Kim O’KEEFFE (Shepparton) (19:13): (827) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Ambulance Services, and the action I seek is the establishment of a mobile intensive care paramedic, MICA, unit in the Shepparton district. Despite numerous business cases and requests from local paramedic team managers, the Shepparton region is the only region within the state without a fully funded MICA unit. The Shepparton region has continually been overlooked for funding for the state government’s resourcing of a MICA unit. At the moment we only have a single-responder unit, SRU, which means there is only one MICA paramedic in a sedan. This set-up has limitations, unlike a full MICA unit, which has two paramedics and can transport patients with a stretcher vehicle. The SRU is not an ideal platform, and some patient management is an opt-out due to the paramedic being alone. The SRU model was introduced back in 2011 and is no longer suitable for what is required today. The Shepparton region has not seen any increase in MICA resourcing for over 20 years, despite numerous requests submitted by local paramedics. Paramedics are dealing with a heavy medical workload, often having to transport patients long distances because the specialised care they need is not available locally. A paramedic that I met with raised that the Greater Shepparton LGA had the highest fatality statistics in 2023. He also raised his serious concerns with not being able to provide patient care locally and the risks of transporting patients long distances when they are critically ill. The travel time is also reducing available paramedics in the community. The Shepparton region should not be denied the best available care, being a dual MICA crew, that has been funded for every other region in the state.
Category: Speeches
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