March 9, 2026 • 13 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's been an incredible logistical effort for our emergency services
with all hands on deck managing the response to that
widespread flooding across the Big Rivers region and indeed Catherine
now alongside the Northern Territory Police and the Northern Territory
Emergency Services, Saint John Paramedics have also been involved and
the new CEO, Abigail Truan, joins me in the studio.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Good morning to you, Abby, Hi Katie, and hello to
your listeners.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
Lovely to have you on the show. First off, congratulations
on the appointment to the role.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Oh, thank you very much. It's a wonderful opportunity.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
It'll be a it'll no doubt be a big job,
and I know that you've got a lot of experience
and you'd be ready to hit the ground running, no
doubt about that, and already have by the look of things.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
I have been known to be called a whirlwind from
a few of my friends and colleagues, but no, look
at it is a fantastic organization and we are we
should all be really proud as Territorians for the paramedics
that we have on the road up here.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
Well, and you know, it has been quite the whirlwind
over the weekend. We know that the situation in Catherine
and the Big Rivers region has been quite a logistical
will juggle, I guess for all of our emergency services
talk us through what Saint John have sort of been
involved in over the last couple of days.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
So, like all good emergency services, we've got good, strong
disaster plans and when they're enacted, we stand up and
we do it professionally. So we have an incident management team.
And then the ambulance station itself in Catherine was turned
into the emergency department for Catherine, which was part of
those disaster plans and part of why the building was
(01:36):
made the way it is.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
We brought on our.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
Resources to support that, so more paramedics coming into the
station as well as sending others down the track to
give a hand. So that's sort of in the early
phase of the disaster, and then we constantly monitor to
see what else might be needed.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
So you've set up the St. John down there has
been set up basically is as like an emergency room
to be able to care for people. Have you had
like how many patients have you had in there over
the weekend or what's sort of been the juggle. So
we're working really closely with the health staff, so remembering
that they're actually fantastic at treating their patients in Catherine and.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
We need to work together to solve this challenge.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
So it stood up and I believe as of Monday
evening with there is over one hundred people that had
come through that emergency department, plus of course the evacuations
out of that building back to Darwin. So ambulance crews,
paramedics are going out retrieving people across the river, working
with n test to do that, a couple of fallall
drives to make sure they get back safely, and then
(02:39):
evacuating them out through to the airport as well, and
working in the rooms with the doctors and the nurses.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Wow, is this the first time that that's ever had
to happen in Catherine?
Speaker 3 (02:47):
It sure is, And hey, what a fantastic facility. Wouldn't
it be great if we could do that across the territory?
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Absolutely, Like I think that contingency just means that when
something like this does happen, that you've got a plan
in place that you're ready to mobile, you're able to
keep all of those patients safe. Which I know is
front of mind for anyone working, you know, to look
after people.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Yeah, I'm a big fan of good disaster plans. When
it's not done well, it makes life a hell of
a lot harder for everyone else.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
So I think this is a great example.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
But you know, the staff have to be willing to
leave their own homes and come in and provide that support,
and I'm really proud of how they've performed. Eight of
our staff have been affected by the floods, you know,
as an example, and they've left their homes to come
help territory and.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
So and so. In terms of then the evacuations, do
you know how many people had to be evacuated out
of Catherine to I'm assuming to Darwin, So.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I don't have the exact numbers here, And obviously it's
limited by how many planes we have available and moving
people and making sure it's really staged and thought about carefully.
Who needs to go to Darwin now and who can
wait till tomorrow. So that's been an ongoing process over
the weekend and all the teams, as I said, have
been working together to get that done.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Even the fact that you know, as those floodwaters rose,
you placed a paramedic and an ambulance north of the
Catherine River Bridge just in case.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Yeah, that's right, because if it gets cut off, who's
going to help? Right, So he was willing to be
over there with the ambulance ready to respond if needed.
It's no longer needed, and I understand he's come back
to the center now to provide assistance. But yeah, really
important you think about the strategy of where do you
put people to make sure you get help where it
might be needed.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Now, in terms of there was at least one patient
that had to be retrieved from the north side.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
Is that correct, That's what I understand.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
So yes, so intest I believe helped our teams go
across in a vessel, bring them back and bring them
back for obviously assistance at the at the health center.
