St John Ambulance (SJA)

St John Ambulance is based in Lae under a partnership with the Lae City Authority and Morobe Provincial Health Authority.  

Since the signing of the three-way agreement in 2020, the Lae City Authority has been supporting the ambulance operations with K500,000 every year.

The ambulance service, however, has no borders; emergency responders also serve the neighbouring districts of Huon Gulf and Nawaeb.

For the first time ever, the Huon Gulf district has jumped on board to support St John Ambulance with K50,000.

Taipan bites, notorious for their high fatality rate, threatened Sali's life with immediate peril.

Upon her arrival at Kwikila Hospital in critical condition, the clinic's medical team, joined by the Health Extension Officer, administered anti-venom to counteract the venom's deadly effects.

However, Sali's condition continued to deteriorate rapidly, necessitating advanced medical intervention to sustain her life.

Families got together, exchanged gifts and observed the festive season in their own backyards, with less pedestrians and commuters on the road.

St John Ambulance (SJA) noted that hotspots like East and West Taraka, Igam, Buimo and even 7^th Street were quiet.

“Our crew went into West Taraka – and some of these hotspots – and said the areas were quiet,” reported SJA Momase regional commander, Anderson Poumb.

“People were drinking alcohol but within their own premises. They were not being a nuisance on public roads.

The cheque for K10,000 was presented to St John Ambulance on Thursday 26^th October, 2023 and received by the St John Ambulance CEO Matt Cannon.

While receiving the cheque, Cannon shared with the Kina Bank team about the ambulance service and the role it plays in the community.

From Karau Village in East Sepik, Kennedy followed his family’s footsteps into mechanics and joined St John last year after gaining experience at other companies.

As the senior mechanic, Kennedy leads a skilled team responsible for diagnosing issues, performing repairs and conducting maintenance on the fleet of ambulances and administrative vehicles. Their dedication ensures optimal fleet conditions for swift responses to medical emergencies in the National Capital District and Central Province.

Lae MP and Deputy Prime Minister, John Rosso, emphasised on the importance of the emergency medical response service provided to Lae residents.

This is why since the signing of a three-way agreement between SJA, the Lae City Authority and Morobe Provincial Health Authority in December 2020, LCA has been supporting the ambulance service with K500,000 every year.

“Because of this partnership, the Lae City Authority, every year, supports St John with half-a-million-Kina to partner with St John to ensure that we provide this vital service to the citizens of Lae,” said Rosso.

Drunken fights, drunk drivers, drunk risk takers. These all result in injuries to the drunk person and sadly other people too. 

The Christmas period sees a rise in trauma-related emergencies for the ambulance service and hospitals, says the St John Ambulance.

Stating that injuries and accidents during the festive season are often a result of excess consumption of alcohol. 

ST John Ambulance is appealing to people that are choosing to drink; to please drink responsibly. That means not having more than one or two beer cans per hour. 

This assistance will increase optimal healthcare and ambulance services in the country.

The donation is in line with NGCB’s Agreement to purchase three ambulance vehicles per year starting this year to 2024 in the effort to maximize essential medical and ambulance services to the people of PNG through NGCB’s ‘Give Back Program’.

Police have reported that the driver was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident.

Eyewitnesses claimed the vehicle, a Nissan Urvan, was travelling at high speed when it slammed into the Eriku bus stop median and careened off into a nearby raintree.

The driver is now in police custody, where chief superintendent Chris Kunyanban said charges will be formalised and laid against him.

The funding provides for backup water supply, the construction of new laundry facilities and a new video conferencing system to allow better communication with St John’s regional operations. 

The support aims to help St John Ambulance deliver its essential services while also tackling the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

St John’s Chief Executive Officer, Matthew Cannon, said: “The support from the British High Commission strengthens our resilience in response to the pandemic. It ensures enduring legacy.