Hume recorded one of the highest number of code one ambulance callouts in the state in the three months to June 30, new Ambulance Victoria data reveals.
Paramedics responded 4706 code one callouts – those requiring urgent paramedic and hospital care deploying lights and sirens– in Hume between April and June.
Only Greater Geelong (4991) and Casey (4983) recorded more code one calls during that period.
The number of code one calls responded to in Hume rose from 4513 between January and March, and coincided with a four-second increase in response times.
Ambulance Victoria data shows the average code one response time in Hume was 16:04 minutes between April and June, up from 16 minutes.
Paramedics responded to 59.2 per cent of code one calls within the state government-set benchmark of 15 minutes or less, down from 60.1 per cent during the previous three months.
In Sunbury alone, there was 641 code one ambulance callouts.
In the Macedon Ranges, paramedics responded to 777 code one call outs in the same period.
Response times were kept at an average of 16:44 minutes, with 53.9 per cent of callouts reaching the targeted response time of under 15 minutes.
In the previous quarter, response times were slightly closer to target with an average response time of 16:05, and there were also less reported code one callouts with 601 across the Macedon Ranges.
Ambulance Victorian regional operations acting executive director Michael Georgiou said every day, there are more than 500 calls to triple-0 that don’t need an emergency ambulance.
“There are many options people can access when they need timely medical care and health advice but don’t need an emergency ambulance, including the Victorian Virtual Emergency Department and Urgent Care Clinics,“ he said.
Ambulance Victoria said it is working closely with hospitals, emergency services and government partners to keep ambulances on the road and patients moving through the system.
“We’re grateful to our hospital partners for their efforts– it’s helping us reach more patients, faster,“ Mr Georgiou said.
