Call for councils to fund Bay ambulances

Jeremy Gooders said ambulances in the Western Bay were crewed by two people 98 or 00 per cent of the time. Photo/File

An international ambulance advocate has called on the region's two councils to help fund the ambulance service.

Paramedics Australasia New Zealand chairman Sean Thompson said funding for community ambulances was a significant problem and sometimes led to paramedics working alone, becoming vulnerable to assaults and abuse.

The organisation operated as a professional representative of paramedics in Australia and New Zealand.

"Ambulances are underfunded in New Zealand and something I would like to see is local councils get in behind and help to fund local ambulances through rates. Even something like $2 a year per rate payer would go a long way," he said.

Mr Thompson said the New Zealand Police was funded by taxpayers, the New Zealand Fire Service was funded through insurance levies but ambulances, which treated and cared for people rather than property, was treated as a charity.

The single crewing of ambulances was of particular concern, Mr Thompson he said.

"The situations paramedics go into and the patients they attend are often unpredictable, especially where alcohol is involved." Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby said local government was unlikely to be the answer in the near future.

"I do not see a rate payer contribution to this service getting public acceptance as it would be deemed not to be a core service of council."

St John district operations manager Jeremy Gooders said assaults against paramedics in the region were rare with only one recorded in the Western Bay in the past three years.

Mr Gooders said verbal abuse was much more common than physical abuse but this was because staff were often arriving at volatile situations with emotions running high.

While Mr Gooders acknowledged single-crewed ambulances could leave a staff member or volunteer vulnerable, it hardly ever happened in the region.

He said ambulances in the Western Bay were crewed by two people 98 or 99 per cent of the time.

NZ First health spokeswoman Barbara Stewart echoed Mr Thompson's concerns at a lack of funding for the ambulance service.

Ms Stewart said paramedics were often asked to enter dangerous situations to do their job.

History of St John

St John has existed in New Zealand since 1885 and is part of a global organisation known as the Order of St John, which is active in more than 40 countries.

The Order of St John can trace its history back to a hospital set up in Jerusalem during the Crusades more than 1000 years ago. Source - St John NZ