Well, if anyone calls an ambulance in this country, they should expect that calls for help be answered, no matter where they are. In Australia. This morning, though Victorians are demanding answers after a shocking health system failure. It left just four percent of the state's ambulance fleet available for triple zero calls earlier this week, and in some cases those who did get to hospital faced grueling weight times of up to ten hours before being seen. Danny Hill, Victorian Ambulance Union secretary, joins me live now in Melbourne. Good morning to you. At one point fifty people were left waiting for an ambulance. How did we get to this.

Well, if anyone calls an ambulance in this country, they should expect that calls for help be answered, no matter where they are. In Australia. This morning, though Victorians are demanding answers after a shocking health system failure. It left just four percent of the state's ambulance fleet available for triple zero calls earlier this week, and in some cases those who did get to hospital faced grueling weight times of up to ten hours before being seen. Danny Hill, Victorian Ambulance Union secretary, joins me live now in Melbourne. Good morning to you. At one point fifty people were left waiting for an ambulance. How did we get to this.

Well, it was a perfect storm mat We had a lot of dropped resources. We had twenty two advanced life support and eight mobile intensive care ambulances that actually didn't run on Monday night. And then compounding that, we had very busy workload and the hospitals were overwhelmed and at one point we believe about one hundred crews were ramped at hospitals across metropolitan Melbourne. Sometimes were up to ten hours, so that left a fraction of the fleet. I'm informed that at one point it was one percent of the ambulance fleet of Metropolitan Melbourne was available to respond to anyone in an emergency.

Well, it was a perfect storm mat We had a lot of dropped resources. We had twenty two advanced life support and eight mobile intensive care ambulances that actually didn't run on Monday night. And then compounding that, we had very busy workload and the hospitals were overwhelmed and at one point we believe about one hundred crews were ramped at hospitals across metropolitan Melbourne. Sometimes were up to ten hours, so that left a fraction of the fleet. I'm informed that at one point it was one percent of the ambulance fleet of Metropolitan Melbourne was available to respond to anyone in an emergency.

One percent. So let's go back to the ambos. So the paramedics waiting for ten hours, is that rammed? So is that to drop their patients at the hospitals?

One percent. So let's go back to the ambos. So the paramedics waiting for ten hours, is that rammed? So is that to drop their patients at the hospitals?

That's right. So they arrive at the hospital, they're triaged at the hospital and if there's a bed available, they're transported into that bed. But where there's no beds available, in circumstances where the hospital is busy and overwhelmed, the crews then have to wait with that patient until care can be handed over, and in some cases that can be up to ten hours. And I'm where the Ballarat hospital we saw waits of up to thirteen hours. And typically when it's busy at one metropolitan hospital, it's normally busy at most of them. So it doesn't just affect one small area, can affect the entire metropolitan region or even right across the state.

That's right. So they arrive at the hospital, they're triaged at the hospital and if there's a bed available, they're transported into that bed. But where there's no beds available, in circumstances where the hospital is busy and overwhelmed, the crews then have to wait with that patient until care can be handed over, and in some cases that can be up to ten hours. And I'm where the Ballarat hospital we saw waits of up to thirteen hours. And typically when it's busy at one metropolitan hospital, it's normally busy at most of them. So it doesn't just affect one small area, can affect the entire metropolitan region or even right across the state.

Danny, this is an absolute cluster, solutely ridiculous. How do we fix it?

Danny, this is an absolute cluster, solutely ridiculous. How do we fix it?

Well, taxpayers pay for their ambulance service to be there in time of an emergency, and what they're required to do, and what people need them to do is to be free and available to respond to them in times of emergency, and too often we see them effectively logged off emergency work to work in hospital corridors, to organize GP appointments, to do social work, instead of being free to respond to genuine emergencies. Just the other night, an ambulance was called to someone complaining of gaming addiction. Now paramedics don't have anything to offer that person. That person may need a discussion with someone or a chat with someone, but they don't need ambulance paramedics. And it certainly doesn't justify taking ambulance paramedics off the road so that they can't respond to other patients.

Well, taxpayers pay for their ambulance service to be there in time of an emergency, and what they're required to do, and what people need them to do is to be free and available to respond to them in times of emergency, and too often we see them effectively logged off emergency work to work in hospital corridors, to organize GP appointments, to do social work, instead of being free to respond to genuine emergencies. Just the other night, an ambulance was called to someone complaining of gaming addiction. Now paramedics don't have anything to offer that person. That person may need a discussion with someone or a chat with someone, but they don't need ambulance paramedics. And it certainly doesn't justify taking ambulance paramedics off the road so that they can't respond to other patients.

Who genuinely they're going to those calls. Why isn't someone saying no and redirecting them?

Who genuinely they're going to those calls. Why isn't someone saying no and redirecting them?

Surely correct, and they're being sent to those calls. That's the problem is that the calls are coming through and always will. And some of these patients do need assistance, they do need help, but they don't need ambulance experiment exactly. Other patients do need ambulance skills and ambulance treatment, and they're patients who are often in a time critical emergency and they should be free to be able to go to those cases, not blocked from going to those cases because of other work.

Surely correct, and they're being sent to those calls. That's the problem is that the calls are coming through and always will. And some of these patients do need assistance, they do need help, but they don't need ambulance experiment exactly. Other patients do need ambulance skills and ambulance treatment, and they're patients who are often in a time critical emergency and they should be free to be able to go to those cases, not blocked from going to those cases because of other work.

Okay, Danny, surely someone can fix this. It's just absolutely ridiculous. We'll keep on it. Thank you very much for raising the alarm.

Okay, Danny, surely someone can fix this. It's just absolutely ridiculous. We'll keep on it. Thank you very much for raising the alarm.