SA ambulance union calls for code yellow to be maintained

South Australia's ambulance union is calling for an extension to the health department's code yellow alert which is set to lift today.

Transcript

00:00South Australia's Ambulance Employees Association says 56 ambulances were ramped outside five

00:08of the state's public hospitals on Wednesday, while 23 priority emergency cases, which should

00:13have been attended to within 16 minutes, were left unanswered.

00:18The union's General Secretary, Leah Watkins, says she's not aware of any deaths resulting

00:22from a delayed ambulance on Wednesday, but says paramedics feel demoralised facing delays

00:27similar to when South Australia had began to allow interstate travel in early 2022,

00:33and has described the state's entire hospital network as absolutely crippled.

00:37These claims from the union follow data which showed South Australians lost more than 5,500

00:43hours to ramping in July, which was an all-time high.

00:47Ms Watkins is now pleading for an extension of the code yellow or internal emergency at

00:52the state's public hospitals, which she says will relieve pressure on other priority resources.

00:58The code yellow in South Australia has been in place now for more than two months, and

01:02has also delayed more than 800 elective surgeries.

01:06The ABC received a statement from the health department's CEO, Dr Robin Lawrence, who said

01:11the code yellow is set to end today as planned.

01:14She said that patients who need the most care are always treated first, and says initiatives

01:19such as opening more beds and hiring more staff will improve patient flow.