OUTBAGKVOLUI\IE t5 t{o. I . JAIIIUARY 2OO5

. PRINT POST APPROVED -565001 \O(,404

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Soun Wtyxnns oF TrrE I),e,nwrtv" IYAME TrrE Autnflrlllt{cE"

)ffici,al Journal of

(lVorthern Territory) Inc

O) Breastscreen I,{T

BREIST SCREENS N,lD PAP SME;ARSARE PART OF AWELLWOMEN'S CHECK

These screening tests ore for women who ore well qnd hove no symptoms

By finding chonges eorly, there moy be more treotment options ond o successful outcome is more likely,

Concer screening is the process of looking for obnormolities or concer in the eorly stoges even beforesymptoms ore noticed,

Screening Mommogromslf you ore oged 50 to 69 ond hove no breost symptoms, you ore invited for o free breost x-roy.Breost concer is very common in women, more so in women over 50,

After your first visit you will be sent o lefter to remind you when your next mommogrom is due,

. Screening mommogroms ore recommended every two yeors,

o I doctor's referrol is not necessory,

. Eorly detection is your best proteciion.

Whot ever your oge, if you notice ony new or unusuol chonges in your breost, see your GP without deloyeven if you ore hoving regulor mommogroms,

BreosfScreen NT will operote in Dorwin qs well os offering screening blocks in Kqtherine, TennontCreek, Nhulunbuy & Nice Springs throughoul the yeor.

For informotion or to make o booking phone'13 20 50.

Pop Smeors

Pop smeors ore for women oged 20to 69 who hove ever been sexuolly octive,

It's importont to hove o regulor Pop smeor every two yeors. Thot woy obnormol chonges con be pickedup eorly ond treoted,The risk of cervicol concer increoses with oge. lt is very importont for older women to continue to hovePop smeors until the oge of 69, even if no longer sexuolly octive,

Women who hove hod o hysterectomy should check with their doctor obout their need to continue tohove Pop smeors,

Where cqn I go for o Pop smeor?. Your locol GP

. Aboriginol Medicol Service,

. Fomily Plonning Centre.

. Remote Areo Nurse.

. Aboriginol Heolth Worker.

Some women moy feel thot they o,re too busy or don't hwe the lime to hov.e o screening lesl butlhese lesfs qre the best woy to find concer in lhe eorly sfoges.

al-6=o)o\-U)O\-=PCUo\F

Chief Executive Officer Report

Manager, Education & Training Services Report

Training Framework Update

A Chance to Respond

Happy Birthday Tennant Creek

Life in the Top End - Sr Marion Grayden

Clinical 2

Cross Cultural Awareness

Rescuelllll Who? Mellll!

Alice Springs St John Juniors

Phil Langdon History

Duke of Edinburgh

Training Department

Training Trip to Woolaning HomelandChristian College

St John Baby Boom - Again!!

Christmas Pafty Fun for Kids

Christmas Party Fun.for Adults

Name an Ambulance Competition

Thank You Speech by NT Chairman forNational Conference 2004

Leadership Camp

Alice Springs Cadet Division 2004Presentation Night

Kormilda College Cadets

Cadet Excellence

Partyl

2

3

8

1l12

14

17

t8l92021

2425

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27

2829

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3235

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ADVERTISER ALERT:Walsh Media is appointed by St John Ambulance (Northem Tenitory) as the authorised publisher oi

0utback Ambulance. There are individuals operating who claim to be reprosentativos of officialpublications who are sending b0gus advertising invoices or proofs to advertisers of outback

Ambulance. We recommend you roquest a letter of appointment from the organisati0n they claim t0

represent. Should yorl be approached t0 place advertising, or should you roceive an invoice lor

payment of advertising, ensure you verify the company's bona fides.

ln particular, any inv0ice or communication should carry an address, not just a P0 Box, plus the

name of the organisation on whose behalf tho publication is published. Also the company should be

easily contactabls and able t0 provrde proof of publication.

Front cover:Some of the winners of the Daruvin "Name theAmbulance" competition.

OU|BACKAwbulance

Chief Executive 0fficer's

Wlu' - What a hectic prtst.feu montlxl

By the time this arlicle is PrintedI am hopeful the results of all of ourexternal, independent reviews are

known and, ideally, withGovernment for consideration. I

would like to acknowledge thecontribution made by all staff in

assisting the Consultants,particularly the work done by Ross

Coburn on the financral reviews. Atthe time I am writing this all reviewshave commenced, but mY crystalball is a little hazy rightnow,Nonetheless, we look forwardto working closely with Governmentin attempting to address all theissues before us.

I would also like to thank - onceagain - all staff who assisted withthe successful conduct of the 2004St John Ambulance AustraliaNational Conference and AustralianFirst Aid Championships. There areoodles of photos in this edition,which will re-kindle many fondmemories of a fantastic event. MY

congratulations go to Scott Loechel

- lndividual First Aid Wtnner - andthe NT Team, which performed soadmirably. Thank you also to ourmajor Sponsors - Laerdal, the NT

Government, the Alice SpringsTown Council, Colemans Printingand lTS.

Hot on the heels of our ownNational Conference was the ACAPConference, again hosted by theNT at the magnificent Alice SpringsConvention Centre. Mycongratulations are extended to thehard working organising committeefor a great Conference.

lmmediately after ACAP was the36th Annual Convention ofAmbulance Authorities Meeting,which was very well attended thisyear and was conducted at theAlice Springs Crowne Plaza.

Special thanks to Debbie and theguys from RMT for their assistanceand to Chair lan Kaye-Eddie,

REPORT

sExecutive Officer lan Pickering andall delegates for being so easy tohost - and also for allowing NTObservers to attend for Part of theMeeting.

Can I take this chance to wish all

staff, members, friends and readersa very Merry Xmas and asuccessful and Happy New Year!l

It's no good, I have to say it! - |

am extremely optimistic about theMagpies chances in 2005.

