WOMAN LEFT IN AGONY AS AMBULANCE FAILS TO ARRIVE

A woman with no feeling in her legs had an operation cancelled because her pre-booked ambulance was diverted to another site, and was later told there were “no other ambulances available in South Australia”.

Liberal health spokesman Dean Brown said Robyn Stanbury of Mt Torrens had an ambulance booked to be transported from Gumeracha Hospital to the Wakefield Hospital for her operation.

“Ms Stanbury was badly injured in a car accident three-and-a-half years ago, and has since had on-going spinal problems and surgery,” he said, continuing:

“A few weeks ago, she lost feeling in her legs and was taken to Gumeracha Hospital where she remained in the lead-up to a scheduled operation at the Wakefield Hospital on September 21. The ambulance had been pre-booked by SA Ambulance headquarters on September 16 – five days before the procedure.
It was scheduled to arrive at Gumeracha at 12 noon on September 21, but when it was 20 minutes late a ward clerk contacted SA Ambulance to check where it was.
Only then were they told the ambulance had been diverted and that there was not another one available anywhere in South Australia to send. As a result, Ms Stanbury’s operation was cancelled because the anaesthetist at Wakefield Hospital could not wait.”

Mr Brown said he found it extraordinary that there were no ambulances available in South Australia. “My concern is that too much money is being spent by the Rann Government on bureaucrats for SA Ambulance, instead of providing basic services for the public,” he said.

Ms Stanbury’s partner Jason Dunn said the situation was totally unacceptable.
“Robyn is in extreme pain every minute of the day, and it is devastating to see her like this. If Ambulance SA had notified us there was a shortage of ambulances, we might have been able to arrange alternate transport” he said.