National ‘Save Triple Zero (000) for Emergencies’ campaign

• St John WA welcomes the Council of Ambulance Authorities’ (CAA) first ever nation-wide ‘Save Triple Zero (000) for Emergencies’ campaign, which launched on June 14.
• The national campaign supports St John WA’s state-wide campaign, ‘Sound of Survival’, from March to May, across TV, radio, digital and print.
• About one-in-five calls to Triple Zero (000) in WA do not require an ambulance to be dispatched.

Sixty years since the Council of Ambulance Authorities (CAA) united Australia’s ambulance services behind making Triple Zero (000) a national number to call in an emergency, it is asking for the public’s assistance to ‘Save 000 for Emergencies’.

The first-of-its-kind national campaign, which launches on June 14, aligns with St John WA’s own initiative to ‘Save Triple Zero (000) for Emergencies’.

St John’s ‘Sound of Survival’ campaign blitz ran from March to May in print, radio and digital TV, as well as news segments on every media platform calling for public assistance to “save Triple Zero (000) for emergencies”.

Both state and national campaigns are designed to arm people with a better understanding of the right time to call an ambulance, and when it is more appropriate to contact another health service for assistance or advice.

Every year, about 300,000 people call St John WA through Triple Zero (000).

About one-in-five calls in WA do not require an ambulance to be dispatched, but if people are unsure, they should still call Triple Zero (000).

For information on what constitutes an emergency visit: https://stjohnwa.com.au/coronavirus/covid-19-and-triple-zero-(000).

“We welcome the CAA’s campaign given the national strain ambulance services are under,” St John WA Head of State Operations Centre Will White said.

“We need the public’s help. If you are not experiencing an emergency and do need an ambulance, call Health Direct on 1800 022 222 or visit healthdirect.gov.au.

“If you need medical assistance and capable of making your own way safely, get to a hospital, Urgent Care Centre or a GP.

“If you are unsure call Triple Zero (000) for an ambulance, as every call gets carefully assessed to ensure we understand the patient’s requirements to get them the care they need.

“Less urgent calls go to our Secondary Triage Team for more detailed assessment to match callers to the service which best suits their needs. We may direct our callers to alternative care in some of these cases.”