And now that that water is receding, is there more
are you expecting?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
You know, is St. John expecting that more people are
going to sort of need some assistance?
Speaker 3 (04:54):
So we know, Katie, when a flood happens, no matter
where in the world it is, there's like a series
of things you should doat expect. So there's some of
the evacuation injuries that happen at the beginning, which we've seen.
Then mums have babies that does not stop in disasters,
and then we also have as we clean up, we
go into the next round of injuries that will happen
(05:14):
as people try and clean up their homes. And of
course the risk of direal diseases if you don't boil
your water and keep yourself healthy. Yeah, and that's I
guess the concern is as time goes on as well
as people are trying to do that clean up and
get everything organized.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
Abby.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I understand, though, there was some good news a baby
born in Catherine, the first flood baby.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I believe.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
Well, one of the mums I called through last night
in labor and two of our teams went out to
bring her back and they just made it, is what
I understand, just made it to the ambulance station and
a healthy baby was born with the help of the
health staff and then she was evacuated through to Darwin.
So our first flood baby, Katie.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
Oh, how lovely. Well, I'm glad that she's okay.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
I'm glad.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
I'm assuming mum's okay. Everybody's safe and happy.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
That's what I've been told.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Well, that is really good news now. I mean, there's
always so much going on when it comes to a
flood or a disaster situation, and if people are thinking, oh,
it sounds like there might be a bit of an
in joke there. As Abby and I were talking. For
those who don't know, Abigail true and used to be
with the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Center quite
some time ago. So this really, I mean, this is
(06:21):
something that you've been doing professionally for a long long time,
isn't it. I think it's close to twenty years now, Katie, Yeah, right, yeah,
a long time doing disaster's disaster response. Yep.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Here at your Jesse it is. But you know, I
don't need to do a lot now. I've got a
lot of fantastic team and staff that are stepping up
and their superbot what they do.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
They are so wonderful at what they do, and I
do not that. On the weekend, you actually penned a
piece for the Northern Territory News, and I'm glad that
you did because something that we've seen are really increase
in I think, and something that I talk quite often
about with Saint John is the fact that we've seen
experiences of late, particularly in Alice Springs, our paramedics really
(07:03):
fearing for their life and their safety based on terrible
behavior that they're experiencing when they go out to a job.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
So, Katie, I am a paramedic, that's my background, and
so I get it. When you get up to go
to your shift. I can't describe the feeling in your stomach,
but you start to recognize you're going on to high
alert as you shut your front door and then you
head to your station and you get your call outs. Now,
it's good to be alert, it's good to have situational awareness,
(07:33):
but you need to remember that our paramedics will see
things in one day you will never see in your lifetime,
and I can't describe the horror of.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
What that can look like.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
But it is a really difficult, demanding job. On top
of that, people being violent towards them, abusing them. I mean, really,
you're there to assist, you're there to help, and someone
is going to hurt you while you do that. The
toll that can take on you professionally, personally, every single day.
(08:04):
It was only yesterday I spoke to some of my
paramedic crews and I can tell you a young officer
described that fear on a daily basis so much so
that they will likely look at a different career path
for themselves.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
And this is the reality.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
So most paramedics don't stay in a job longer than
about seven years because of the just toll on them
physically and emotionally. And then you add violence to that,
and you wonder why we can't maintain our paramedic numbers
to where they need to be, because why would you
why would you do this?
Speaker 1 (08:35):
It is shocking, you know, it would be absolutely shocking.
And I can't imagine sort of the fire or flight
mode that you go into every single day depending on
what you're going out to, what job you're going out to.
But to then be going out to a traumatic situation
and be worried that somebody's going to either you know,
verbally abuse you or worse still physically abuse you while
(08:56):
you're trying to do that job. It's just totally unacceptable.
