Save triple zero for saving lives
The Tasmanian Minister for Health, Michelle O’Byrne, has urged Tasmanians to only use the emergency Triple Zero number for genuine medical emergencies.
Ms O’Byrne has launched Ambulance Tasmania’s ‘Save Triple Zero for Saving Lives’ advertising campaign which encourages people NOT to use the 000 emergency number for more trivial medical problems – like sprained wrists, sore backs and colds.
In 2009 Ambulance Tasmania responded to more than 70,000 Triple Zero calls, and while most of these calls were for genuine emergencies, many were for very minor problems that didn’t need an ambulance response.
Ms O’Byrne said unnecessary calls to Triple Zero could needlessly tie up emergency resources and cause delays in ambulances reaching genuine emergency cases.
The ‘Save Triple Zero for Saving Lives’ campaign consists of a series of short television and radio ads that highlight the difference between appropriate and inappropriate use of Triple Zero.
