Ambulance question

[geckoGT]

So let's see if I have this right, every ambulance station had a dedicated phone operator (not crew member) on site 24 hours a day?

[2011G6E]

Originally Posted by geckoGT

So let's see if I have this right, every ambulance station had a dedicated phone operator (not crew member) on site 24 hours a day?

Well the one in Bundaberg did. There was a small room opening through a large window onto the garage where all the cars were stored, and ambulance officers took turns to be rostered on to answer the phone each shift round the clock. He was also a dispatch guy...The little room was the radio room as well.

[Dave3911]

2011G6E - I'm kinda confused with what you are getting at. Nobody short changed the emergency services at all when the national 000 call center's were setup, it was a huge leap forward. It meant that anyone, anywhere in Australia, could call one common number to get assistance.

Whilst the closing down of manned regional exchanges probably did save money for telstra(telecom), it too was just the by product of a technological advance - that being automated computerised exchanges.

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

Back then, when people "called the ambulance", it was either a non-urgent call and they phoned a normal phone number which went to the switchboard in the station, or if it was a triple 0 call, it went first to Telstra at the closest one of a whole lot of regional exchanges where they would ask the simple question "Which emergency service do you need?", and then it would be directed straight to the ambulance station itself. They never asked where you were, as they already knew which town you were in as, well, it was an exchange in the area and they obviously knew which town the call had come from.

Which didn't change at all when the system was nationalised. Even at it's very beginning the operators knew where the call they were taking originated from. The process was just streamlined and a further check/balance was made. It also allows for someone in one location to call for an ambulance (or any other emergency service for that matter) from a location other than the one that the service is required. Assuming that the emergency service is required at the call's point of origin is a very dangerous practice. The system as you described would have struggled to keep up with the introduction of mobile communications in the late 80's early 90s anyway. The far majority of calls are made by mobiles now, very few coming from landlines.

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

When a 000 call came in, it would trigger sirens instead of the basic bell which meant a normal local call had come in. By the time the operator at the station exchange was getting the details, you were sitting in the idling ambulance looking through the window at him and waiting to pull out onto the street, just waiting for the word on which way to head.

So as per gecko's question, they had a telephone operator assigned to each and every station?? That's insane. No use of Telstra's ERS system at all? Alpha paging? Tone over paging? What happened when the crew was out getting lunch?

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

After the system changed, I do recall quite a few problems reported in the media...stuff like having to spend time describing your location to the operator as they could be in another state (one memorable one was an operator activating the ambulances in Maryborough in Victoria, when Maryborough in Queensland was where the problem was...).

Any implementation of a new system always has teething problems, doesn't mean the change is bad.

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

I even remember having to patiently spend some time to give directions and carefully spell out the street name when my father had his last big heart attack back in 1998..."what town are you in?"..."what street number"..."how do you spell that street name again?"..."and that's in Queensland, right?". I'm afraid I said some rather uncharitable and downright rude things to that woman on the other end of the phone...

You find accurate questioning about your location to be a bad thing?? Huh?? That's the prime objective of any 000 call. All calls start with 3 main questions, Where? What? and When? In that order. With the where coming first and foremost. Experience taking thousands of these calls, you'd be amazed how many callers want to focus on the What, the Where doesn't even come into it. When in reality, getting the location right is usually the only thing that matters at all.

Callers will spit out an address at a million words a second and expect miracles to happen. I can totally appreciate it, I don't begrudge anyone for it all.... but when you look at the situation logically those questions are required to be asked... you'd be amazed at how many streets exist in similar suburbs or localities.... or how many times street numbers repeat themselves along the same stretch of rd.... or roads that change name without any deviation. Spending time to confirm a nearby landmark, coroner street or other location detail may be the diffrence between the emergency services arriving in time, or not.

The other thing I find curious is how in one paragraph you critize the system for sending emergency services to the wrong state (which I too have seen happen) but then have a go when they confirmed the state with you? We just can't win! Because of this very reason the organisation I work for confirm EVERY call we take is in the state of Victoria. No deviation. All of them. Even if it's at Flinders St rail station or the MCG, the caller will sitll have their state confirmed. It only takes a second, and it can make the difference.

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

I've no doubt the new system is very good, but it has caused issues over the years.

No system is perfect. The problem is when it comes to 000 and emergency services, people want it to be. I know I certainly do. But we do need to bite the bullet sometimes and acknowledge that it's never going to be.

Ah well...as long as someone somewhere saved a few bucks for their beaurocratic master when they came up with the new system, it's all good...

No saving money going on at all here. The systems we have implemented in Victoria over the last 15+ years have cost a whole heap of $$$'s. We spend more now on 000 calltaking and dispatch than we ever have*.

* Not withstanding the current state budget that just cut our funding!

[NGN 351]

Another reason for going slow is when transporting unstable spinal fractures. These patients need as smooth as transportation when being sent to a hospital with a designated spinal care unit.

Justin

[fmc351]

Originally Posted by GoldCoastGTP

Not the ambos but back in the early 80's - now i am showing my age when I joined the plods we had the F100 cage (divvy) vans some were the 6 cyls and a few were the 351 monsters that could keep up with the XD and XE traffic cars on the old Pac Hwy - them were the days

Makes sense, shared govco interests and all that.

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

I don't think they would have sprung for a Keith Black motor...the V8's in the ambulances in Bundy in the early eighties were mostly stock, except for the "crash wagon" F100 which had a Ford 351 in it which had some work done...but apart from being a tough 4V motor and having a big Holley, it was pretty stock i think.

Whatever this was, it wasnt a simple 4v, Ive heard enough of those to know the difference.

There is a local bloke (Landsborough), George Wegener who may be a likely candidate for building this particular one if it is the case that local stations had work done themselves, hes been there for ....ever. He built my 351 and it does have similar characteristics, but I dont know if that means anything.

Originally Posted by geckoGT

Actually I just thought of some differences with the old school effies. During my driver training we had 2 80's era ambos as training vehicles. One was a F100 with white bonnet (known as the Old Girl) and a carby V8 in it. The other was a F250 with a black bonnet (known as Black Betty) which had the EFI V8. All the others were the newer F250 and F350 blue bonnets with the powerstroke diesel.

Out of the 2, the F100 was the favourite of students and instructors alike as it hasd some go. May god rest both their souls.

Well this isnt helping me much at all, I know they had some poke, I want to know who built them.

Its been bugging me for near 20 yrs, Im going to go to my grave wondering this question. The irony being theres a good chance an ambo will be nearby.