There's no other way to put it.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
I couldn't agree with you more. But we're also not
the police. We don't come with anything to defend ourselves
other than our words. Yeah, so you know you're not
only having to assist a patient, But you're also having
to try and de escalate a situation around you. And
it's understandable people are emotional when things happen, but when
it becomes violent or abusive, it's not okay. And I
(09:22):
want my crews to pull out of those situations. I
don't want them at risk.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I know that you also quoted that Saint John has
experienced a thirty percent increase in incidents and a seventy
percent rise in triple zero calls.
Speaker 3 (09:37):
How are you managing that demand? Would be one of
our most significant challenges in the territory. So if you
call triple zero, you expect someone to pick it up,
and you expect them to pick it up in ten seconds.
That's the national expectation. I can tell you a few
weekends ago, we had twenty eight percent of our calls
we couldn't answer because the volume was so high. When
(10:00):
you have thirty percent increase in incidents, your paramedics are
going to that means they don't get any form of meal,
rest recovery. They're on that high alert state I've described
before for hours and hours on end, and you can't
get to all the cases you want to. So if
you think about a couple of weekends ago, people could
be waiting fifteen hours for an ambulance with a priority
(10:24):
to case that's something like a broken.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Leg or a force.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
Yeah, it's a long time. So you know, I would
say to territorians, what service do you want? How do
you want us to respond? These are the challenges we
have to face as a health capability No different to
the hospitals and others. But when you call Triple O,
you expect a response.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Oh absolutely, And like I sort of think of various
different scenarios. But you even think, if you know there's
a kid that's broken their leg on the footy field
or something, what happens and if you can't get somebody
out for an extended period of time and the expectation
you're spot on is it somebody does go out and help.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
How do we fix this?
Speaker 1 (11:04):
Is it a funding issue?
Speaker 2 (11:05):
What is that?
Speaker 3 (11:06):
So there's a few things we need to think about.
Is why you're calling an ambulance. Okay, so if you're
calling for a splinter in your finger or something more simplistic,
please see your GP.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Don't call us.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
We're an emergency service. That's the first thing happening. It
happens it happens. The second thing is we've put in
strategies to try and manage that demand, so you'll get
a callback. If we're delayed, we'll tell you we're delayed.
We'll tell you how long we might be. We'll give
you advice. If you can move, then we'll tell you
(11:38):
to move. If you can't, then you have to wait.
We're looking at different ways to structure our ambulance service
so we can respond. But you can only do so
much with what you have. So meet the demand is
the challenge for us and making sure we can resource
it to meet the demand.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
It's not a new problem, Katie.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
No, and so taking that into account yet. Now for
you stepping in as the new CEO, I mean three
weeks in the job, what like, what work do you
really want to sort of get stuck into early on
to try and have an impact.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Well, the first thing I want to do is support
our staff, so let them know that I see them,
i understand the job, and I've got their back.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
First thing. The second thing is.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
Looking at how we can address and meet the demand
and make sure people understand what that looks like and
what might be needed to achieve that. And then the
third thing is around strengthening our system, which is good practice,
you know, making sure that patients stay safe when they're
with us, our crews stay safe when they're with their patients,
and that we can do our job as territory territories expect.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
I know there've been some chatter from the union, you know,
saying that that you know, NT Health should be taking
over Saint John rather than it being or taking over
the ambulance services, I guess, rather than it being managed
by Saint John.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
I mean, is that is that the answer? So I
think that's been a narrative for a very long time, Katie.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
It's not new. It was around when I was on
the road as well.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
What I would say is Saint John does an extraordinary
job for Territorians. We've been doing this since the seventies,
probably a bit earlier unfofficially, Yeah, and we've demonstrated we're
here for territorians. We've got superbly trained paramedics, they do degrees,
they do postgraduates, they're resourcing. Is the challenge moving forward
(13:23):
and making sure that we can support territorians in the
way they expect well.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Abigail Truan, the CEO of Saint John, it's great to
have you in the studio. Really appreciate it. No doubt
we'll catch up with you again soon.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Oh Katie, it was an absolute pleasure. Thanks, thank you,
thanks so much.
