Re: Ambulance delay anger over Melton mum’s death (Weekly, May 28):
Lives are at risk because of a lack of resources, hospital ramping, an ambulance dispatch and call-taking system that is full of flaws and KPIs that exacerbate those flaws.
Lives are also at risk as paramedics’ wages are at crisis point, pushing experience out of the workforce and flooding the service with young, inexperienced employees. This is negatively impacting patients’ well-being.
Ross (via web)
Re: Bacchus Marsh paramedic fears a repeat of ‘taxi service’ tragedy (Weekly, May 28):
The current call-taking system is improving the cardiac arrest survival rate in the same way that a fisherman could catch more fish with nuclear weapons. Send us code 1 to just about everything, no matter how trivial.
Russell (via web)
Our cardiac arrest survival rates are not what they seem. Yes, the paramedics get great results if they arrive in time, but herein lies the problem. With ambulance response times now over 20 minutes, resuscitation is often not started as anything greater than 10 minutes without CPR is futile. If resuscitation is not started, these people are not included in the cardiac arrest statistics. By Ambulance Victoria allowing response times to increase, more people are dying because the ambulance is too late, yet the cardiac arrest survival rates actually appear to be better. The whole thing is a disgraceful fraud which management claims to be proud of.
Concerned ambo
Re: Melton station car park finally a sealed deal (Weekly, May 28):
Just more smoke and mirrors before an election. PTV also made huge promises for Diggers Rest during the $270-million Metro rail extension to Sunbury. This included improved disabled access which, to date, remains closed. Happy days!
David O’Connor
This is a piecemeal deal, not a sealed deal as reported. The intention is to give a section of car park at Melton railway station a quick makeover with a load of bitumen and a few lights in the hope that when Regional Rail Link disruptions occur it will soften the blow for commuters. Wake up, City of Melton, PTV is sealing an area near the station so the buses replacing the trains will not get bogged.
Karen Ellis
Thanks for an honest man
I would like to say thank you to the gentleman who found my mobile phone in the rear car park at Woodgrove shopping centre and handed it in at Melton police station. There were photos and videos I could never replace. Whoever you are, thank you very much for being an honest person.
Val Bowes
