Ambulance Ramping

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS (Black—Leader of the Opposition) (16:15): My question is to the Premier. Does the Premier have confidence in the Ambulance Ramping Review Report of January 2024? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.J. SPEIRS: The SA Salaried Medical Officers Association has claimed that a direction has been issued by SA Health which says, and I quote:

…mandating SA Ambulance Service offload at 180 minutes, and that SAAS patients were to be preferentially offloaded over patients in the waiting room.

The Hon. C.J. PICTON (Kaurna—Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (16:15): I certainly do have confidence in the work that was done by Professor McNeil and Professor Griggs in the beginning of the year. Following allegations that were made, they were investigated and there was a report provided which found no evidence for those claims that were made. There were recommendations made and a working group of clinicians established to oversee the implementation of those recommendations, sensible recommendations in terms of how to appropriately manage the clinical priority of patients in the waiting room, on the ambulance ramp and in the community who need an ambulance response.

In fact, I met with Professor McNeil—my regular meeting with him as the Commissioner for Excellence and Innovation—just yesterday and he advised me that the progress of that working group is going exceptionally well and they are close to finalising a number of the aspects of the implementation of that work, including a revised policy. The policy has been in place for many years, essentially along the same lines that, if there are patients of equal clinical priority, then preference should be given to the ambulance—and that was the situation that was in place under the previous government—to make sure that that ambulance can be released to other cases in the community.

The recommendations made a number of points in terms of ensuring that there is greater visibility of the impact in terms of what ambulance resources are available to respond to community responses. That work is progressing very well, I am informed by Professor McNeil. In addition to that updating of the policy in terms of clarifying in relation to clinical decision-making, that work is progressing well. I have no evidence whatsoever of the claims that were made in the explanation of the question and nor has the opposition produced any.