It's been an incredible logistical effort for our emergency services
with all hands on deck managing the response to that
widespread flooding across the Big Rivers region and indeed Catherine
now alongside the Northern Territory Police and the Northern Territory
Emergency Services, Saint John Paramedics have also been involved and
the new CEO, Abigail Truan, joins me in the studio.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Good morning to you, Abby, Hi Katie, and hello to
your listeners.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
Lovely to have you on the show. First off, congratulations
on the appointment to the role.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Oh, thank you very much. It's a wonderful opportunity.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
It'll be a it'll no doubt be a big job,
and I know that you've got a lot of experience
and you'd be ready to hit the ground running, no
doubt about that, and already have by the look of things.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
I have been known to be called a whirlwind from
a few of my friends and colleagues, but no, look
at it is a fantastic organization and we are we
should all be really proud as Territorians for the paramedics
that we have on the road up here.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
Well, and you know, it has been quite the whirlwind
over the weekend. We know that the situation in Catherine
and the Big Rivers region has been quite a logistical
will juggle, I guess for all of our emergency services
talk us through what Saint John have sort of been
involved in over the last couple of days.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
So, like all good emergency services, we've got good, strong
disaster plans and when they're enacted, we stand up and
we do it professionally. So we have an incident management team.
And then the ambulance station itself in Catherine was turned
into the emergency department for Catherine, which was part of
those disaster plans and part of why the building was
(01:36):
made the way it is.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
We brought on our.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
Resources to support that, so more paramedics coming into the
station as well as sending others down the track to
give a hand. So that's sort of in the early
phase of the disaster, and then we constantly monitor to
see what else might be needed.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
So you've set up the St. John down there has
been set up basically is as like an emergency room
to be able to care for people. Have you had
like how many patients have you had in there over
the weekend or what's sort of been the juggle. So
we're working really closely with the health staff, so remembering
that they're actually fantastic at treating their patients in Catherine and.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
We need to work together to solve this challenge.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
So it stood up and I believe as of Monday
evening with there is over one hundred people that had
come through that emergency department, plus of course the evacuations
out of that building back to Darwin. So ambulance crews,
paramedics are going out retrieving people across the river, working
with n test to do that, a couple of fallall
drives to make sure they get back safely, and then
(02:39):
evacuating them out through to the airport as well, and
working in the rooms with the doctors and the nurses.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Wow, is this the first time that that's ever had
to happen in Catherine?
Speaker 3 (02:47):
It sure is, And hey, what a fantastic facility. Wouldn't
it be great if we could do that across the territory?
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Absolutely, Like I think that contingency just means that when
something like this does happen, that you've got a plan
in place that you're ready to mobile, you're able to
keep all of those patients safe. Which I know is
front of mind for anyone working, you know, to look
after people.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
Yeah, I'm a big fan of good disaster plans. When
it's not done well, it makes life a hell of
a lot harder for everyone else.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
So I think this is a great example.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
But you know, the staff have to be willing to
leave their own homes and come in and provide that support,
and I'm really proud of how they've performed. Eight of
our staff have been affected by the floods, you know,
as an example, and they've left their homes to come
help territory and.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
So and so. In terms of then the evacuations, do
you know how many people had to be evacuated out
of Catherine to I'm assuming to Darwin, So.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I don't have the exact numbers here, And obviously it's
limited by how many planes we have available and moving
people and making sure it's really staged and thought about carefully.
Who needs to go to Darwin now and who can
wait till tomorrow. So that's been an ongoing process over
the weekend and all the teams, as I said, have
been working together to get that done.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Even the fact that you know, as those floodwaters rose,
you placed a paramedic and an ambulance north of the
Catherine River Bridge just in case.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Yeah, that's right, because if it gets cut off, who's
going to help? Right, So he was willing to be
over there with the ambulance ready to respond if needed.
It's no longer needed, and I understand he's come back
to the center now to provide assistance. But yeah, really
important you think about the strategy of where do you
put people to make sure you get help where it
might be needed.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Now, in terms of there was at least one patient
that had to be retrieved from the north side.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
Is that correct, That's what I understand.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
So yes, so intest I believe helped our teams go
across in a vessel, bring them back and bring them
back for obviously assistance at the at the health center.