Cheers

David Baker, oAM ostJ JP

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

?0 Dox b695290 Ragoneei RoadALICE SPRINGS 0871 9 QAAAPU

*i:: [,3] ;32zz3:'z

Afuott, ,Wtj11/,Yt

Gentlal Austlalian Abotiginal Alcohol Ptogtammes Unit

CAAA?U TROVIOES:, A ResidenLial lrealmenl ?rogram 'lhe "Fulure leadera Trogram": which provtdeo

educalion plue individua and qroup counoel n4 ln a healhy, oafe and carinq

envtronnenl

, An Outreach ?rognm: whrch provtdeo day proqrama Ior r'hooe allecled by t'he abuoe of

a cohol and exiendE oulreachro lhehoepital, prtoon'local cofimunitleg and achools.

, After Care: which assisla cJienls wtlh counselinq, advocacy, llnances and accamrnaialion

when r,hey retwn ta lhe qeneral communlfiy from lhe lrealmenl ?raqram.

. Life gkills: whtch r,eachea cltenle qeneral \fe and recrealional aki)le durinq r"heir alay rn

Ihe lreatment ?toqram.o Aboriginal Alooholics Awarenesa which ls a cullural y appropriate, anonynouo fel owohi2

baae on AA.fh:e ie a opirilual proqrar.,lastrednq eelf-healinq and reoponeibilltf,y

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oulBAqKAttbultnce JANUARY - 2OO5

Managet, Educatton &TrainingSerri.s:poRrI am pleased to be able to report that the 2003/04 financial year

was the first million dollar year for the Training DepartmenL

Income generated fro* training fees for the year came in at

$1,007 million, a result uhich I strongly belieue r,s due to the

qualitlt of our programs and the professionalism of ourInstructors, Thr,s result is made all the mlre amazi,ng uhen ae

consider the size and geographical diuersity of the IVT's

population.

A comparison between pafticipationtrends nationally and the NT showsthat we are well placed in relation tothe annual percentage of populationtrained.

handled with commitment anddedication. Feedback received inrelation to the 14 nominal hourformat has also been ovenruhelminglypositive.

It was wonderful that so many of ourlnstructors were able to attend theHealth Seminar and I thank St John(NT) through CEO David Baker forthe support in getting everyone downto Alice Springs.

Australian College Of AmbulanceProfessionals Gonference

The ACAP Conference was againevidence that when we put our mindto it in the NT there's not much wecan't do. The Conference wasincredibly well received by all whoparticipated in it and probably offeredthe most diverse yet relevantProfessional Developmentopportunity to date for ParamedicProfessionals throughout Australia.Again, my congratulations to theorganising committee for bringing it

alltogether.

A snapshot of PTG

During the 2003/'04 reporting yearPTC. Accepted 97 enrolments subject

enrolments. Worked with 71 active Students. Facilitated 16 block release

courses (1 l internal and 5external.)

r Saw .13 Diploma and 3 AdvanceDiploma completions.

. Marked 427 assessmentsincluding 162 examination papers.

Clinical One (internal). Delivered twiceo 14 Students. Comprises of 14.4 % of total

enrollments

ln the past 3 years, 13.33% of theNT population (based on 198,700)have completed first aid training withSt John in the NT. lf we take a snapshoot of our 3 year trend there is, atpresent, some 9.71% of the NTpopulation holding a Senior First Aidcredential. A figure we can all bejustifiably proud of.

The introduction of the 14 nominalhour format for Senior First Aid hasalso had a positive impact onparticipation rates. While we were alittle slower than other St Johnjurisdictions in introducing this format,the detailed planning that went intothe workshop that was held mid-waythrough 2003 in relation to the 14nominal hour format and thefeedback we have received fromparticipants since it's launchsuggests that this change was

St John Ambulance NationalConference

A large number of people put in a lotof time to make this conference thesuccess it was and it would befoolish to mention them all for fear ofleaving someone out. I would,however like to acknowledge all

those who presented sessions at the2 day Health Seminar: Grant Lennox;his Honour the Administrator TedEgan AO; Ashley Barnett and SharonMilera; Dave Macmillan, Paul Ellard

and Annetta Albanese; Daniel Maher;Christine Barber and Peter LeOornu;Alice Springs School of the Air andlan McKie; Dr Tim Henderson;Gemma Trower and VincentForrester; Professor John Pearn andGreg Fyfe; Ken Johnston; andProfessor Villis Marshall.

Participation Rates (nat) Participation Rates (NT)

(calendar year) (financial year)

2001 263,113 (1.35%) 2OOO/',01 7915 (4.0o/o)

2OO2 272,327 (1.38%) 2001/',02 8,456 (4.27%)

2003 290,720 (1.45yo) 2OO2/'O3 8,412 (4.23%)

2004 Not available 2OO3/'O4 9,591 (4.83%)- pop 198,700

OUTBACKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

rr

proceedings at the first Nationallndustry Skills Forum held in

Melbourne in 2003. The 2004 forumwas held in April 2004 in Sydney. Thefollowing comments were made byMr. David Hind, CEO, AustraliannationalTraining Authority, as heopened the 2004 forum.

ANTA is in a unique position toprovide the links and fosterpartnerships betvveen industry,government, training providers andthe needs of individuals,communities, and indigenous people.The industry skills forum is onecomponent of building thesepaftnerships. One of ANTA's roles rbto lead public policy for skillingAustralia. We need the input of forumparticipants ---- industry leaders andVET decision-makers --- to provideadvice to Ministers and in turn, theirsupport in networkng with theirconstituencies. Ihr's is the 2ndnational industry skills forum followingthe inauguralforum in September lastyear. These forums are a newmechanism for Australia'semployment and busrness leaders todr.scuss with VET decision-makersthe workforce sk//s base required forinternationally competitive companiesand enterprises.

