United Voice News
QLD Coast residents jeopardised by ambulance rostering
Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) could jeopardise the safety of residents of the Gold Coast, Beenleigh and Ipswich by failing to provide sufficient ambulance crews.
LHMU Branch Secretary Gary Bullock said that the South East Region is one of the busiest areas in Queensland in terms of demand for ambulance services, but was being endangered by inadequate rostering practices.
“Unfortunately, that means a shortfall of ambulance crews which could have dire consequences for residents needing emergency care,” Gary said.
Gary said rosters are designed to allocate the minimum number of crews required to meet demands for emergency services.
“Unfortunately, this region is consistently running below minimum staffing levels with not enough emergency crews rostered on for at least two days of the week,” he said.
“As a consequence, there are not enough emergency vehicles to meet demand which means response times can significantly blow out.
“If this practice is allowed to continue, we risk a situation where there will not be an ambulance available to respond to an emergency and a life could be lost as a result.
“QAS has refused to discuss workplace changes that would ensure that a minimum number of emergency vehicles are available to meet public demand.”
Gary said the changes that need to be made were relatively simple and involved a minor reshuffle of rosters.
“That small act could end up saving the life of a Queenslander so the sooner it’s done, the better.”
