LARU Report

The Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) began its pilot program for the new LARU graduate certificate last year, starting with a small cohort of officers from around the state, reports Ashleigh Sharp ACP.

While the previous LARU model had focused on metropolitan areas, this program also included a strong regional representation.

Many officers around the state applied for the program and I was lucky enough to be offered a position. We are just a little over halfway through the pilot program, and we are already using some of the skills learnt in our day‑to‑day roles.

I was interested in the program for several reasons. I think in the current work environment, there is a very real need for the QAS to manage the increasing volume of jobs where patients have multiple clinical and social issues occurring, where hospital may not be the best destination.

The LARU officer role allows for a more holistic approach, greater assessment and in time, more treatment pathways.

The LARU program’s scope has significant potential for growth and future development as current trends indicate increasing numbers of patients with multiple clinical and social issues and these will continue to grow, meaning the skill set to meet this demand will also need to grow.

The course itself has been quite challenging yet rewarding. Each subject has been in‑depth and supported by residential workshops run by experienced practitioners.

Assignments, forum posts and reading articles has been a staple of my life since I started.

While initially it was challenging to balance the coursework, full time work and home life, course convenors were able to adjust the program to better tailor it to the needs of adult learning.

With this increased knowledge from our studies, we get to put into action what we’ve learnt on road.

The wound care module encompassed chronic wound management to acute injury care including suturing and has been one of the most enjoyable subjects to complete.

The wounds residential workshop involved stitching up pigs’ feet, skin tear management on chicken Maryland cuts, and removing fishhooks from fake skin. Wound kits were provided by the Region on completion of the module so we could use these skills in the community.

Every day, we see the benefits of what we’ve learnt, regardless of our current role.

We are better at identifying at-risk patients who need a tailored approach to their care.

We can see how patients with multiple, complex comorbid conditions are managed delicately to ensure each condition is not exacerbated by treatment of the others.

We also are improving at finding the subset of patients who would benefit more by avoiding an Emergency Department presentation for their condition.

Ashleigh Sharp examines a “patient” during her training for her LARU graduate certificate