Ambulance ramping at Peel Health Campus reaches new high this year

Ambulance ramping at Peel Health Campus has reached a new high this year.

St John Ambulance WA statistics have revealed ramping skyrocketed to 447 hours last month, a sharp increase from the 299 hours recorded in June.

Ramping is when patients are waiting in an ambulance for longer than 30 minutes outside of a hospital emergency department.

Federal Member for Canning Andrew Hastie said he was seriously concerned with the latest figures.

"This is a serious issue affecting our healthcare system and the broader community. We need urgent solutions to ensure patients receive the care they need when they need it most," Mr Hastie said.

A State Government spokesperson said ramping figures at smaller emergency departments often rise and fall.

“As a smaller emergency department, ramping figures at Peel Health Campus are prone to fluctuation and care should be taken when attempting to make short term comparisons," the State Government spokesperson said.

“Across the health system, ambulance ramping hours continue to trend downwards. The 2023-24 year saw a 22.5 per cent decline in ambulance ramping hours compared to the previous financial year.

“We continue to experience high rates of winter-type illness in the community, such as pneumonia, which is increasing demand on all hospitals."

Mr Hastie also called out Labor’s promise of a $152 million upgrade.

"Labor promised an upgrade to Peel Health Campus, announcing a $152 million redevelopment in 2020, but they still have nothing to show for it."

"As our region continues to grow, we need reliable healthcare facilities. The Peel Region is a great place to live, but without adequate healthcare, Labor is letting our community down."

The State Government spokesperson said they have recruited more staff since the hospital transitioned from private to public management. 

“While staffing for healthcare professionals remains tight in a globally constrained market, PHC recruited more than 15 full time equivalent (FTE) additional nurses and assistants in nursing (AINs) as well as junior and senior doctors during the hospital transition," the spokesperson said.

“PHC continues to advertise for nurses, midwives, and support staff as part of normal recruiting processes. This is on top of the additional staff added as part of the initial transition, which boosted the total number of number of doctors, nurses, allied health, and support staff to nearly 1,100.”