride to the hospital, he was still charged $519 for the call-out. Ambulance Victoria remained responsive to the issues raised during the course of the investigation. In response to the complaint, Ambulance Victoria have cancelled the invoice to the patient that made the complaint, as well as offering to refund all patients with evidence that they payed for treatment without transport over the past 12 months.
323
The scene involved the Transport Accident Commission
8, 043
Unknown cases (no patient information)
4, 548
TOTAL
SA
Number
104,727
The table above displayed the number of patients that were billed over the 201718 financial year, and the reason for the billings. Not including the unknown cases, the numbers show that only 18 per cent of patients were billed for treatment without transport. Ambulance Victoria CEO Associate Professor Tony Walker says, “We proposed several changed to improve our billing practices and will: • Split charges evenly among patients when paramedics have treated but not transported multiple patients. • Cease charging for treatment without transport where an ambulance is called by an unknown third party and the patient did not know or could not have reasonably consented to an ambulance being called, including when an ambulance is called by police. • Ensure our billing staff consider the unique circumstances of each case and exercise discretion when dealing with disputed invoices for treatment without transportation.” It is important to note that the role of paramedics is to respond to a medical emergency, not discuss fees, therefor the discretion of Ambulance Victoria’s finance and billing staff is an excellent idea moving forward.
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YOUR SUPERANNUATION STATEMENT: WHAT TO LOOK FOR Your super is a big deal. It may be one of your most valuable assets by the time you’re ready to enjoy retirement. Checking your super statement each year is a smart way to avoid nasty surprises in the future. When your statement arrives this year, check these four things. 1. YOUR PERSONAL DETAILS
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4. YOUR INSURANCE COVER Your super statement will provide a summary of any insurance held as at June 30. This may include life cover, total and permanent disability cover, and income protection. Think about the protection you need and whether the cover you have is right for you.
QSuper has been looking after members’ retirement savings since 1912. Welcome to super without surprises – qsuper.qld.gov.au. 1. ATO data. Correct at 20 June 2018 2. Industry SuperFunds report: ‘Super Scandal: Unpaid Super Guarantee 2016-17’ This is general information only, using sources that we believe are reliable and accurate at the time of publication. The QSuper products are issued by the QSuper Board (ABN 32 125 059 006, AFSL 489650) as trustee for QSuper (ABN 60 905 115 063). Consider whether the product is right for you by reading the product disclosure statement (PDS) available from our website or by calling us on 1300 360 750. © QSuper Board 2019
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IS AN AMBULANCE NEEDED? A STUDY CONDUCTED BY THE EDITH Cowan University of Australia (ECU) found a clear lack of public understanding around when to call an ambulance, putting a significant strain on paramedic services nationwide. The study created 17 hypothetic scenarios, and asked 544 Australians whether or not it was appropriate to call an ambulance. The study found that only 63 per cent of people said that an ambulance should be called for someone displaying symptoms of a stroke. Dr Mills, lead researcher for ECU’s School of Medical and Health Sciences said that even a short delay in getting a suspected stroke victim to a hospital could result in severe brain damage. He said, “In these circumstances, as symptoms such as facial drooping, slurred speech and swallowing problems manifest, it’s vital to call an ambulance.” A fifth of survey respondents said that a woman going into labour warranted calling an ambulance, despite emergency services saying it was not usually needed. In 2009, Ambulance Victoria, one of Australia’s busiest ambulance services, noted that 630 transportations on women in early stages of labour. In some cases, patients
AMBULANCE ACTIVE
“ It is a common misconception that if you are
taken to the hospital in an ambulance, you will be seen by a doctor sooner.
”
have called Triple Zero for conditions such as sunburn, boils, sore throats and even a broken nail. It is a common misconception that if you are taken to the hospital in an ambulance, you will be seen by a doctor sooner. In actual fact, all patients are treated according to their medical needs, regardless of whether they arrived in an ambulance or not. Emergency services workers and paramedics save lives. Calling an ambulance for non-emergencies could cost someone their life. Self-transport was a defining discovery of the study. It is very concerning that many people said they would transport people in their own car in the event of an emergency, rather than call an ambulance. Masters student Michella Hill said, “Paramedics do a lot more than just transport patients to hospital… They can
provide initial medical care during that transport and also know which hospital would be best suited for the patient They are also trained to drive in challenging and stressful conditions.” The ambulance service of NSW released a statement detailing that in the case of an emergency, it is crucial to call an ambulance, in order to get to the emergency department (ED) as quickly and safely as possible. With the rise in population, ambulance resources are spread thin, so we, as a population, need to ensure that we are only using the service when appropriate. Dr. Mills said, “…What we need to do is to better educate the public about what medical circumstances truly classify as a medical emergency and warrant calling an ambulance.”
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