Qld ambulance ramping reaches worst level, nearly half of patients forced to wait more than 30 minutes
Ambulance ramping in Queensland has reached its worst level on record, as the LNP scrambles for answers.
Ambulance ramping in Queensland has reached its worst level on record, with nearly half of patients forced to wait more than 30 minutes before being admitted to emergency departments.
The July figures reveal 47.8 per cent of patients were ramped outside longer than the recommended time frame at the top 26 hospitals across the state, surpassing Labor’s previous record of 46.9 per cent under then-Health Minister Shannon Fentiman in February 2024.
The newly released ramping rates are expected to put pressure on Health Minister Tim Nicholls, who has been tasked by Premier David Crisafulli to reduce ramping below 30 per cent before the 2028 election.
The state government has blamed protected industrial action by nurses and midwives and flu season for the sudden increase, which saw 47.8 per cent of patients ramped outside hospitals in July compared to Labor’s 42.2 per cent in July 2024.
Ramping was also higher in June - at 44.8 per cent, up from Labor’s 43.2 per cent in June 2024.
Mr Nicholls said the Crisafulli government was still committed to its ambitious target but warned progress would take time.
“Under Labor, Queensland’s ambulance ramping rates rose year-on-year for a decade,” he said.
“The reality is Labor didn’t build hospitals or deliver beds for a decade and we are now tasked with driving our building program through to drive down ambulance ramping.”
The government has announced 70 new beds for the Gold Coast and promised new and upgraded transit lounges across seven major hospitals.
But it is yet to reveal a clear timeline for its new hospital build program after scrapping Labor’s $18 billion expansion package, which had blown out by almost double its original budget.
Labor health spokesman Mark Bailey said the worsening ramping figures were a direct result of the government’s decision to axe the program and the botching of the flu-vaccine rollout.
“Labor was building thousands of beds that would reduce ramping, but (Premier) David Crisafulli indefinitely paused hospital constructions from Cairns to Coomera for political point scoring,” he said.
The LNP in February introduced “real-time” monthly data on ramping, replacing Labor’s system which released quarterly figures.
“We are being transparent about the challenge we’ve inherited by releasing these numbers through our real-time hospital data and monthly hospital performance,” Mr Nicholls said, adding that while ramping rates had worsened in recent months, the state’s elective surgery waitlist had seen “big improvements”.
There are 62,554 Queenslanders currently on the surgery waitlist, however July data showed the number of patients waiting for surgeries longer than clinically recommended has skyrocketed 47 per cent compared to the same time last year.
Ambulances are also losing an average of 16 minutes per trip ramped outside hospitals EDs- up 2 minutes from the same period last year.
Boonah resident Ross Coco, 77, endured what he described as “one of the worst experiences of my life” after waiting three hours for an ambulance last week.
Suffering abdominal pain and loss of bladder control following prostate surgery, Mr Coco was classed a non-urgent patient and had to wait for paramedics to attend to those with life-threatening injuries.
“I was trembling and couldn’t speak properly,” he said.
“It was quite obvious I was in pain.”
He eventually gave up, cancelled the ambulance and drove himself 20 minutes to the St Andrew’s Hospital.
A QAS spokeswoman said patient safety remained the top priority and that clinicians maintained phone oversight of Mr Coco’s case and had advised him of steps to take if his condition deteriorated.
“Upon review, the case was appropriately processed and coded based on the information provided by those on scene,” she said.
Mr Coco agreed that triple-o operators and paramedics were not at fault for his experience, instead criticising the government for “telling us how safe we are when it’s bulls**t”.
“Buy a couple more ambulances, spend the money right,” he said.
“Don’t mislead me on television and tell me how everything is going to get better.”
WHAT THE POLLIES HAVE SAID
Jarrod Bleijie, May 23, 2024
“I called for Premier Steven Miles to sack Minister Fentiman because I believe she is the worst health minister Queensland has ever had and I again call on the Premier to sack the disgraceful health minister.”
Brent Mickelberg, August 27, 2025
“We had 10 years of Labor failure on health and the worst ambulance ramping in the country; that is what those opposite presided over.”
“She (Ms Fentiman) was the worst health minister that Queensland has seen, with the worst ambulance ramping in the nation.”
Ros Bates, June, 11, 2025
“We know that she was the worst health minister in the country. The member for Waterford is the only health minister sacked by all of Queensland at the last election.”
May 20, 2024
“Shannon Fentiman is officially the worst Health Minister in Queensland history. No Health Minister has ever recorded a ramping figure this bad.”
David Crisafulli, June 13, 2024
“Spending money is not an outcome. Record funding is not an outcome. Record ramping and record waiting lists are outcomes—just not the right ones.”
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