In the past week The Examiner has shared the story of an 80-year-old Wynyard woman who waited more than an hour for an ambulance, despite being just 130 metres away from an ambulance station.

Similarly, Alan Jordan waited three hours for an ambulance after breaking his ankle. By the time paramedics arrived, his blood pressure had reached a level considered dangerous.

Stories like this are unfortunately just the tip of the iceberg for a health system that is clearly failing to keep up with rising demand. We have the oldest population in Australia combined with some of the worst rates of chronic illness.

Tasmania is facing a health crisis and no there is not a quick fix. This criticism is not on the hard working staff, but the system.

Cases are also becoming more complicated and the line between what constitutes a genuine medical emergency and not, is becoming less clear.

On Saturday, Health Minister Sarah Courtney announced the government would implement a secondary triage system. Calls to triple zero will be triaged and only those deemed genuine emergencies will be responded to by an ambulance.

It's a system that has been implemented elsewhere and it's something the government is banking on to assess an estimated 22,000 triple zero calls a year and divert up to 16,000 patients to alternate service providers.

It has now been two years since the government's Review of Ambulance Tasmania Clinical and Operational Services report recommended the move to a secondary triage. It was the same report that found Tasmanians were calling triple zero for toothaches, common colds, medication delivery and sick pets.

In the meantime we must all take responsibility for improving our health and for ensuring ambulances are there for those who need it most. An ED should be the last place we want to end up in, but in the case of a genuine emergency it should be a place every Tasmanian can rely on.