Thursday, 3 April 2025

Ambulance services

Moira DEEMING (Western Metropolitan) (10:03): We all know that health services in Victoria are in a shambles, and Ambulance Victoria’s code 1 response times are just one example. But instead of fixing the root causes of the problem – staffing, rostering, resources – the government and Ambulance Victoria have normalised sending out solo responders. Paramedics in Victoria are being forced to attend 000 call-outs alone, without a partner, without support and without proper training, because this government wants better looking stats. They are being forced to make impossible choices. Do they enter a volatile situation alone and risk their own safety, or do they wait in the van, press the duress button and potentially let someone die? This is not just unsafe, it is exploitation. It takes advantage of the moral integrity of our frontline workers, knowing that they will prioritise patient care, even at their own personal risk. And then if something goes wrong, they are the ones who will be blamed for breaking protocol and not assessing the risk properly. One female paramedic told me that upon arriving alone in a dangerous area at night she was so afraid she rang her husband to be on speakerphone before getting out of the vehicle. Then of course the patient needed to be rushed to hospital. Obviously she could not drive the ambulance and save his life at the same time, so another paramedic was called. Ridiculously, the second paramedic had also been sent out solo, so one ambulance had to be abandoned, fully stocked with narcotics at the scene. This is ridiculous.