Around half the available ambulances in the Illawarra were stuck in 'bed block' at Wollongong Hospital on Monday afternoon, a situation that's becoming all too common paramedics say.
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The Illawarra Shoalhaven sub-branch of the Health Services Union's ambulance division posted to social media a photo of several ambulances stuck in bays while their patients awaited beds around 4.30pm.
"At least six ambulances stuck waiting for beds to clear," the post read. "The longest wait is nearly two hours. That's two hours waiting for a bed.
"Two hours where six crews of two highly trained paramedics are sitting at a hospital, unable to respond to life-threatening emergency jobs.
"This is a crisis of the government's making. There are not enough paramedics, not enough hospital staff, and not enough beds."
A local paramedic, and Health Services Union representative, said he and his colleagues were becoming increasingly frustrated.
"This is becoming a regular occurrence, and there's fears that it will only get worse going into the winter months," he said.
"It's not anything to do with the hospital staff, they are wonderful. Essentially there's just not enough beds, which is stretching our finite resources - with ambulances in trolley block and paramedics unable to respond to people calling Triple Zero.
"The situation is compounded due to a shortage of paramedics, and an ever increasing population in the region."
HSU NSW Secretary Gerard Hayes said bed block was an issue across the state, and said it was "beyond time" for an independent, external review of the causes.
"The ugly truth is that patient care is being squeezed at both ends," he said.
"There aren't enough resources in hospital to clear the backlog of arriving patients, nor are there enough paramedics to attend to emergencies in a timely manner.
"All of this is compounded by the fact the Illawarra can't draw on the resources of Sydney and beyond when it faces a capacity crunch."
However Northern Illawarra Hospital Group General Manager Nicole Sheppard said emergency department presentations could fluctuate due to a variety of reasons and NSW Health had strategies in place to manage periods of high demand.
"Patients are never turned away from the hospital, however longer wait times can arise when clusters of patients needing more complex treatment arrive at the same time, testing even the most robust systems," she said.
"Wollongong Hospital experienced higher presentations than usual (on Monday) including a higher than average number of triage category one and two presentations - which are the most critically unwell patients.
"All patients are triaged upon arrival and those who are seriously unwell will be seen first regardless of when they present to the ED."
Ms Sheppard said while the ED was always open to the community, people should consider visiting a medical centre or GP if they were not seriously unwell, particularly heading into the traditionally busier winter months.
"Improvement initiatives currently underway at Wollongong Hospital, including the ED Transformation Program, Whole of Health Program, and the addition of patient experience officers in the ED, will continue to drive further improvements," she added.
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