East New Britain will be the first province to connect to the St John Ambulance Service, which is currently based only in the nation’s capital.
St John Ambulance currently serves the National Capital District and Central Province. However, they now plan to extend their reach to East New Britain Province.
“We have an agreement with East New Britain and we have our officers being trained here in Moresby to go to ENB to set up,” stated CEO of St John’s PNG, Matthew Cannon.
“We are anticipating the receiving of the ambulance station, which is to be donated by Consort Shipping and Curtain Brothers. We would like to start services there as soon as possible.
“There will be 10 staff based there. And that will include a station manager who will be based there, five ambulance officers from the Nation’s Capital and four full time officers from within Kokopo.”
The move is part of the ambitious bid to set up PNG’s first National Ambulance Service by creating a network of equipped and competent ambulance services throughout the country by 2030.
“The people that need ambulance can dial 111 and know that an ambulance can come to them with one phone number across the country. It’s an ambitious goal and we are hoping to achieve the majority of the country’s ambulance connected by 2030,” added Cannon.
PNG’s rugged terrain poses a major challenge hence St John’s is in talks with stakeholders about using sea and air transport to reach places with limited road access.
(Article by Daisy Pakawa – third year UPNG Journalism student; Picture: CEO of St John’s PNG, Matthew Cannon)