Why is VET important?

Today around 60 busrness, provider,and government leaders have givenup their time to attend this event.Why? Because VFf has made adifference to Australia's skr//s baseover the past decade, and educationand training is one of a handful ofreally significant drivers of individualbuslness performance and growthacross the economy as a whole.

> VET is big business:

- Governmenfs spend $q,S Oittion,

employers spend $3,7 billion andindividuals around $800 million peryear.

- 1 in B working aged Australians isdoing VET - and that's just fromthe publicly funded training.

Manager, Edu cation & Training Services Repo rt Gonrinuea)

Clinical One (external). Delivered once. 5 students -o Has now been replaced by the

Patient Transport Officer courseo 5.2 o/o of total enrollments

Vehicle Preparation & DefensiveDrivingo Delivered twice. 14 Studentsc 14.4o/o of total enrolments

Specialist Scene Management &Patient Extrication (formerlyRescue). Delivered twice. 1 6 students. 16.50/o of total enrollments

ClinicalThree

Postponed due to scheduling issuesand lack of numbers

Patient Transport Officerr Delivered across 3 Regional

Centreso 16 Studentso 16.5% of total enrollments. New course comprising Diploma

units taken from Clinical Onecovering basic skills to operate outof an Ambulance either as a Publicduty crew or to supplementService crews in times of need.Covers OH&S, Ambulanceequipment, administration, medicalterminology and basic level drugsand patient management. Bridging(internal) course offered as a 2week intensive internal program in2005 for students who wish toupgrade their skills to that ofStudent Paramedic.

GlinicalTwoo Delivered onceo 12 Students. 12.4o/o of total enrollments

Workplace Assessorr Delivered twicer B studentso 8.2o/o of total enrollments

Train Small Groupso Delivered twice

o 6 studentso 6.20/o of total enrollments

Clinical Mentoring in theWorkplace. Delivered once. 6 Students. 6.2o/o of total enrollments

The Paramedic Training College,through the hard work andcommitment of Paramedic EducationOfficer, Sue Eastcott, continues todeliver quality and relevant educationand training courses to Paramedics.During each year PTC is assisted inthe task of delivering quality coursesby a number of seconded personnelboth from within the Training andAmbulance Service areas and I

warmly acknowledge the supportafforded the PTC by these officers.

The Australian Quality TrainingFramework

Compliance with the AQTFStandards for Registered TrainingOrganisations continues to form thelynchpin of Departmental activities. Allfacets of the Department -administrative, coursedelivery/assessment and reporting -are monitored on a continual basisagainst the '12 Standards to ensurewe continue to meet ourcommitments to provide the bestpossible training and assessmentservices to customers.

The lnternalTraining Audit Team -comprising the Education andTraining Resource Officet AnnettaAlbanese and myself - again travelledextensively during the year, visiting all

regions where training occurs on atleast three occasions. On behalf ofour Chair of Training, Dr JanSchmitzer, I thank all the Training,Operational and Administrative staffin each Region who continue tosupport us, not only during the auditprocess but also on a regular basisthroughout the year.

National Industry Skills Forum

ln the last edition of Outback I

included 2 reports on the

OUlBACKAmbulance JAir|lUAiHY - 2OO5

Manager, Edu cation & Training Services Repo ft Gonmuea)

- There are more than 400,000apprentices and trainees takingadvantage of both traditional tradeoptions and new and emergingindustry areas. Over 10 % of thesepeople are aged 45 and over and22% between 15 and 19.

- There are more than 185,000secondary school students doingsome form of VET.

- Twice as many universitygraduates go on to VFI than VETgraduates to university.

lnaugural forum

> The inaugural Skills Forum washeld in September last year. Atihat forum:

- There were calls to improveaccess to information for clientsand to reduce bureaucracy. Forexample, more than 150,000individuals visit the training.comwebsite since June 2003.

- We discussed skills shortages.Last week the AustralianGovernment Minister, Dr BrendanNelson announced a range ofmeasures to tackle skills shortagesin three major industry areas:

B building and construction;

B automotive retail service and repairindustries;

B the housing sector of the buildingand construction industry.

The strategy willfocus on newways of encouraging youngpeople to choose trades as acareer and will test differentapproaches to training, includingshorter apprenticeships.

- lndustry has told ANTA loud andclear that coming to grips with therecognition of prior learning mustbe a priority. This includes a seriesof projects that we're undertakingin partnership with employer andemployee organisations. ANTA hasa series of projects to do someskills audits, RPL assessmentsand certification of individual's

competencies against nationalstandards, and then to developtraining plans in response to theskills gaps fqr individuals andenterprises. This will produceinformation about RPL processesand result in models that can bereplicated more widely.

- At the last forum many wereconcerned about the potential forstate accredited courses toundermine portable nationalqualifications. The high level reviewof Training Packages confirmedthe need for nationally Portablequalifications and skill sets.

- Last time people also stressed theimportance of generic andemployability skills, as well asspecialist technical skills, for amodern economy. As the world ofwork changes, people will need toupgrade their skills and re-skill innew areas. We understand theimportance of developing peoPle's

capacity to continue to learn tolearn throughout life. ANTA isdeveloping employabilitycompetency standards forincorporation in nationalqualifications and programs.

Link between last forum and thisone

> One of the loudest messagesANTA received at the last forumwas the need for more co-ordinated planning and improvedskills forecasting. ANTA is workingon research focusslng on futureskill need, of which the nationalskills report is a part. We will beworking with the skills councils todo more research into the skill

needs for theh industry secfors.And we are also investigatingsorne possrble new ways of linkingindustry and research, through aco-operative research centre typemodel.

> These tuvice-yearly nationalindustry skills forums arethemselves designed to betterconnect industry information about

skill needs with resource planning.

> The panel of speakers today willlook at the broader context for skill

development from a range ofperspectives:

- finance and busrness;- politics;- social and demographic trends;- internationaltrade.