And now that that water is receding, is there more
are you expecting?
Speaker 1 (04:50):
You know, is St. John expecting that more people are
going to sort of need some assistance?
Speaker 3 (04:54):
So we know, Katie, when a flood happens, no matter
where in the world it is, there's like a series
of things you should doat expect. So there's some of
the evacuation injuries that happen at the beginning, which we've seen.
Then mums have babies that does not stop in disasters,
and then we also have as we clean up, we
go into the next round of injuries that will happen
(05:14):
as people try and clean up their homes. And of
course the risk of direal diseases if you don't boil
your water and keep yourself healthy. Yeah, and that's I
guess the concern is as time goes on as well
as people are trying to do that clean up and
get everything organized.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
Abby.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I understand, though, there was some good news a baby
born in Catherine, the first flood baby.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I believe.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
Well, one of the mums I called through last night
in labor and two of our teams went out to
bring her back and they just made it, is what
I understand, just made it to the ambulance station and
a healthy baby was born with the help of the
health staff and then she was evacuated through to Darwin.
So our first flood baby, Katie.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
Oh, how lovely. Well, I'm glad that she's okay.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
I'm glad.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
I'm assuming mum's okay. Everybody's safe and happy.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
That's what I've been told.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Well, that is really good news now. I mean, there's
always so much going on when it comes to a
flood or a disaster situation, and if people are thinking, oh,
it sounds like there might be a bit of an
in joke there. As Abby and I were talking. For
those who don't know, Abigail true and used to be
with the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Center quite
some time ago. So this really, I mean, this is
(06:21):
something that you've been doing professionally for a long long time,
isn't it. I think it's close to twenty years now, Katie, Yeah, right, yeah,
a long time doing disaster's disaster response. Yep.
Speaker 3 (06:30):
Here at your Jesse it is. But you know, I
don't need to do a lot now. I've got a
lot of fantastic team and staff that are stepping up
and their superbot what they do.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
They are so wonderful at what they do, and I
do not that. On the weekend, you actually penned a
piece for the Northern Territory News, and I'm glad that
you did because something that we've seen are really increase
in I think, and something that I talk quite often
about with Saint John is the fact that we've seen
experiences of late, particularly in Alice Springs, our paramedics really
(07:03):
fearing for their life and their safety based on terrible
behavior that they're experiencing when they go out to a job.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
So, Katie, I am a paramedic, that's my background, and
so I get it. When you get up to go
to your shift. I can't describe the feeling in your stomach,
but you start to recognize you're going on to high
alert as you shut your front door and then you
head to your station and you get your call outs. Now,
it's good to be alert, it's good to have situational awareness,
(07:33):
but you need to remember that our paramedics will see
things in one day you will never see in your lifetime,
and I can't describe the horror of.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
What that can look like.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
But it is a really difficult, demanding job. On top
of that, people being violent towards them, abusing them. I mean, really,
you're there to assist, you're there to help, and someone
is going to hurt you while you do that. The
toll that can take on you professionally, personally, every single day.
(08:04):
It was only yesterday I spoke to some of my
paramedic crews and I can tell you a young officer
described that fear on a daily basis so much so
that they will likely look at a different career path
for themselves.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
And this is the reality.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
So most paramedics don't stay in a job longer than
about seven years because of the just toll on them
physically and emotionally. And then you add violence to that,
and you wonder why we can't maintain our paramedic numbers
to where they need to be, because why would you
why would you do this?
Speaker 1 (08:35):
It is shocking, you know, it would be absolutely shocking.
And I can't imagine sort of the fire or flight
mode that you go into every single day depending on
what you're going out to, what job you're going out to.
But to then be going out to a traumatic situation
and be worried that somebody's going to either you know,
verbally abuse you or worse still physically abuse you while
(08:56):
you're trying to do that job. It's just totally unacceptable.
There's no other way to put it.
