Elderly Man With Broken Hip Forced to Wait Six Hours for Ambulance

BY DAKOTA TAIT

Concerns about ambulance shortages have been raised after an elderly nursing home patient had to wait six hours for paramedics to arrive after suffering a broken hip.

Despite an announcement by the Health Minister in 2019 that 750 new paramedics and call centre staff would join the force over the next four years, critics say new recruits are not keeping up with the numbers leaving the industry.

Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery said there were only nine cars operating across the Lower Hunter on Friday night, despite the large population and size of the region.

"Paramedics are telling me that they are being stretched to breaking point, with many staff working multiple overtime shifts per week or being sent to cover staff shortages in other regions," Ms Hornery said.

"I think the community would be horrified to know that only nine ambulances are operating on a Friday night to cover such a large area and population."

The Australian Paramedics Association had also made calls late last year for NSW Ambulance to deliver more resources to the Hunter, with local crews forced to make up for shortages in areas such as Raymond Terrace and Kurri Kurri.

A NSW Ambulance spokesperson said the response to the nursing home patient had been appropriate given the high number of emergency calls in the region. 

Coal Projects to Deliver More Than Three Thousand Jobs for the Hunter

BY DAKOTA TAIT

A new report by the NSW Minerals Council is suggesting mining projects across the Lower and Upper Hunter could generate 3,700 jobs and more than $2.7 billion in capital investment for the region.

The ten coal projects outlined for the Hunter include two brand new underground thermal coal mine developments at Muswellbrook and Wyong, in addition to extensions to existing sites such as Glendell, Mangoola, and Rix's Creek.

NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee says together with the 22 other projects planned across the state, there is the potential for a total of $13 billion in capital investment and more than 15,500 employment opportunities.

"These are big opportunities for the Hunter Region and for the Hunter economy at a time when we are all looking for economic opportunities to help drive, hopefully, the economic recovery post the Coronavirus pandemic," said Mr Galilee.

The 32 total projects across New South Wales are in various stages of planning and assessment and represent an increase of seven from the sector's last major report released in November 2018

Although all of the projects in the pipeline for the Hunter are thermal or potential coking coal proposals, Mr Galilee says many of the other developments throughout the state have been identified as metal extraction projects.

“While the number of coal projects has risen slightly, the number of proposed metals projects has almost doubled from 6 to 11, representing over 30 percent of all major mining projects proposed in NSW, up from 20 percent 18 months ago," he said.

“This is an opportunity to further build and diversify the NSW mining sector and represents a strong industry response to the release of the NSW Government’s Minerals Strategy in early 2019.”

Image credit: https://www.nswmining.com.au/