Technology is key to supporting our paramedics

Picture this: an ambulance crew racing across kilometres of open country, only to find themselves stuck in traffic on a city road with no easy detour. Or a paramedic arriving on the scene, not knowing if the patient has a life-threatening allergy. These are the kinds of challenges our emergency responders face daily — and they’re happening more frequently as call volumes rise.

Australia's vast landscape, spanning 7.7 million km² with a population of 27 million, presents unique challenges for emergency medical services. While most Australians reside in urban centres, ensuring timely assistance in rural and remote regions remains essential. Bridging these distances efficiently is often a matter of life and death.

Rising demands on emergency services

The Productivity Commission reports a 15% surge in call volumes across Australia from 2022, putting immense pressure on responders. In the 2023–24 financial year, the Queensland Ambulance Service responded to over 2500 Code 1 and 2 incidents per day, transporting over 3000 patients daily. Australia’s growing population and demands has made meeting response targets increasingly challenging across the states, where paramedics aim to respond to incidents within 15–17 minutes in urban areas and even faster for high-priority cases.

With shortages of call handlers, dispatchers and paramedics, combined with hospital overcrowding and ramping, responders face relentless pressure. We must ask ourselves: can we afford for emergency services to rely on outdated systems when call volumes and stress levels are at record highs?

Australia has made some progress with promising advances, including the Public Safety Mobile Broadband (PSMB) initiative, which aims to enhance communication across public safety agencies. Additionally, the Policy for the Responsible Use of AI in Government provides a framework for ethical AI adoption, laying the groundwork for technology integration in emergency response.

How technology can support paramedics

While technology cannot replace the skill and intuition of trained paramedics (or any first responder), we know that it can significantly enhance their capacity to respond effectively. Given Australia’s geographic and demographic demands, advanced tools like assistive AI and cloud-based systems could make a measurable impact on service delivery. As an example, assistive AI can analyse vast datasets in real time, helping dispatchers make faster, informed decisions about deploying teams and selecting hospitals. This is especially valuable in rural areas with longer travel times and fewer resources. During events like Melbourne’s 2016 thunderstorm asthma outbreak, AI could have rapidly identified patterns in calls and weather, allowing responders to adapt faster.

Enhanced data flow between call centres and paramedics can be life-saving. Through platforms like RapidSOS, responders have access to critical patient data, such as medical history and allergies, while en route. Real-time routing and traffic data help reduce travel times, and visual aids like CCTV footage assist responders in locating patients efficiently.

Investing in technology for the future

Investing in these technologies isn’t just about meeting today’s demands — it’s about futureproofing. Australia’s population is growing and aging, trends that will only increase the pressure on emergency services. Modern technology offers a way to handle higher call volumes and more complex cases while maintaining efficiency. Moreover, digital and AI-driven tools can improve staff retention by reducing burnout, as paramedics have the support they need to make quick, accurate decisions under pressure.

In financial terms, while initial investments may seem significant, the long-term efficiencies — through streamlined operations, optimised staffing and reduced ramping — can make these technologies highly cost-effective over time.

Final thoughts

As other nations embrace new technologies to support emergency responders, Australia has an opportunity to lead by empowering its paramedics with tools that enable faster, more informed responses. To meet rising demands and ensure quality of care, we must modernise now — equipping our emergency services for the challenges of tomorrow.

Our paramedics’ dedication and expertise are irreplaceable. By embracing innovation today, we can build a more responsive, capable and resilient emergency services sector — one that ensures all Australians, from bustling cities to remote regions, receive the timely care they deserve.

Top image credit: iStock.com/sturti