Two decades of reform: Linkingthe past, present and future

> The Australian VET system hasgone through a period of maiorreform over the past two decades.

> We have moved from a provider -

driven system with a plethora ofqualifications to a national sys/emwith competency based trainingand recognition of skills that areportable nationally andi ncreasi n gly, i nternatio nally.

> The strengths of our NationalTraining Framework have beenrecognised internationally and alarge number of developed anddeveloping countries have soughtto learn from the Australianexperience and in many casespurchase from our system. Oureducation industry ranks 4th inAustralia's expott earners.

> Vocational education and traininghas played an important role inAu strali a's outstandi ng eco nom icperformance of the last decade bYgreatly increasing the skills ofworkers.

> But, our policy and planning willneed to shift from "training", to theway skills are used at work, to theway work is organised andrecognise that skills are part of abroader set of considerations.ANTA's high levelreview ofTraining Packages has examinedthe implications of changes in thelabour market, work practices, theimpact of technology andorganisational structures on thelevel and nature of demand forboth technical and emPloyabilitYsk//s. /f has a/so examined VET's

OUTBACKArnbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

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changing client base and the wayemployers and employees need toaccess skills training in a changingbusiness world.

What does the future look like?

> Changing industries. "Changeis inevitable, but progress isnot".

- lndustries no longer operate bythemselves. Rather they areincreasingly part of a supply chainor network of production sharingtechnology. The implication here isthat work based learning mustextend beyond what happens inindividual enterprises.

- Broadly defined service industrieswill remain as the highest growthsectors.

- However, manufacturing,resources, transporT, and agri-food remain as impoftant buildingblocks for our economy and asem ployment opportunities.

- And we have the imperative tohave highly skilled knowledgeworkers for an innovativeeconomy.

> Globalisation

- The move to a global market placesees more and more Australianjobs dependant on expoft trade,and competing with, anddistributing imported products andservices.

- Regional and multihteral tradeagreements continue to re-shapethe characteristics of Australianbusiness.

> Knowledge and netuvorks

- Australians will need to be morethan highly skilled in a technicalsense, but also able to quicklybuild on and adapt newknowledge with partners and innetuvorks typically in a rapidlychanging world of work.

> Ageing Australia

- Mature consumers will hold muchof the nation's wealth.

- People will be working longer,beyond the traditional 55 yearretirement age, but in differentways than currently is the norm.

> lndividual Australians are shiftingfrom wanting an "occupation" towanting a "career", the context ofwhich changes during theirlifetime.

How do we assist in preparingAustralia for this future?

> Firstly, by forming strongpartnerships between industry,educators and governments, eachpulling its weight. Theseproductive partnerships will boostskill development for Australianindustry for individuals, forcommunities and provide betterem ployment outcomes throughtraining for I ndigenous Australians.

> The industry skills councils willprovide leadership in skillingAu stral i a w ithi n thei r i n d ustries,working together acrossindustries, and in providing adviceto government and educators toassis/ rn meeting emerging skillneeds.

> We willbuild on our researchcapability and do a better job ofconnecting economic, social anddemographic data. With lndustryskill councils providing the marketintelligence, this will all give us fheevidence base for cutting edge,robust VET policy and planning.

What do we want from thisforum?

> ANTA has prepared the secondNational lndustry Skills Report.Ihr.s is a key document putting a"skilling lens" over fhe r.ssues thafAustralia will face in the future.

David Hind, National lndustry SkillsForum, 15 April2004, Sydney,Opening address.

ln closing I would like to take thisoppodunity to wish everyone allthevery best for the Christmas Seasonand a safe, healthy and successful2005.

Brendan QuirkeMANAGER. EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES.

At.t,nu Krruc & SoNs CoNsrRucrIoN Ptv Lto(aProvei:,1l5Hl"J$[T"ff

x'i**.T,'#tments). Servicing the needs of Govt Depts, Councils & Aboriginal Gomrnunities,

PO Box 568, Katherine N.T.0851

Phone: (08) 89?l 0020Fax: (08) 89212299

Mobile:0412 8ZG 920

OUTBACrlAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

:ir^

Training F'rameworkupdateWelcome back to another edition of )utbnck Ambulance. In thts report

I uill cliscuss hou St John (Ail') complies with Standard 7 of the

Australicnt Qualitl, Training Framework (AQTF) Standards forR egis tued Trainin g 0r gan isa tions.

Standard 7 is all about'Competence of RegisteredTraining Organisation (RTO)staff'. This basically means StJohn (NT) ensuring that all of itsstaff who are involved in training,assessment and client serviceare competent for the functionsthey perform.

Standard 7.1

The RTO must develop andimplement written procedurcsfor the recruitment, inductionand ongoing development ofeach member of its staff who isinvolved in training, assessmenfor client seruice; encourage andprovide relevant oppoftunities fortheir prcfessional developmentand monitor their performance.

To address this standard policiesand procedures have beendeveloped are to be found in theTraining Department General Policyand Procedure folders, available toall staff employed at St John (NT).

Appropriate policies/procedures canbe located under these headings:

L Recruitment;

I lnduction;

I Professronal Development; and

I Monitoring.

Within in this report and under eachsub-standard the 'above areas' arecovered briefly.

Recruitment

Should a staffing position becomeavailable or there has been anidentified need for additional staff, ameeting is held between the Chief

^t.-ea?! 4mhtlnnep JANUARY - 2OO5

Executive Officer and the Manager,Education & Training Servtces todiscuss this need. lf confirmed,advertising takes place through themedia identifying St John (NT)

staffing requirements.

