News Release … Monday 24 August
Ambulance Service To Sack Victoria’s
300 Intensive Care Paramedics
Ambulance Victoria has today declared its intention to gut Victoria’s emergency health
service by sacking the State’s 300 highly-trained Intensive Care (MICA) Paramedics.
The 300 Intensive Care Paramedics had earlier this month announced plans to resign their
MICA qualification and work as general duties Paramedics. However, they were told today
that they would be sacked on September 9 unless they withdraw their resignations and
remained on MICA.
This is an unprecedented move by the Government. Up until now, Intensive Care Paramedics
have been permitted to resign their MICA qualification and resume work as general duties
Paramedics. This threatened sacking is seen by Intensive Care Paramedics as a ‘bullying’
tactic to break the spirit of Intensive Care Paramedics across the State.
This mass sacking means that Victoria will have no Intensive Care Paramedics to care for
critically ill patients, and will have a critical shortage of Paramedics. There will be no
emergency helicopter service to transport trauma victims to Melbourne hospitals and no
Intensive Care Paramedics to train MICA students currently working on the road and others
due to begin on-road training on September 7 - about 30 new MICA Paramedics in all.
Intensive Care Paramedics announced in August that they would resign their Intensive Care
qualifications and work as general duties paramedics come September 9 unless the Victorian
Government agreed to a significant wage increase. Instead of accepting the resignations and
allowing Intensive Care Paramedics to work as general duties Paramedics, or negotiating to
keep the service, staff were told today that they would be sacked.
“Today is a tragic day for Victorians because the Government has knowingly signalled its
intention to gut the system. Once we have been sacked from the service on September 9, this
State’s hospitals, local GPs, trauma services and the general community will understand what
they have lost,” one Intensive Care Paramedics said.
Once the 300 Intensive Care Paramedics have been sacked there will be the equivalent of 16
ambulances sitting idle in Melbourne alone, with no staff to work on them. The helicopter
emergency service will also be left grounded.
The Victorian Government proposed an EBA agreement two weeks ago, though no official
document has yet been put to Paramedics. However, the verbal agreement does not provide
Intensive Care Paramedics with the pay rise they have been promised for almost two years.
“We have continued working and taking on more and more responsibility for the past four
years, because we believed the promises we had been given by Ambulance Victoria, that we
would be rewarded at the next EBA. Unfortunately, the Government will not accept improved
patient outcomes as a form of productivity. So when it came to the crunch, they said we
weren’t worth any more money. I’d like to know if all the people we have treated and
resuscitated in the last four years agree with them,” said one angry Intensive Care Paramedic
with over 10 years service.
Intensive Care Paramedics are trained first as general duties ambulance Paramedics and then
they undertake further intensive studies. It costs the State in excess of $100,000 to train an
Intensive Care Paramedic, regarded as the most highly-trained paramedics in the world.
All Victorians should be aware that once Intensive Care Paramedics are sacked on September
9 there would be:
No intubation. People who need to have a breathing tube inserted in their lungs to
give them life support won’t be able to get it.
No RSI. People with head injuries who need to be placed into an induced coma and
have a breathing tube placed in their lungs to reduce brain damage, won’t get it.
No 12 lead ECG. People who currently have their heart attack diagnosed before they
get to hospital, so that the Heart Specialist can be informed and be ready to give them
the life saving treatment they need, will now have to wait until they get to hospital to
be diagnosed. We know that this slows down how quickly they get their treatment.
This has a big impact on how much they can recover from their heart attack, and what
quality of life they will have afterwards.
No arrhythmia treatment. People who have life threatening heart arrhythmias will
no longer have them stabilized before they get to hospital and will have to wait until
they get to hospital for the treatment that may save their lives. For these people every
second counts as they may go into cardiac arrest at any time. The delay may kill
them.
No chest decompression. If people (in Melbourne) have a collapsed lung after a car
accident, they will no longer be able to have a tube inserted to allow their lungs to re-
inflate. This is life saving treatment. These people will die if this doesn’t happen.
(NB: in country Victoria there are other Paramedics who can provide this treatment).
No ROSC treatment. When people have a cardiac arrest, once their heart is started
again they need advanced treatment to keep their heart working and to prevent brain
damage. This includes placing them in an induced coma and cooling their body
temperature. This will no longer be done. For most of these people they will have to
have CPR done in the back of the ambulance until they get to hospital. We know that
under these circumstances the best survival rate we can expect is 5%, currently it is
25%.
No drug injections for asthma. Severe asthmatics who cannot breath enough to get
Ventolin into their lungs need Ventolin injected into their veins. This will no longer
happen.
Media: Victoria’s industrial laws prevent any Intensive Care Paramedics (MICA) speaking
publicly. If he/she speaks to the media they risk a $6000 fine. Some MICA Paramedics will speak
anonymously. To arrange an interview call Rosie on 9481 8943 or 0431 471046.
NEWS 
