Wednesday, 11 May 2022

Ambulance services

Mr GUY (Bulleen—Leader of the Opposition) (14:08): My question is to the Minister for Health. Last night another code orange was declared at 7.30 pm, with 39 ambulances ramped outside Melbourne hospitals. Even the ambulance union’s Danny Hill told 3AW this morning, ‘I’d bet money the number was far higher than 39’. Can the minister advise exactly how many ambulances were ramped outside Melbourne’s major hospitals last night?

Mr FOLEY (Albert Park—Minister for Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Minister for Equality) (14:09): Can I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. In regard to the specifics of his question, ambulance ramping, which is a practice whereby ambulances seek to dispatch their patients into the care of the emergency department in an important process that takes into account at all times the clinical needs of those patients, is a complex issue. It happens, sadly, all too regularly as we come out of this global pandemic. In regard to the specifics of any numbers at any particular time, that is an incredibly dynamic and fluid process, as at any given time people are coming and going. So it is incredibly difficult for the honourable Leader of the Opposition to try some kind of gotcha moment on such a difficult issue.

Of course it is sadly typical of those who do not want to recognise the reality that our ambulance services, our emergency departments, our hospitals and indeed our primary care system—the entire health care system, the responsibility of both the national and state governments, is under pressure like never before.

Mr Walsh: On a point of order, Speaker, on the issue of relevance, and I understand that the minister does not have the figures at hand, but could he take it on notice and actually report back—

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! Without the assistance of the Leader of the House.

Mr Walsh: The point of order is: if the minister does not know how many ambulances were ramping last night, can he take it on notice and report back so that Victorians know what is going on?

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of The Nationals knows that is not a point of order. The minister is being relevant to the question that was asked.

Mr FOLEY: What Victorians know is going on is that this is a government that is determined to work with our healthcare professionals, particularly our ambulance professionals, as we come out of a one-in-100-year global pandemic. We have seen Ambulance Victoria in particular deal with a combination of events. For instance, yesterday we had 1500 healthcare workers furloughed; several hundred of those were ambulance employees. In regard to Ambulance Victoria itself, both its third and fourth quarters were amongst its busiest, certainly the third quarter reported on and the fourth not far behind—the third and second quarters being the busiest in Ambulance Victoria’s history. At the same time they are also dealing with complex cases as people come forward after a global pandemic with deferred care issues where cases, particularly of chronic illness, are coming forward with more acute conditions. Add on to that, as another level of complexity, issues around infection, prevention and control that necessarily put the welfare of both the ambulance crew and the patient at the forefront of those efforts. In every regard our ambulance professionals are dealing with the most difficult of circumstances in the most professional manner that you could possibly expect, and I am sure I join all honourable members in thanking them. But we have to go further: we have to back them and fund them accordingly, and our $12 billion budget does precisely that.

Mr GUY (Bulleen—Leader of the Opposition) (14:12): Can the minister confirm that with dozens of ambulances ramped last night, 69 Victorians who had dialled 000 were left waiting on hold for an ambulance?

Mr FOLEY (Albert Park—Minister for Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Minister for Equality) (14:13): As the honourable Leader of the Opposition is well aware, the 000 call numbers are a responsibility under the emergency services portfolio, which the health portfolio works incredibly closely with. In terms of who the question is most appropriately directed to, it should in fact be to the Minister for Emergency Services. Nonetheless, in regard to the general issue, this is a government which, through the most recent budget, in addition to the $12 billion investment in our health and ambulance and responder services, has invested some—I think the figure is $400 million into the whole—

Mr Andrews: At least that—400 staff.

Mr FOLEY: Four hundred staff in the whole ESTA response. So in regard—

Mr Walsh: On a point of order, Speaker, on the issue of relevance again, in the few seconds remaining can the minister just give us a number?

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of The Nationals knows that that is not a point of order.

Mr FOLEY: Again, allowing for the fact that they have asked the wrong minister, this is a government that will back our 000 ESTA services.