Once received through to thepersonnel/corporate servicesdepartment, applications arereviewed for short listing and passedto the Manager, Education & TrainingServices and other interview panelmembers. Those applicationsmeeting all requirements will beconsidered in the first instance,however those applicants who havemet the minimum AQTFrequirements, ie the first 4 units ofthe Certificate lV in Assessment andWorkplace Training may also beconsidered. Should this occur, thoseapplicants are informed duringinteruiew of a time frame in whichthey will be required to complete thelast four units of the Ceftificate lV -to meet the St John (NT)

requirements.

To ensure fairness and equity, aninteruiew panel comprising of 3 isestablished. The interview panelconsists of

O Manager, Education & TrainingServices;

@Education & Training ResourceOfficer and

@one other. lt is fair to say the panelalso comprises female and mderepresentation.

All newly appointed staff are requiredto have a security clearance checkand medical, with all of this detailedin the advertisement and explainedagain during the interview. Reference

checks are also completed and thenfinally a report is submitted to theChief Executive Officer with arecommendation for appointment.

While undertaking the interviewprocess, applicants are informed ofthe payment structure andimplementation processes. They arealso advised of areas andresponsibilities within what would betheir position description. Questionsfrom the panel are developed andraised based on the positiondescription, with applicants beingprovided the opportunity to explainhow they have or would approacheach matter.

Prior to completing the interuiew,applicants are encouraged to askquestions and are informed they willbe contacted regarding the outcomeof the interview process. Applicantsare also encouraged, that shouldthey be unsuccessful, they can worktowards developing the skills andqualifications necessary to becominga part time instructor.

Standard 7.2

The RTO's induction programand materials for new staff mustcontain information, whererclevant to their job role, on eachof the following.

i. Training Packages

ii. Competency-based trainingand assessrnenf

iii. Vocational education andtraining rcquircments andpolicies; and

iv. Requirement for NewApp renti cesh i ps I Tra i neesh i ps

All full time and seconded staff withinthe Training Department haveposition descriptions which clearly

Training Framework Update @onrinued)

outline their role and responsibilitiesand where necessary includeinformation regarding i- iii above.

Additional to this, is the lnstructorAccreditation lnformation Handbookwhich has been developed for allTrainers including Paft time andAssociate lnstructors.

Point iv above, is not applicable to StJohn Ambulance (NT) as we do notoffer Apprenticeships or Traineeshipswithin the Training Department.

lnduction

To further explain the inductionprocess, all staff within the TrainingDepaftment have a role in aiding thenewly appointed staff memberthrough their induction program.

A generic induction involving lines ofreporting, centre locations andsecurity, policies and proceduressurrounding training and assessmentservices under the standards of theAQTF are undertaken by the TrainingDepartment and include OH&Srequirements and current access tolegislation. A basic introduction to all

staff within St John (NT) is alsocarried out.

Once the generic induction iscomplete, the newly appointed staffmember continues to undertake atraining and assessment specificinduction commonly referred to asthe lnstructor Ceftification process.lnformation about this process canbe located in the lnstructorAccreditation I nformation Handbookand involves the person

Q observing 3 full courses deliveredby full time training officers,

@ undeftaking an UnderpinningKnowledge lnstructor Challengeassessment (practical and theory)to ensure a pass mark of 8O%.

@ co-delivering courses along side afull time training officer untilconfident to deliver a full courseunder assessment by a full timetraining officer. lt is during thisprocess the newly appointed staffmember is also introduced to thenecessary course resources,cleaning requirements, courseadministration and reporting

requirements.

Standad 7.3

a. The RTO must ensurc thatassessrnents are conductedby a percon who has:

i. The following competenciesftom the Training Package forAssessment and Wo*placeTraining, or demonstratedeq u iva lent com pete ncies:

a. BSZ&1A Plan Assessment

b. BSZz1UAConductAssessrnent'

c. BSZffiA Review Assessment'and

ii. Relevant vocationalcompetencies, at least to thelevel being assessed.

b. However, if a percon does nothave all of the competenciesin Standards 7.3a (i) and 7.3 a(ii), one person with thecompetencies listed inStandatd 7.3 a (i), and one ormore petsons who have thecompetencies listed inStandard 7.3 a (ii), may worktogether to conductassessments.

While the AQTF Standards forRegistered Training Organisationsidentifies the minimum standardsnecessary for training andassessment services, the TrainingDepartment have policies in placewhich identify a minimum standardclearly exceeding that which isnecessary.

All staff involved with deliveringtraining and assessment services arerequired to hold the Certificate lV inAssessment and Workplace Training.By having this entire qualification,made up of 8 units, staff haveincreased knowledge and skillswhich can be transferred/utilised,especially for implementing,monitoring, recording and reportingpurposes.

Standard 7.4

The RTO must ensurc that

training is delivercd by a perconwho:

i. Has all the competencies inthe Certificate lV frcm theTraining Package forAssessmen t and WorkplaceTraining (or has demonstratedth e eq u iv alent com peten cies)or who is under the dircctsuperuision of a person withthese competencies; and

ii. ls able to demonstratevocational competencies atleast to the level of thosebeing assessed.

For those new trainerVinstructorswho may have paftially completedthe Certificate lV in Assessment andWorkplace Training, as stated above,a time frame will be provided inwhich they must completeworkplace projects. Should theycomplete these projects and showevidence to support the performancecriteria, the trainer/instructor may beawarded Recognition of CurrentCompetency or Recognition of PriorLearning.

Until successfully completing andbeing awarded the Certificate lVtrainerVinstructors are under directsupervision of someone who holdsthe complete Certificate lV.

Ongoing development

Once accredited as an instructor at abasic level, all full time TrainingOfficers are then required toundertake further training as aparticipant on advanced courses.This approach not only furthers theirskills and knowledge but allows anopportunity to observe how othercourses are delivered. This approachthen enables the newly appointedTraining Officer to deliver advancedcourses at a later date. For this tooccur, preparation time is permittedprior to delivering the course,allowing plenty of time for researchand clarification of delivery andassessment.

