Tasmania’s ambulance services have been struggling for some time, but new figures released to the Greens show things are getting even worse.
The data shows a shocking 8,700 paramedic shifts were not able to be filled in the 2023-24 year. That’s a huge 13.5% of all shifts vacant – a big jump from the 10% reported last year.
This new information also highlights the impact of the staffing crisis on patients.
An alarming 1,053 emergency incidents waited more than an hour for an ambulance to arrive. These are triple-0 calls that have been verified by specialist Ambulance Tasmania staff as being a life-threatening emergency and designated as a critical priority (‘P0’ or ‘P1’).
This is an unacceptable situation. Rather than getting an ambulance when they need it, Tasmanians are being left with dangerously long delays. Staff are doing everything they can, but there’s no way they can make up for the impact of more than one in eight shifts being empty.
There is no doubt that lives are being put at risk by the massive staff shortages in Ambulance Tasmania. And of course this situation is also taking a huge toll on paramedics, communications staff, and dispatchers too.
We acknowledge the government has committed to hiring some new paramedics, and that’s a step in the right direction. But what the Liberals have promised is well below what was recommended by their own experts 18 months ago.
It’s time the Liberals got their priorities sorted. Rather than focusing on building a billion-dollar stadium, what about doing what’s required to make sure Tasmanians have a safe and reliable ambulance service?
