St John Ambulance Health, Emergency and Support Team deployed 10 registered HEST nurses to support PNG’s National Emergency Medical Team known as Team Sana.
The 10 nurses were deployed to Western, Eastern Highlands and Western Highlands provinces after Provincial Health Authorities appealed for assistance.
These three provinces have recently seen a surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths.
The appeal for help brings to light the need for more trained health professionals.
In a partnership with Team Sana, St John developed and delivered a Health Emergency Support Team course.
The course was aimed at upskilling the level of preparedness of St John staff and reinforcing the essential knowledge and skills toward major health emergencies or disasters as part of a coordinated response to the incident.
As a result of this training St John Health Emergency Support Team are now able to better integrate with and support the lead PNG Emergency Medical Team (EMT), Team ‘Sana’.
The provision of health support by St John following a disaster or emergency event draws on existing workforce training as well as the organisation’s resources and coordination arrangements to provide care delivery in challenging and demanding environments for the service of humanity.
