Page 4156 - Week 14 - Thursday, 25 October 1990
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Mr Speaker, the list goes on. Ambulance availability is often below that which applied in 1973. There has been no denial of that. I take that to be fact, Mr Speaker, and still we go on. There was a motor vehicle accident resulting in a woman with a broken jaw and other trauma having to wait for 55 minutes for an ambulance while the fourth operational ambulance crew was just 1 minutes away under contract at a race meeting. Mr Humphries informed this house, I think, that that had not been reported to his managers.
Ms Follett: He did not deny it.
MR BERRY: But did not deny it. Mr Speaker, I take that statement to be fact. On Tuesday I also said, "Last night a Canberra medical centre required an ambulance for an asthmatic and had to wait unduly until an ambulance had completed another job". Mr Humphries said that that had not been reported either, but did not deny it. So I take that statement to be fact. I said that there had been three occasions when one person had been required to go out on a job alone. Mr Humphries said that he would be surprised if that occurred, but the information I have suggests that that is a fact.
Further evidence has been brought to my attention since this issue hit the headlines. The disgraceful performance of the Minister is becoming clearer. Mr Speaker, the Minister said that there were 71 ambulance staff available in the ACT, but what he did not tell the house was that today there are only 28 qualified ambulance people - let him deny this - that is, people who are qualified to sit in an ambulance, who are available to respond in an ambulance. People who can add up, of course, know that it takes 32, at all times, to provide the four ambulances which used to be the standard until the Government changed its mind in the last few days. The fact of the matter is that there are fewer people on shift than are required to staff ambulances.
The Minister also responded during question time - I must say, in a very misleading way - to a question which was raised in relation to ambulances. I would like to bring another fact to the attention of the Assembly. He was asked:
Will the Minister admit that, of the 71 staff of the Ambulance Service, only 28 are qualified and currently available to staff operational ambulances?
He said that there were 50-odd, or a number to that effect. I do not recall the exact number. Well, that is not true. We were talking about available ambulance officers. The fact of the matter is that there are insufficient members to fully man the ambulances that are normally in place. I seek leave - - -
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