Ambulances could be driven by volunteer workers under a NSW government cost-cutting plan proposed for the Hunter Valley region.
The plan would require one trained paramedic and one volunteer with a first-aid certificate to attend emergency situations.
The proposal has been slammed by residents, paramedics and the Health Services Union, the Daily Telegraph reports.
Health Services Union organiser Peter Rumble told the newspaper the plan was a "slap in the face" to country people.
"It says, if you have a heart attack in Sydney you get two officers but if you have a heart attack in Dungog (in the Hunter) you get one officer and a driver with a first aid certificate," he said.
It is currently being considered as a possible solution for a problem of ambulance officers working alone.
The suburbs Merriwa, Dungog, Gloucester, Stroud and Murrurundi have been earmarked for a trial of the new system.
The NSW Ambulance Service would reportedly not comment because the issue is due to go before an Industrial Relations Commission hearing.
Front page
RSS Feed