State Government to introduce full-time paid paramedics to St John WA ambulance sub-centre in Margaret River

A long due overhaul of country ambulance services will see four full-time paid paramedics set up at St John WA’s sub-centre in Margaret River.

The rollout comes on the heels of a parliamentary review into bush services which concluded in the A New Century report released in September.

While the timing of the new paramedics for Margaret River was yet to be confirmed, the March 31 announcement detailed 31 full-time equivalent paramedics Statewide.

Volunteer ambulance officers would continue to support the new personnel, with the State Government investment a response to population growth and increased visitation to the Capes region since the pandemic.

Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said Busselton had already received two extra paramedics and East Bunbury one, while other localities were also confirmed to have the new officers in place.

Harvey and Esperance were also with Margaret River in receiving full-time paid personnel for the first time.

Additionally, the Minister outlined a new dedicated “flying squad” of eight paramedics were added to the books to provide relief for communities when required.

The Minister said the allocations were determined in consultation with St John WA and the Department of Health “based on demand and need”.

“The McGowan Government is working to ensure our ambulance services meets the need of our regional communities,” Ms Sanderson said.

“We have collaborated with St John WA and the WA Country Health Service to identify communities that require additional support and I am pleased that these paramedics will now begin deployment.

“This will represent a 25 per cent increase in the number of paid paramedics in the regions since we commenced contract negotiations with St John WA last year,” she said.

“This investment builds on existing paramedic capability in country WA — including the highly-valued network of volunteers who do an extraordinary job.”

Warren-Blackwood MLA Jane Kelsbie was jubilant at the news.

“It is the first time Margaret River has had paid paramedics and I’m proud to be part of the McGowan Labor Government that is delivering this for our region,” she said.

“The four full-time paramedics for Margaret River are part of a huge boost in ambulance resources for the region, with nine paramedics deployed to the South West.”

The A New Century report included specific recommendations catering to the South West, including changes to the contentious “best endeavours” model for sub-centres including Margaret River, Augusta and Dunsborough which were found to be over-reliant on volunteers.

St John WA would need to meet specific targets for response times, with the report finding the existing model “does not guarantee regional communities have access to ambulances services”.

The report also said the Health Department had no real-time monitoring of ambulance availability in many regional areas.

St John also had “to reduce inequity between metropolitan and regional WA” and “investigate extending the current ambulance service delivery model in regional areas with a hybrid model where appropriate”.

Local doctors and then-Opposition Leader Mia Davies had aired serious concerns about the rising workload on ambulance volunteers.