Speaker 3 (09:01):
I couldn't agree with you more. But we're also not
the police. We don't come with anything to defend ourselves
other than our words. Yeah, so you know you're not
only having to assist a patient, But you're also having
to try and de escalate a situation around you. And
it's understandable people are emotional when things happen, but when
it becomes violent or abusive, it's not okay. And I
(09:22):
want my crews to pull out of those situations. I
don't want them at risk.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I know that you also quoted that Saint John has
experienced a thirty percent increase in incidents and a seventy
percent rise in triple zero calls.
Speaker 3 (09:37):
How are you managing that demand? Would be one of
our most significant challenges in the territory. So if you
call triple zero, you expect someone to pick it up,
and you expect them to pick it up in ten seconds.
That's the national expectation. I can tell you a few
weekends ago, we had twenty eight percent of our calls
we couldn't answer because the volume was so high. When
(10:00):
you have thirty percent increase in incidents, your paramedics are
going to that means they don't get any form of meal,
rest recovery. They're on that high alert state I've described
before for hours and hours on end, and you can't
get to all the cases you want to. So if
you think about a couple of weekends ago, people could
be waiting fifteen hours for an ambulance with a priority
(10:24):
to case that's something like a broken.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Leg or a force.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
Yeah, it's a long time. So you know, I would
say to territorians, what service do you want? How do
you want us to respond? These are the challenges we
have to face as a health capability No different to
the hospitals and others. But when you call Triple O,
you expect a response.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Oh absolutely, And like I sort of think of various
different scenarios. But you even think, if you know there's
a kid that's broken their leg on the footy field
or something, what happens and if you can't get somebody
out for an extended period of time and the expectation
you're spot on is it somebody does go out and help.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
How do we fix this?
Speaker 1 (11:04):
Is it a funding issue?
Speaker 2 (11:05):
What is that?
Speaker 3 (11:06):
So there's a few things we need to think about.
Is why you're calling an ambulance. Okay, so if you're
calling for a splinter in your finger or something more simplistic,
please see your GP.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Don't call us.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
We're an emergency service. That's the first thing happening. It
happens it happens. The second thing is we've put in
strategies to try and manage that demand, so you'll get
a callback. If we're delayed, we'll tell you we're delayed.
We'll tell you how long we might be. We'll give
you advice. If you can move, then we'll tell you
(11:38):
to move. If you can't, then you have to wait.
We're looking at different ways to structure our ambulance service
so we can respond. But you can only do so
much with what you have. So meet the demand is
the challenge for us and making sure we can resource
it to meet the demand.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
It's not a new problem, Katie.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
No, and so taking that into account yet. Now for
you stepping in as the new CEO, I mean three
weeks in the job, what like, what work do you
really want to sort of get stuck into early on
to try and have an impact.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Well, the first thing I want to do is support
our staff, so let them know that I see them,
i understand the job, and I've got their back.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
First thing. The second thing is.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
Looking at how we can address and meet the demand
and make sure people understand what that looks like and
what might be needed to achieve that. And then the
third thing is around strengthening our system, which is good practice,
you know, making sure that patients stay safe when they're
with us, our crews stay safe when they're with their patients,
and that we can do our job as territory territories expect.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
I know there've been some chatter from the union, you know,
saying that that you know, NT Health should be taking
over Saint John rather than it being or taking over
the ambulance services, I guess, rather than it being managed
by Saint John.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
I mean, is that is that the answer? So I
think that's been a narrative for a very long time, Katie.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
It's not new. It was around when I was on
the road as well.
Speaker 3 (13:03):
What I would say is Saint John does an extraordinary
job for Territorians. We've been doing this since the seventies,
probably a bit earlier unfofficially, Yeah, and we've demonstrated we're
here for territorians. We've got superbly trained paramedics, they do degrees,
they do postgraduates, they're resourcing. Is the challenge moving forward
(13:23):
and making sure that we can support territorians in the
way they expect well.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Abigail Truan, the CEO of Saint John, it's great to
have you in the studio. Really appreciate it. No doubt
we'll catch up with you again soon.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Oh Katie, it was an absolute pleasure. Thanks, thank you,
thanks so much.
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