All trainers whether they be full timetraining officers or parltime/associate instructors are also

OUlBACKAmbulance JAINUAIiY - 2OO5

Training Framework Update (continuect)

strongly encouraged to further theirprofessional development. This canbe on an individual basis withapproval warranted by the Manager,Education & Training Services or asis the case on an annual basis,attend the St John (NT) lnstructorworkshop.

Currently all full time training officerstake part in their professionaldevelopment by attending the StJohn Ambulance (NT) Annuallnstructor Workshop and also byassessing the competency levels ofnew trainers entering the lnstructorCertification process.

As an annual requirement allinstructors must continue to maintaintheir proficiency in delivering andassessing courses and throughoutthe year be observed or obserye afulltime Trainer for monitoringpurposes. They are also required to

maintain their credentials wherenecessary.

Professional Developmentopportunities are also provided forTraining Administration staff withworkshops continually being held bythe Registration Authority. Oftenthese workshops are in relation toAVETM ISS/NCVER reporting andtraining package workshops.

Monitoring

Monitoring workplace performanceof staff is carried out by

@ participant feedback forms for all

courses delivered by St John (NT)

or alternatively bycustomerVparticipants contactingthe Manager, Education & TrainingServices;

@ Peer assessment ie.

Trai ners/instructors observing orbeing observed by other trainersduring delivery or through

W v$?fJif':garAustraria

l. H,+i3il::nr#il=""J'=. Group Fitness Classes and fully equipped air-conditioned weight facility. Rock wall, lndoor Spofts and Special Events

. Childcare: High Quality Accredited staff (children 3months - 5 years)

. Two (2) 0utside School Hours Care Programs (children 5 - 1 2 years)

. Excellent Swimming Centre, 3 different sized pools

Contact us for advice or support in any 0f these areas.

*HOURS OF OPERATION*Mon -Thurs 6am - 9pm, Fri 6am - Bpm

Sat B.30am - 6pm, Sun 1pm - 6Pm

Sadadeen Rd, Alice Springs NT PH: (08) 8952 5666 execofficer-ymca@bigp0nd.net.au

I nstructor Accred itation processesand

@ the Manager, Education &Training Services reviewing staffpositions descriptions on anannual basis.

ln conclusion and as a member ofthe lnternal Audit Team, rt is easy tosee the compliance and evidenceheld against this standard. While atfirst glance, the processes in placemay appear overwhelming andrigorous, St John Ambulance (NT)

are proud of their RTO status, qualityof delivery assessment and clientservices provided by their staff.

As the motto goes 'St John - first in

first aid training!'

ANNETTA ALBANESEEDUCATION & TRAINING RESOURCE OFFICER

Sponsored in support ofSt John Ambulance (N.T.)

for the vital role they play in Outbackcommunities

1l'[ax and Jacqueline Lines

EONISTAN STATTONThnami, via Alice Springs 0872

Phone: 8956 8501

Y6'"*'J,Z

f 24 Hour (ounselling & Referrcl Servite

'lt may not seem like a real crisis, but we are onlya phone call away if you are lonely, de-pressed, stressed,

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Confidential telephone counselling is aaailsble on a

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Phone Grisis Line on 18OO 019 116Kids Ghat Line 18OO 332 333

*C*SCARE SERVICES

H*C*S Home Care Services provides quality care forclients in their own home.

Includes assessment, case management and care co-ordination by experienced Registered Nurses.

Services include Personal care, Assistance with dailyactivities and Respite care.

With 24 hour / day,7 day / week on call support.

Phone 0889280822 Fax:08 89280922E mail: nt@home csre service s.c om.Qu

Servicing Darwin, Darwin Rural, Cox Peninsula & Tiwi Islands

HMEHO

OUIBACKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

A chance to respond

When I was informed that I hadbeen nominated for Paramedic ofthe year, my initial response was"what an honour to be evennominated with the likes of thoseofficers who were part of Previousand this years awards".

Despite being denied theopportunity to make a speech atthe time of the award, and contraryto the comments of some cheekyofficers that I "got out of it". I really

wanted to be able to say somethings that are important to me.

Firstly, I don't feelthat I am in anY

way more special than any of thefine officers that work for St, John.They are an amazing bunch of hardworking and dedicated people.

I personally have experienced great

friendship and real supporl throughsome difficult times in my personal

life, from many of the friends I haveworked with.

When lfirst commenced with St.

John, I was told that much of thetraining was to happen on the roadby people sharing from theirknowledge and experience. I foundthis to be true, and those offtcersthat I have worked with wtll knowwhat I mean. However I need tomention some by name.

My wife Lenaire deserves mythanks for her encouragement andsupport especially in times when I

didn't feel confident of my ownability, as well as listening to me

countless timeswhen I shared,asked questionsand learnedfrom herexperience.

Another majorinfluence in mycareer is KevinBlake our OlC.His patience,coaching andgreat practicalteaching abilityhave made a

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real difference tn forming myambulance skills.

My lovely children for their love andinterest in every aspect of mY workand what I do.

Senror management for theirconstant support andprofessionalism. I can still

remember from day one beingimpressed that the "boss" wouldspeak to me each time I saw him.

We in St. John are involved inmuch more than a job. We havethe opportunity to bring comfort tothose who are in distress, sicknessor pain. To be able to arrive at ascene where there is fear and Panicand bring calmness is very sPecial.It's true that society in generalrespects 'ambo's' and rates themhighly, and to wttness the waY theorganisation has responded torecent attacks, speaks of theintegrity of the people involved.

Thank you to all who have beenpart of my working life as an ambo,this award is very much a result ofyou all.

TREVOR KEATCHKatherine

M e dical E quipment M anagement

A NORTHERN TERRITORY COMPANYSALES. SERVICE. REPAIRS & TRAINING ON

MEDICAL EOUIPMENT

The team at M.E.M. service and supply equipment for Emergency

Services, Mining and Petloleum industry, Community Health

Centres, GP's / Dental / Physio's, Veterinary practices, Defence

Forces and of course Hospitals.

