A tragic accident witnessed by a Heatherbrae couple has led to renewed calls for a second ambulance vehicle to operate at Raymond Terrace and an urgent upgrade of the ambulance station site.
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Rose Cogger-Collins says she has been trying to get the NSW government to provide Raymond Terrace with a second ambulance vehicle since witnessing an accident 18 months ago where a driver died, and she has the backing of State MP Kate Washington.
But according to NSW Ambulance, Raymond Terrace is staffed 24 hours a day and is supported by Beresfield, Birmingham Gardens, Kurri Kurri, Rutherford, Tea Gardens and Cessnock in the event multiple emergencies occur at the same time.
"NSW paramedics are mobile, attending to patients in their home, out in the community and/or transporting them to the most appropriate hospital. The closest available paramedics always respond to patients in the event of a medical emergency, with life-threatening injuries/ illnesses always triaged as a priority no matter where those emergencies happen," a spokesperson said.
Mrs Cogger-Collins said that the area had grown significantly, comprising the towns of Raymond Terrace and Medowie, primary and high schools, the Pacific Highway, the road between East Maitland and Raymond Terrace and the industrial areas of Tomago and Heatherbrae.
"On the day of the road accident it took the ambulance around 20 minutes to arrive. Unfortunately, a driver in the accident passed away. According to NSW Ambulance, the time taken to attend accidents should be 10 minutes."
Mrs Cogger-Collins said that she had been advised it could take up to two hours from when the ambulance leaves the Raymond Terrace area to go to the hospital, where often they have to wait for a bed at the hospital to be available before returning to Raymond Terrace.
"In addition, the Raymond Terrace ambulance station is of a poor standard," she said.
But according to the NSW Ambulance spokesperson, Raymond Terrace ambulance station underwent an upgrade in April 2020.
Ms Washington said that she had heard from too many families of their frightening experiences as they wait for an ambulance to turn up.
"Our ambulance officers do an amazing job, but I'm worried that staffing decisions by the state government too often leave our community at risk," she said.
"We have a situation where critical care can be delayed because the one local ambulance on duty has already been called away. When that occurs, there is zero chance the patient will be seen within the benchmark response time of 10 minutes. For critically ill patients, every minute counts."
