The College calls on government to provide more support for paramedics to improve resourcing and address systemic challenges

MEDIA STATEMENT

Thursday 17 February 2022

The Australasian College of Paramedicine is supporting paramedics in their calls for improved resourcing and solutions to ramping and demand issues to ensure that they can continue to provide quality emergency frontline support for their communities.

Following the announcement that thousands of paramedics will be striking in NSW as an urgent call for better conditions, the College’s primary focus is on the wellbeing of paramedics.

For months, the College has recognised that there has been immense pressure on experienced paramedics and new graduates to work additional shifts and longer hours to support the healthcare system during the pandemic.

These pressures have been particularly felt by paramedics in NSW and VIC, where COVID numbers have spiked and more health professionals are unavailable to fill shifts due to being furloughed or contracting the virus.

After seeing no improvement in demand or solutions to address ambulance waiting times at hospital, paramedics feel stretched and undervalued. The College has concerns about workforce attrition over the next 12-24 months and would like to see a plan from the government on how these issues will be addressed.

The college is also advocating for changes to current policy that provide access to workforce incentive programs for paramedics wanting opportunities to fill gaps in the health system workforce shortages in regional and rural areas across the country. Community paramedicine can play a critical role in addressing this issue.

The College is also encouraging the placement of more student paramedics in primary health care settings to carry out supervised learning and training to help provide relief for staffing shortages in the future.

The College would like to call on the government to provide more support to paramedics and to make systemic changes to address the demand, workforce shortages and ramping issues evident across the country. Chief Paramedic Officers across the country should also be considered to provide solutions to issues as they arise.

Media Contact:

Bronte Ryan on 0411 297 059 or bronte@fiftyacres.com

Our media statement can be downloaded at: https://paramedics.org/storage/news/media-statement-feb17-2022.pdf