Tasmania’s north is set to receive a boost in emergency medical services over the next year with nine new paramedic recruits to be announced by the government on Monday, with a further nine slated to follow.
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The placement of the new 18 paramedics in the North and on the East Coast over two years is part of a planned five-year increase in services statewide.
The announcement comes after Tasmanian paramedics last week started industrial action in the public sectors fight with government over a 2 per cent pay increase.
Health Minister Michael Ferguson said the Deloraine, Bicheno and St Helens ambulance stations will gain three paramedics each in the next financial year.
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Three additional paramedics will be employed in each of the Longford, Beaconsfield and George Town stations in the following year.
“We have allocated $14.9 million for the progressive recruitment of 42 paramedics as part of our $125 million plan to boost ambulance services,” Mr Ferguson said.
“Our strong investment in ambulance services is already paying off, with response times in Tasmanian coming down over the past year, at the same time as a growing number of responses.”
The Department of Health’s recent annual report showed median emergency response times were 12.8 minutes statewide in 2017-18 – lower than the past two reporting periods.
“These additional paramedics will also reduce fatigue, increase ambulance responsiveness and reduce overtime costs,” Mr Ferguson added.
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