The new Fire Medical Response program is a joint initiative of CFA and Ambulance Victoria that will see CFA brigades and Ambulance Victoria dispatched simultaneously to cardiac arrests.
Yarrawonga Brigade Captain Laurence Phillips said the decision to join the program was an easy one to make given the benefits it will provide the Yarrawonga community.
“Our brigade has ended 2024 with a greater emphasis on community with this exciting development and also our Junior Development program,” Mr Phillips said.
“What this program means is that community members who call for an ambulance may receive both a fire truck and an ambulance. There is no specific order in which the services arrive to the incident.”
The other brigades kicking off the program are Euroa, Tatura, Numurkah Lakes Entrance, Orbost, Bairnsdale, Huntly and Kyneton.
Yarrawonga Fire Brigade has been training with Ambulance Victoria for months, in preparation for the program which will complement the Ambulance Victoria service in the local area.
CFA Deputy Chief Officer Garry Cook said the program was a natural fit for CFA because of the 52,000 volunteers across the state.
“CFA has more than 1,100 volunteer fire stations with more than 52,000 members,” Mr Cook said.
“This puts CFA in a unique position to complement the Ambulance Victoria response in 50 locations across Victoria to help deliver early intervention to cardiac arrests.”
Ambulance Victoria Executive Director of Regional Operations Danielle North said Victoria’s cardiac survival rates are one of the best in the world, thanks to high rates of early intervention.
“The Fire Medical Response program will improve survival rates for people in rural and regional Victoria,” Ms North said.
“Quick intervention with CPR and a defibrillator has the greatest impact on improving a patient’s chances of surviving a cardiac arrest.”
