CFS fires up after plan to send firefighters to SA ambulance callouts

One of the state’s fire services says its volunteers are already being called to traumatic jobs outside of their scope.

The CFS has revealed volunteers are regularly required to attend incidents “beyond the scope of their firefighting duties”, after the state government unveiled plans that could see metropolitan firefighters called in to respond to medical emergencies.

Premier Peter Malinauskas revealed a task-force will investigate whether Metropolitan Fire Service (MFS) resources should be called in to respond in situations where ambulances are unavailable.

It comes after the case of a 47-year-old man who this week died during a 42-minute wait for an ambulance.

Shortly after the task-force was revealed, Country Fire Service (CFS) chief officer Mark Jones raised concerns over the current expectations of volunteers, who have already attended about 1000 medical incidents this year — including 14 this week.

“The CFS is not funded in any way for these non-statutory roles and, in the interests of patient safety and the mental wellbeing of CFS responders, a higher level of training and support would seem to be vital as a starter,” he said.

“Our volunteers are routinely called upon to attend traumatic events beyond the scope of their firefighting duties and these jobs fall outside of most people’s expectations when they join the service.

CFS Chief Officer Mark Jones. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

“I have seen the number of SA Ambulance Service (SAAS) assist jobs that our volunteers are expected to attend grow significantly. This is something that has occurred without any formal agreement or additional support for our volunteers doing an already tough job.”

Emergency Services Minister Joe Szakacs assured the taskforce was “firmly focused on our full-time, paid MFS firefighters”, and said the government has made investments in health and emergency services in regional areas.

“This taskforce has been constructed to ensure we are not asking any more of our hardworking CFS volunteers, who already assist SAAS in SA’s regions,” he said.

Mr Malinauskas said the government was open to ideas to help alleviate pressure on the ambulance system.

“One such measure that has been proposed is drawing on the resources of the MFS to potentially respond in ways that are safe,” he said.

“Now, that’s a suggestion that I’m open-minded to so this morning I’ve instructed a task-force to be established at haste, made up of the chief officer of the MFS, Michael Morgan, and also the CEO of the Ambulance Service, Rob Elliott.”

Could firefighters be used to help ease pressure on ambulances? Picture: AAP / Emma Brasier

Mr Malinauskas said the task-force would examine “what the options are and what can be done”.

“My instruction to the task-force is let’s not think about what can’t be done, let’s think about what can be done,” he said.

However, he warned it was a “complex exercise” all potential consequences must be considered before a plan is formed.

Mr Morgan said the MFS is supportive of the task-force, and a SAAS spokeswoman said fire, police, and SES partners were already a “fantastic support”.

“We are excited about the opportunity to work further with the SA Metropolitan Fire Service on a co-response model for the community here in SA, and hope to grow the program over time,” she said.

“Any initiative that supports early CPR and early defibrillation is potentially lifesaving.”

The United Firefighters Union SA was also supportive of the proposal, provided that firefighters are adequately trained and resourced.

Opposition health spokeswoman Ashton Hurn said: “regardless of what the task is, it’s clear that we don’t have the personnel required to save people’s lives”.