Growing number of paramedic leaving the job due to PTSD

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A growing number of paramedics are leaving the job due to the impacts of post-traumatic stress disorder. One north Queensland paramedic is calling for greater support much like that given to veterans from the Australian defence force.

Transcript

00:00 For paramedic Peter Vinicome it was one horrific night almost two years ago that lifted the

00:08 lid on 19 years of accumulated trauma.

00:11 I got attacked and feared for my life.

00:15 His sleep suffered and his mental health spiralled.

00:18 There was lots of triggers and I entered a depression.

00:22 He's receiving work cover but is worried that when the support ends final compensation will

00:28 be inadequate.

00:29 He's not alone.

00:30 I basically broke down at the station and had a complete emotional collapse.

00:36 Peter Solomon spent more than 20 years with the QAS.

00:40 He was found to be 8% permanently impaired and offered a payout of $47,000.

00:47 But since abandoning a civil case against the service he's been left with nothing.

00:52 Queensland Ambulance officers no longer have to show it was the job which caused mental

00:57 injury.

00:58 But if they want greater compensation they have to pursue the service for negligence

01:02 which is difficult to prove.

01:04 We continually work with our frontline first responders to make sure they've got the supports

01:09 that they need.

01:10 The Queensland Ambulance Service says the psychological welfare and wellbeing of staff

01:15 is a top priority.

01:16 A spokesperson said assessments and payments relating to this process are completed in

01:22 accordance with legislation and are made independently from the Queensland Ambulance Service.

01:28 Some paramedics want to see a system like the Defence Force Gold Card which takes care

01:32 of medical expenses.

01:34 We don't make our Defence Forces sue the Defence Force for going to war and being injured with

01:41 PTSD.

01:42 We accept it as the cost of looking after those that serve.

01:46 The union says beyond the trauma of the job, ballooning hours and overtime shifts are contributing.

01:51 When you don't feel supported at work or you've had a really bad shift, you're not well enough

01:56 to go to work the next day.

01:57 So they're finding a higher level of absenteeism.

02:00 I don't regret a single day of my career but I regret the cost it's having on my family

02:07 and I regret the cost it's having on myself personally.

02:09 [BLANK_AUDIO]

Category

Transcript

Recommended