NSW paramedics refuse to work alone after State ignores report recommendation on safety
PARAMEDICS will refuse to work alone this week after the state government ignored a recommendation from its own report to ensure ambulance workers weren’t sent to jobs by themselves following several high-profile attacks in the past year.
NSW
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PARAMEDICS will refuse to work alone this week after the state government ignored a recommendation from its own report to ensure ambulance workers weren’t sent to jobs by themselves.
It comes after a number of high-profile attacks in the past year, including female paramedics being flung into walls by drunk patients, punched while helping pregnant women and bitten so badly it drew blood.
Health Services Union NSW secretary Gerard Hayes said single officer response not only put paramedics’ lives in danger but significantly reduced patient care.
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The union is reeling after the state government failed to support a recommendation from its own Inquiry into Violence Against Emergency Services Personnel, saying it “should explore resourcing options” to eliminate the need for any paramedic to attend a job alone.
In a response to the report handed down by Health Minister Brad Hazzard on Friday, the government said “further consideration” was required because single officers were needed to “reduce response times” in life-threatening cases.
Mr Hayes said HSU members would vote on the working ban today but he expected that the majority would support it.
“It’s a profession where you need two people to do the job and save lives,” Mr Hayes said.
“You don’t know what you’re going to get until you’re get there and our members have faced terrible attacks.
“Two years ago we had a paramedic go alone to what turned out to be a murder. In terms of patient care, things can also change very rapidly.”
Mr Hayes said that the government needed to employ more paramedics.
The government said in the “majority” of cases paramedics did not have to transport patients alone.
Mr Hazzard said both NSW Health and NSW Ambulance had put the argument to him that in some cases it was faster to get paramedics in motorcycles and smart cars to respond first to a call-out.
He said he had witnessed a single paramedic response last year and had been “incredibly impressed”.
“I certainly encourage the two unions who represent our paramedics to have a chat with me before anything involving industrial action,” Mr Hazzard said. “I’m very concerned about the safety of all our emergency workers.”
The number of single paramedic call-outs made is not tracked.