Queensland Ambulance Service defends dispatch system upgrade

Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) is defending a recent computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system upgrade following political disputes over its impact on emergency response. During the transition, staff were required to manually relay information to ambulances via radio.

QAS officials stated that the transition was anticipated and that business continuity processes, including additional staffing, were implemented. The service maintained that Triple Zero calls were not impacted and that systems are working as intended, noting they have received no reports of adverse patient impacts.

Health Minister Tim Nicholls denied media reports of significant ambulance delays, calling claims of service impacts by the state opposition ‘absolutely disingenuous and really quite despicable’. Nicholls emphasized that alternative systems were in place to manage the changeover.