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Valley endures a night with no ambulance, paramedics reach breaking point

The Allan Labor government's handling of Ambulance Victoria is worsening. Latrobe Valley paramedics found no ambulances available on Friday night, with local resources diverted to East Gippsland.

By news@gippsland - 22nd August 2024 - Back to News

The Allan Labor government's mismanagement of Ambulance Victoria continues to spiral deeper into crisis. After meeting with paramedics, The Nationals' Member for Morwell, Martin Cameron, said there were no ambulances in the Latrobe Valley on Friday night. Local resources were instead forced to respond to emergencies in East Gippsland as ambulances were fully ramped at Bairnsdale Regional Health.

Martin Cameron reported no ambulances in Latrobe Valley Friday night, with local resources sent to East Gippsland

Paramedics face neglect

Mr Cameron said, "Labor is treating our paramedics like second-class first responders. The continued ramping at hospitals means paramedics are forced to sit with patients for hours, sometimes entire shifts, and can't respond to emergency callouts. When they're not ramped, our highly-trained paramedics are being used for non-urgent patient transport. They're working with technology from the stone age, using UHF radios, and sometimes all the information they have when responding to an emergency is three words on a pager."

"They're being steered by an outdated and overwhelmed Triple Zero system, working 18-hour shifts, and being ignored by a state government that refuses to listen. Our paramedics are some of the most selfless, dedicated people and they do an amazing job keeping our loved ones safe, but they have reached breaking point because they receive no support from Labor," he said.

The Victorian Nationals and Liberals were last week successful in passing a motion to establish an inquiry into the performance, workplace culture and procurement practices of Ambulance Victoria. Premier Jacinta Allan has refused to appear before the inquiry. "Labor can't manage money, can't manage our ambulance system, and Victorians are paying the price," he said.

Pictures from Martin Cameron MP website.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com