SA Firefighter

Boys and Girls,

Try doing a bit of homework on G4 also known as Falck in Europe.

If I were an ambulance provider I would err on the side of caution. Big multinational, years of experience and very deep pockets.

Cheers from Blackfoot

Sorry guys - EMT Ambulance has nothing to do with the Gillman Speedway service. Might be one of our old vehicles and uniforms look same. Perhaps look at some disaffected ex Johnnies who might be running this outfit.

Check out this private provider.

Guys,

Strategic Management and Analysis 101. Your business model is always based on your knowlege of the competition and the dynamics of the marketplace (SWOT analysis). If your market research is faulty or based on dubious premises then your business model is bound to collapse and thus your business.

As a matter of fact i am an Instructor for those courses as well as an Instructor for a few Australian University paramedic courses as well. Although there are systemic problems with the Johnnies in terms of their Crusaders management system, in terms of their customers and their insurance policies it is a matter of best practice levels of training for their volunteers. If you are marketing a service the customer is always right! Until they learn that very simple lesson they will lose volunteers and events until they are irrelevant in the marketplace. The times they are a changing. (If you can remember the sixties you were nor really there).

The Johnnies may think about upgrading their skills base by doing some internationally recognised courses such as PHTLS, ITLS, ATT or ACLS. All are available in South Australia conducted by local providers.

Good luck

Rumour getting around the sports motorcycle clubs that St. John is about to pull out of all attendances where higher level trauma is the primary injury type. Something about their level of training and insurance policy demands.

There is another way of upskilling but does not involve SAAS. Many advanced courses are run in Adelaide on a yearly or twice yearly basis. For example:

Pre Hospital Trauma Life Support
International Trauma Life Support
Advanced Cardiac Life Support
Assessment and Treatment of Trauma
and all of the courses run by the Australian College of Emergency Nursing

All of these are accessible to SAAS (and other) volunteers who wish to upskill. Of course with our generous government you will need to pay out of your own pocket. Also SAAS clinical hierarchy will probably not recognise them with their NIH (not invented here) attitude.

Good luck chaps.

Although this will provoke a torrent of abuse and angst try looking at the EMT Ambulance Service. All volunteer, training to diploma level and some lifesavers who work on shift during the winter months. A number of ex members who have obtained jobs with QAS and NSW services. 8-)

Just to reiterate the message - if ambulance volly's from Adelaide are sick of the the SAAS demands then consider the alternative. A volunteer ambulance NGO that respects volunteers for their service to the community, not to the socialist medicine state. Although a few members of this forum may find that difficult to deal with and indeed may be persons that have not met the entry criteria due to medical problems be assured that when the government finally closes the last volunteer station we will still be operating for persons too poor to afford the state ambulance service.

A problem is an opportunity looking for a place to happen. If you blokes who travel from Adelaide to near country stations to do your now compulsory 12 hour shift no longer want to volunteer for the government then consider alternatives. There is a small non emergency ambulance service owned and run by volunteers who are on the road every night of the week in metro Adelaide. Not for profit humanitarian NGO.

Face it guys, SAAS priced themselves out of the market by maintaining a government mandated monopoly for far too long. They are about to do so again in the patient transport market.

If you want to see how to make a public service/private sector system work have a look at Singapore. Same system as South Australia but with integration at the operational level. I'm sure you older blokes in the AEA would remember the word integration from the 1980's.

The other way to get reaccreditation is to go via the AREMT who will do so by challenge exam and skills RPL. I believe they have a local assessor who have done this for SAAS personnel wishing to work overseas.

History may give some perspective - way back in 1989 the AEA and the Bannon government accomplished two out of three objectives:

1) Abolish all volunteers ambos from city area service - accomplished.

2) Abolish Venerable Order of St. John from the ambulance service - result is SAAS - accomplished

and finally 20 years later :

3) become fully entitled public servants with pay rates, status and employment rules of the public service - accomplished.

So what are you fellows whining about - Brother Ian and his comrades would be proud of what you have finally accomplished.

A question for the SAAS forum. Does anyone know if Mr. Rudd's plans to take over 100% of Primary Health Care funding includes ambulance services?

When you are creating a clone of the British NHS ambulance service you go to the mother country for your ideas and uniforms. Damned colonial interference.