Ambulance
FOR
ALL EMERGENCIES DIAL 111
The
Wairarapa Ambulance Service is the only ambulance service owned by a DHB
in New Zealand.
Wairarapa DHB is currently working through a process for NASO to find an
alternative provider.
Ambulance services will continue to be provided seamlessly to the
people of the Wairarapa through the transition.
If you'd like to know more about this process,
click here for 2nd August 2011 Media Release and Questions and
Answers.
About Wairarapa's Ambulance Service
The Wairarapa Ambulance service covers a large geographical
area of 590,000 square kilometres, from Mt Bruce in the north to
Ocean Beach in the south, the top of the Rimutaka Hill to the
Tararua Ranges.
Wairarapa has a population of nearly
40,000 people with 50% living in the main town of Masterton. Masterton
is home to the new Wairarapa Hospital, completed in 2006. Around that
time, the ambulance service moved off the hospital site, and co-located
with the Fire Service nearer the centre of town. This move enabled
Wairarapa DHB to improve attendance times, shortening the time taken to activate the
ambulance, and arrive at the destination.
Ambulance services are available 24 hours
a day, 365 days a year. Upwards of 4500 calls are attended, and
the ambulance fleet travels on average 220,000km per year. This includes
transfers to
neighbouring tertiary hospitals in capital city Wellington (1.5 hours
away) and university city Palmerston North (1.1 hours away).
The Ambulance Service has 17 paid staff and 21 Auxiliary (volunteer) Ambulance Officers
and 4 trained Patient Transfer Officers who work over 50 hours a week
taking patients to and from hospitals.
The service is located at two bases in
Masterton and Greytown. We really value our staff, both paid and
volunteer and have a strong commitment to their ongoing education,
offering access to, and hosting regular training opportunities.
If you are interested in becoming an Auxiliary
Ambulance Officer, or simply want to know more about the service,
contact Sue Keene, Auxiliary Liaison
Officer,
at Sue.keene@wairarapa.dhb.org.nz
or call the ambulance station in Masterton on 06 3700278.
Volunteering opens
doors
Like many young boys, Nick Burt loved to play with his ambulances
and fire trucks. Now, at 23, the fifth-generation Featherstonian is able
to invest in his passion for the emergency services by serving as an
Auxiliary Ambulance Officer with the Wairarapa Ambulance Service.
Read
more...
It didn't quite happen the way he had expected it to. Newly-qualified
auxiliary ambulance officer, Jacob Tobin, finally got put his skills to
the test in an emergency situation on Saturday but rather than arriving
at the scene with sirens blaring and lights flashing, it was more a case
of leaping to his feet.
Attending a family funeral at the Ratana Pa near Whanganui, Jacob was
listening to his uncle give a speech when all of the man faltered,
staggered and fell back. Jacob ran to him and
Read
more....