Twenty new paramedics are ready to hit the road and start saving lives as part of the latest class of graduates to join the Ambulance Victoria workforce.
Minister for Ambulance Services, Mary-Anne Thomas attended Sunday’s graduation ceremony at Ambulance Victoria’s new Capability Hub – Australia’s first and only education and training hub for paramedicine.
“Our paramedics are the best of us, providing the highest quality of care and compassion in what can be people’s worst moments – it’s a pleasure to welcome these latest graduates to our paramedic workforce as we continue to invest in expanding our world-class health system,” said Minister Thomas.
“We are seeing record levels of demand for ambulances in Victoria, which is why we are investing in our paramedic workforce, to ensure we can keep delivering the highest quality care for Victorians when and where they need it.”
In the latest class of graduates, 19 are now fully qualified Advanced Life Support (ALS) paramedics, having completed their university studies and a year of supervised on-road placements – most graduate paramedics will be qualified in ALS, meaning they can provide sick and injured Victorians care, treatment and transport to hospital.
Another has completed further studies to become a Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance (MICA) paramedic allowing them to provide a higher level of care – performing more advanced medical procedures and making complex clinical decisions without medical consultation.
This can include dealing with advanced airway management, complex head injuries, treating life-threatening chest injuries and providing advanced care for cardiac conditions.
In total, 516 paramedics will be celebrating their graduation this year and next year – adding to the more than 1,300 paramedics who have joined the ranks since 2021.
