Some years ago I sprained a muscle in my back which left me totally incapacitated.
A single ambulance driver came to my rescue and dressed me and helped me up steps to his ambulnce.
I was in extreme pain and spasms were indescribably painful … as we drove to Hobart he chattered to me about how ambulances were taken out of the Derwent Valley for sometimes more than 8 hours and the closest ambulance then to the Derwent Valley was Sorell
I’m a logical female (yes they do exist) and gave this much thought. I spent 5 hours on a gurney in casualty before even being handed over to the RRHospital staff and this qualified paramedic had to stand next to me and play nursemaid.
This I felt was a terrible travesty especially when I realised he could have turned his ambulance around and gone back to the Derwent Valley and perhaps saved someone’s life …
Here’s the idea that came to mind. Why not have all medical students, paramedic students and nursing students do a full volunteer ambulance course as a prerequisite of their university requirements?
Why not then put it to them to volunteer 4 hrs per week for the duration of their university course … although an 8 hour shift would be better; they could even be given credits toward their degrees. This is such a no brainer.
This is so utterly logical and simple you might say. I have spoken at length to paramedics who agree with my idea. I have spoken at length to paramedics I have met on mainland Australia who thought it was a great idea. I have spoken to politiians who thought it a great idea.
Twleve months ago I spoke to Rebecca White who thought it was a good idea; she then wrote to the State Health Minister Michelle O’Byrne … who said she could not help. I went to federal Labor MPDick Adams who thought my idea had merit; however he told me I would need to write to every university throughout Australia to even contemplate such a radical idea.
Each week in Tasmania or on mainland Australia there is a story about someone waiting for an ambulance for such a length of time the person dies.
Australia wide this idea would save more than 200,000 hours of ambulance personnel being out of their areas.
In Tasmania I believe there are 100 med students each year and it’s a 6 year course so that’s 600×4=2400 + 100 nurses for a 3 year course so 300 x4=1200 plus 50 paramedics over 2 years so 100×4=400 ….that totals 4000 hours per week ambulances could be sent back to their point of destination after minimal delays.
Ambulance personnel could drive their patient into the emergency department and hand over their patient with the sprained back or whatever and then get back into their ambulances and go back to their point of destination.
The students would be as qualified as any ambulance volunteer and would gain the experience of fine-tuning bedside manner and good case histories for their studies.
What do people think?