We have been associated with St John Ambulance for the last ten

years and we look forward to continuing our relationship and

wolking with thern for many years to come.

Value added benefits of our service includes:

- Computerised asset maintenance tracking.

- FREE loan equipment while yours is being services or repaired.

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We ore t'onnitted to the NT. and to supplling, clualit!. value and

escellence in customer sen'it'e.

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o,UTBACKAmbuLance JANUARV - 2OO5

,71

i,

Happy Birthd ry Ten nant Creek

Tennant Creek has iust celebrated 40 yearsof $t John Volurufeers and 25 years ofAmbufance Seruice.

Bill Fullwood, a member of thefirst Tennant Creek St JohnVolunteers Group, was the guest ofhonour at the 40th BirthdayCelebration held at the MemorialClub in Tennant Creek on the 30thOctober, 2004. The other specialguest of the evening was StevePeers who was the first paidmember of the Ambulance Servicein Tennant Creek. Bill and Stevewere both presented with a thankyou gift from the current DivisionalSuperintendent, Justin Hankinsonand OIC Scott Loechel.

Alan Caust started as anambulance officer in Tennant Creekin 1979 and wrote the followingletter for the birthday celebrations.

There is quite a history to ourearly days in Tennant Creek - but I

came along as the third paid officerafter John Hill and Steve Peers inlate 1979. We started the paidambulance seruice some 15 yearsafter Bill Fullwood and his TennantFirst Aid Group finally gainedrecognition and started the firstDivision in 1963.

It wasn't an easy job for any of usback then as the Health Deparlmenthad supplied ambulance coveragefrom the hospital - free of charge.Us newcomers suddenly slapped oncharges for transport - andintroduced a Subscription Scheme.Back then it cost $t S tor a family,$7,50 if you were single or apensioner. There was a discount ifyou were a single pensioner - as itonly cost you $3.50 per year.

We inherited the old tin shed inNoble Street that Bill Fullwood hadbuilt from what he had procuredfrom the mines at a cheap price. ltstill stands - but has had additionssince our day. lt was hot, housedonly one of our 3 vehicles and I livedin it for a time, lt took us some 3years before we moved to thepresent site we enjoy today inWindley Street.

The building was one of the oldwards of the Tennant Creek Hospital- and we were graciously allowedone half - the other half being givenover to a crdche full of noisy kidsthat insisted on banging on thelocked door that kept them separatefrom our side. I notice that acupboard has been added to thathalfway point - with another door onour side! Wished we had thought ofthat back then!

tm^aCommissioner Mr Andrew Hodges OS|J presentingMr Steue Peerc CS|J with bis award.for 25 yearcAmbulance Seruire.

Mr Bill Fullwood OAM. one of he originalmemberc of tbe Tennant Creek diuision.

The only thing we lacked was aplace to garage our ambulances -so St. John decided to start abuilding appeal. This entailed boththe 3 paid staff and the newDivisional members travelling all overTennant Creek and out to the mines- banging on doors and asking fordonations. lt was unfortunate thatmyself and a nurse from the hospitalended up at one of the single men'squarters at Warrego Mine onemorning. Unbeknown to us - alltheguys had been on night shift. lt isstrange how much money you getfrom people that just want to closethe door and go back to sleep...!

But raise the money we did - andit was with great pomp andcircumstance that on Monday 1Othof November 1980 - we held theofficial opening of the St. JohnAmbulance Barkly Regional Centreat Spm.

Without our volunteers - none ofthis would have been possible.

OU'JBAGKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

Eltil

.Tl

ff'!

Sc()tl Lo(l.rd lrcittg ltresctrlttl u itlt ltis 9.Vrrr bur.fitr triltttrlcer sen icc.

When I arrived John Hilland StevePeers had already gathered togethera small Division that we added toslowly. All members underwenttraining from the South Australiantextbook "Emergency Care andTransport".

To manage coverage 24 hoursaround the clock, the duty paidofficer would have from one to twovolunteer's rostered "on-call". lt wasnot uncommon for us to travel with2 volunteer ambulance officers tocases especially at night.

I remember getting into troubleone afternoon when I could not belocated. We had no mobile phonesor beepers back in those times. I

told Steve Peers I was going downthe street to do some shopping.This was accepted back then - thatyou were off radio contact - but the

'li'ilndtlt a:rccL. tlt.'Drbets Sc()tt LoL'chel ttttlL t' t u I r r .l I c.l lae k i t r

otr l?e)tttltls oil(l.Jilsliil II(tkitrs(ilr deil'it1! Iltc Pl.i(lo disl)ld-J' oJ 'li'nttttrl a:reclz tn,u l11( .t,utrs.

Centre knew where you were. I wasonly gone 30 minutes or so - andwhen I got back - I was in bigtrouble. lt was the first time that wehad to send out a volunteer crew toan MVA by themselves as I wasn'tto be found.

Divisional Superintendent. She wason the footpath in her white overalls- with this huge overnight bag -which she unceremoniously slunginto the patient cabin of theambulance. Next stop, we pickedup another female volley - and off

we went on a 400 kilometerrun to an MVA.

We were so full of hotcoffee, sandwiches, biscuitsand sweet pastries by thetime we arrived at theaccident - I think we all literallyrolled out of the ambulance toattend to the injuredl

But that was how it wasback then - everything was

Clairc \l'iIsott, .lttslitt I l(tnkitts()tt.Curnl(tl O Shed dnd Scotl LocLhel.

I know that Steve Peerslooked for me - but I wasactually in the nurses'quarters!!

It was with a volley crewthat I had the occasion to helpdeliver my second - and theirfirst - baby in the back of avehicle just 1O kilometerssouth of Tennant Creekenroute from Ali Curang at 3am.

