Darwin’s emergency ambulance service faced a critical failure overnight, with a staggering 61 Triple Zero (000) calls abandoned and 29 life-threatening or urgent emergencies left unattended for periods stretching up to a gruelling five hours. This unprecedented situation pushed St John Ambulance Northern Territory to its absolute limit, reaching a state of “operational capacity white” for the first time in its history.
Understanding “Operational Capacity White”
This designation signifies a “critical system failure point where service demand cannot be met despite all mitigation strategies,” according to St John Ambulance Northern Territory chief executive Abigail Trewin. The implications of such a failure are dire, carrying a “high likelihood of harm to patients and/or staff, and significant risk to service continuity and organisational reputation.”
The Overnight Crisis in Darwin and Palmerston
Between midnight and 7am, the Darwin and Palmerston region received 144 Triple-Zero calls. Of these, a deeply concerning 61 were abandoned. An abandoned call, Ms Trewin explained, is one that cannot be answered within the standard 10-second timeframe and is subsequently redirected to Telstra.
The situation was particularly alarming for critical emergencies:
- Priority One (Life-Threatening): Fourteen cases deemed life-threatening could not be attended to by ambulances within the required 15-minute response window. In one harrowing instance, a patient endured a wait of over five hours.
- Priority Two (Urgent): Fifteen Priority Two cases, which require a response within 30 minutes due to potential risk to life, were also left outstanding.
Patient Deterioration Amidst Delays
While Ms Trewin confirmed that no deaths were directly attributed to these ambulance delays, the impact on patient well-being was undeniable. “The conditions of patients deteriorated as they waited,” she stated.
In one particularly distressing account, police were forced to remain at a scene to manage a situation until an ambulance could arrive. “That patient certainly deteriorated over 35 minutes that they waited and that’s just not OK,” Ms Trewin recounted. She further elaborated on a scenario where a severely unwell individual “proceeded to stop breathing over that time period — that’s a pretty significant event.” The expectation, she stressed, is for an ambulance service to “arrive to make a difference when it counts.”
Overburdened Hospitals and Exhausted Crews
The strain extended beyond the call centres and dispatch. Royal Darwin Hospital experienced offloading delays exceeding 60 minutes, meaning ambulances were held up at the hospital and unable to return to the road for new emergencies. Adding to the crisis, one ambulance crew reportedly operated for nearly 10 hours without a break. Ms Trewin described the night as an “extraordinary event,” highlighting the sheer impossibility of reaching every call with only five ambulances available in the Darwin and Palmerston area.
A Plea for Responsible Triple Zero Usage
In light of the extreme pressure, Ms Trewin urged Territorians to exercise discretion when dialling Triple Zero. “St John Ambulance NT has experienced, over many months, a growing demand of its ambulance service, so much so that is putting now extreme challenges to our crews and our call centres to answer those Triple Zero calls,” she said. She appealed for individuals to consider alternative transport or medical consultation if they are “well enough to see their doctor, to travel to the hospital.”
Ms Trewin also candidly addressed the limitations imposed by current funding and service agreements with the NT government. “St John could not ‘guarantee that we can meet the needs of loved ones’,” she admitted, warning that “there may be delays and we may not be able to get to you when you need us most.”
“Code Red” in Alice Springs
The challenges were not confined to Darwin. Alice Springs also experienced severe strain. Following an incident where a paramedic was assaulted by a patient and required treatment for injuries, only one ambulance crew was available to service the entire town from just after 2am. This led to a “code red” situation, a term used to describe when resources are stretched to their absolute limit.
From 6pm to 7am in Alice Springs, 14 priority one, life-threatening emergencies were left unattended, with five of these occurring between 2am and 7am. All five of those critical cases waited over an hour for an ambulance. Ms Trewin noted that experiencing a “code red” is “almost a daily [occurrence] for us” in Alice Springs, underscoring the pervasive nature of resource shortages.
Government Response and Commitment
NT Health Minister Steve Edgington acknowledged the severity of the situation, stating that the government remains “committed to addressing growing demand and providing long-term certainty in our ambulance contracts.” He indicated that “additional resources and support staff have been provided to St John to address the current pressure” and has directed NT Health to “work collaboratively with them through all parts of our health system.”
