Bill Lord AM

“Simone’s contribution to the College and the profession cannot be understated.”

The College extends its deep appreciation to Simone Haigh as she concludes her current term on the Board as a Board Director at the recent AGM

paramedics.org/news/college-acknowledges-simone-haighs-outstanding-service

Telstra fined for disruption to emergency call service The telco giant has paid a penalty and agreed to launch an independent review after it mistakenly disabled its connection to an emergency call relay service used by people with hearing or speech impai...

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-06...

Push for police to be removed from mental health crisis responses Police are spending an increasing amount of time responding to mental health crisis incidents. There's a push to have police removed from those responses altogether.

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05... How often are police required to intervene in a case of a person experiencing a mental health problem attended by paramedics?

Factors influencing paramedic conveyance decisions when attending children with minor head injury: a qualitative study Introduction Children with head injury are commonly transported to the ED by ambulance. However, most of those conveyed are deemed non-serious and are discharged at triage. Research is needed to explo...

New Article emj.bmj.com/content/42/6...

“This fear of consequences is from litigation by both families and employers. This was worsened by the fact that paramedics reported feeling unsupported by the organisation that they worked for.” Fear of sanctions shouldn’t be the primary driver for care decisions.

📱 A new study from Singapore shows that activating smartphone first responders via the myResponder app led to:

✅ 6x ↑ in bystander CPR
✅ 2x ↑ in AED use
✅ Better neurologically intact survival

Smart tech is saving lives. "CallPushShock #OHCA #CPR #AED #DigitalHealth

🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.re...

So much work required to understand cultural safety. A recent graduate once told me that cultural safety training wasn’t relevant as no Aboriginal people lived in their region ☹️

Paramedics’ understandings and perceptions of cultural safety and the provision of culturally safe care - BMC Health Services Research Background Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples experience persistent disadvantage and health inequity in today’s society. It is widely accepted that this is resultant of Australia’s colonial...

An interesting study exploring Australian paramedics' perceptions of culturally safe care:
"I always just respected everyone the same way. I didn’t really change my approach to anything." 🦘🚑🤦
#EMSky #EMSSky #ParamedicSky #PreHospitalSky #CulturalSafety #CulturalCompetency
doi.org/10.1186/s129...

The Northern Territory Commissioner for Public Employment has issued a determination variation which allows NT Health to employ #paramedics directly in a range of health sector positions. #health #urgent #care #community #EMS
Commentary: www.facebook.com/ray.bange.9/...
@billlord.bsky.social

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

I'm very proud to share this person-centred framework to guide a more holistic approach to paramedic-led patient consultation. This aims to complement traditional biomedical assessment approaches with a complimentary biopsychosocial approach.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Deprivation is associated with hospital conveyance among patients who are terminally ill Background Hospital admissions of patients who are terminally ill can be associated with poor experiences and unwanted outcomes, such as dying away from home. While area deprivation is associated with...

Interesting study. It is important that we acknowledge transport to the hospital is sometimes the best option for patients and caregivers. #EMSky #HAPC #EMSSky emj.bmj.com/content/earl...

We're pleased to announce that abstracts are now being welcomed for ACP International Conference (ACPIC) 2025 in Brisbane!

Submissions will be accepted until Thursday 29 May. Learn more at bit.ly/ACPIC25-Abstracts

A reminder that applications are now being welcomed for the first round of 2025 College Research Grants.

Members are encouraged to apply for either our Early Career Research Grant ($6,000) or Higher Degree by Research Grant ($3,000).

Applications open until May 1st at bit.ly/Research-Grants-2025

Are you involved in paramedic education?

This Monday, we're hosting an information session to explore how our Paramedic Preceptor Program can help you develop confidence in mentoring and guiding new paramedics.

Join us online on Tuesday 1 April at bit.ly/Preceptor-Info-Session

Applications are now open for Round 43 of the Queensland Research Program through Emergency Medicine Foundation, offering funding opportunities for Queensland clinicians.

Paramedics are eligible to apply. Learn more at bit.ly/ACP-ResearchBoard

"He's going to die" - Breaking bad news Clinical Conversations · Episode

Breaking bad news is one of the hardest things a paramedic must do. In this episode, we dive into:

✅ How to deliver devastating news with compassion
✅ The SPIKES framework
✅ The emotional toll on paramedics & how to cope

@expensivecare.bsky.social

🎧 Listen here: open.spotify.com/episode/0sbS...

Paramedics & end-of-life care: A new study reveals challenges for #paramedics in the UK, including lack of patient information, medication barriers & training gaps. With rising demand, improvements are needed, but is our health system responding? #palliative www.facebook.com/ParamedProf/...

New Report: Life Expectancy Years Shorter in the United States Compared to the United Kingdom | Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Heart disease and overdose deaths are among the leading contributors to the gap, which can be narrowed by policy changes.

Looks like this may accelerate the decline in life expectancy in the US publichealth.jhu.edu/2024/new-rep...

The Victorian Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Paramedic Practitioners) Bill 2024 was adopted by the Legislative Council on 6 February 2025 without amendment. @billlord.bsky.social @tracyniks.bsky.social @agwalker01.bsky.social
parliament.vic.gov.au/490576/globa...

The impact of extending the road transport limit for #STEMI patients in rural and remote areas

doi.org/10.1111/1742...

#MedSky #EMSky #EMedSky #emimcc #ACEM

A failed state

Congratulations @expensivecare.bsky.social on your award of the Ambulance Service Medal under the Australian Honours scheme. Wonderful recognition of your outstanding contributions to paramedicine and medicine.

Congratulations @expensivecare.bsky.social on your award of the Ambulance Service Medal under the Australian Honours scheme. Wonderful recognition of your outstanding contributions to paramedicine and medicine.

I’ve learned so much from @jamesoz1.bsky.social chatting all things pain with @billlord.bsky.social in this series, and we’ve saved the best for last.

An exacerbation of chronic pain is a common reason to call an ambulance. What can we do as paramedics and as an EMS system?

Let’s find out!

Pain (Part 3) - Systems issues and special circumstances Clinical Conversations · Episode

🎙️ New Podcast Alert

The final episode in our pain management series with @expensivecare.bsky.social and @billlord.bsky.social is now live.

🔥 Topics:
Pain care performance measures 📊
Chronic pain challenges
Opioid myths & realities 💊

👉 Tune in: open.spotify.com/episode/5MMs...

Disappointing but quite predictable outcome. “Relatively few interventions for improving equity in care were identified”

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/WXI6QM...

Cool “new” word of the day courtesy of @susie_dent “A reminder of the useful ‘ipsedixitist’ (19th century): one who firmly asserts that something is true because another person said so, with no other evidence to back it up.”

Given the very long patient transfer times at ED (and likely to get worse) it may be time to redesign ambulances to enable long term care. A kitchen would be great for patients and crew as would an ensuite. Not so sure about the toilet in the kitchen.

A very unfortunate situation caused by complex problems that are difficult to remedy. Hoping that a pandemic doesn't further complicate the stress on health systems and ultimately patients.

Should be plenty of resources available. Only 3 km from RFS headquarters