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Canberra Today 15°/17° | Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Canberra’s ambulance officers understaffed and overworked

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BETWEEN 2016-17 ambulance officers have worked almost 36,000 hours overtime and have also failed to meet minimum crewing levels during more than 40 per cent of shifts, says shadow Minister for Emergency Services Giulia Jones. 

Ms Jones says Minister for Emergency Services Mick Gentleman confirmed these numbers in a “Question on Notice”.  

“Despite demanding 36,000hours of overtime from our ambulance officers, the minister has failed to provide enough crews to meet the minimum requirement for 41.5 per cent of all emergency ambulance shifts,” she says. 

“The minister is relying on the equivalent to 98hours and 25minutes of overtime being worked each and every day by the ambulance service.

“After working a 10-hour day shift or 14-hour night shift, our ambulance officers are regularly asked to work overtime to backfill vacant shifts [and] what was a 14-hour night shift frequently becomes much longer.”

In light of these numbers, Ms Jones is calling on the Labor-Greens government to explain why ACTAS emergency shifts fell below minimum crewing levels for 41.5 per cent of all shifts, despite almost 36,000 hours of overtime.

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