My best memories of ourvolunteers were the practical way inwhich they were prepared for a callout at night. I remember oneparlicular night at 2 am where I

drove to the home of the then

,llt'nrlrrs (l llk I)(rnil1t. ,lli.c Sl)ritUls iltr(l7i'tilt(utl (.'rrcL| (lit'isioils ttl ll.tc ttttztnls tlittrtt'r.

new, the experiences for our volleyswere new and everyone pulledtogether. lt was a new experiencefor me living so close io the nurses'quartersl

OulBAcl(Anbulance JA,Nu,A,RY - 2OO5

Life in the Top EndSr

Marian Grayden has just completedthirty seven years of voluntary serviceto St John and this doesn't includeadditionalservice in the UK. She is

the epitome of the quiet achiever,never seeking recognition or rewardbut happy to assist in any way shecan. Members that have been in StJohn for some time will all attest toher dedication, knowledge of StJohn and generosity,

When I was first employed by StJohn as Volunteer Co-ordinator it

was Marian who was always happyto guide me in the ways of theorganisatron. ln many instances shewas my saviour. Many membershaven't had the opportunity toappreciate the work that Marian hasdone, and continues to do, behindthe scenes.

Marian has provided us with a verybrief glimpse of St John in theNorthern Territory. Here is her story:

Gwyn BalchVolunteer Co- ordinator

I came to the Northern Territory inthe mid 6O's, an adved for AerialMedical Staff had attracted myattention and after working for a fewyears in a casualty dept in the EastEnd of London I thought it time for achange of new fields. How true thatwas to be. Knowing nothing aboutthe Territory I commenced work atDaruvin Hospitalthen situated atMyilly Point. The wards were groundlevel, a row of beds, and some fourbed partitioned sections, noseparate rooms and NO airconditioning. Covered walkways ledto the star form layout of wards. Thisdidn't stop the wet season rainsblowing in sideways.

One of the Aboriginal wards wasclose to the scrub/bushland so food

OUTBACK,\rI, uluttcc JANUARY - 2OO5

Marian Grayden CStJwas declined on one occasion whena couple of patients had caught agoanna and were roasting it for tea.Great excitement another day, theyasked me to come and look, a treesnake in the Mango tree! Thequickest return to the ward I evermade. There were times that I didn'tlike working in that area! Cardplaying by the aboriginal patients,sitting cross legged on the groundoutside their ward was common.

Daruuin was a smalltown with limitedfacilities 'The Track' being a two lanehighway linking it with Alice Springs,properly called the Stuart Highway.Bagot Road that passed the RMFBase to Nightcliff was also just twolanes. The majority of goods cameby road, so 'when the truck comesin', was a regular phrase whenevershortage or lack of variety occurredin any area from food to clothes.

A bus service did exist, but a verylong time between buses and noneon Sundays didn't help. OftenShanks Pony or your own car was

necessary Social activities were selfarranged mostly, though a variety ofsporls existed and were wellsupported, the heat and humiditydidn't seem to bother people, whilstcamping and fishing were alwayspopular. There were a couple ofcinemas, with the section nearestthe screen uncovered (no roof).

Wednesday night at the Star cinemawas western night, extremelypopular with the aboriginalcommunity. Later a drive-in wasavailable, many taking chairs (and anesky) to sit outside the vehicle.

The quarters I was allocated onarrival was in an off the groundhouse, rooms were partitioned only;walls didn't reach the ceiling, fansand no air-conditioning. After twoweeks it was 50-50 whether l'd stayor move on. I didn't think I fitted intothe pioneering type, Aerial Medicalwork sounded fancy, but odd hours,eady flights, rough weather and smallplanes put me off, so I nevergraduated to this field of work,

Whilst trying to make up my mind,staying for only two weeks wasstupid and perhaps not giving thingsa fair go, decided to persevere untilthe end of the year.

My introduction to St John DarwinDivision came when a memberasked me to cover a home nursingtopic at one of their meetings, I

agreed. This led to running a course.One of the members said "come toour social night, we're putting on anexercise, you should come" andhence a long association with StJohn in the Northern Territory

Parap Centre on Ross Smith wasthe division's base, only the groundlevel of the building was present withfunds being raised and work stillneeded to put on the upper storey.This was completed by 1967.

I I.t ritt t t G r( !_)\let t d t t d llri L .k l) t t sl ot t t

Life in the TOp End Koutirnrect)

Building materials lay around thegrounds - these and the upperconcrete floor provided an exercisesite, opportunities were never missedA room was designated as the First

Aid room, people often called in toget minor injuries fixed, cuts, grazes,

burns, splinters etc. Dressing stock,washed crepe bandages and linen

came from the hospital, collected bythe duty crew. Folding of the linen forambulance stretchers and rolling thebandages was done on each shift.

Vehicles were checked routinely andtyres blacked on occasions forappearance sake.

A crew comprised two males asminimum, a third person if available.

Females didn't drive and could onlybe the third person. St JohnAmbulance Service covered 6pm to6am, allweekends, and public

holidays, whilst a Dept of Health

hospital based ambulance wasavailable daily Monday to Friday.

There didn't seem io be any problemgetting crews and no one really

minded being third person.

Vehicles were well maintained, didn'thave two way radios and personal

mobiles were not in fashion. Trips

could involve long distances and offroad driving, wet season weather,

wandering animals could be aproblem, but I don't recall any great

dramas. As an example, on a returntrrp from Adelaide River (1OOKms) ona Sunday evening following theweekend races there, the Divisional

Superintendent was singing hymnswith the regular community hymnprogram on the radio. Threewallabies jumped across the road

one after the other, each got hit butdisappeared in the bush. Shouting"S.. and J.... C....." he pulled overtocheck for vehicle damage, got out, a'hitch' of the trousers, another J-C-(only minor dents),another'hitch'of the trousers, resumed his seat,

continued singing Onward ChristianSoldiers in top voice as though

nothing had happened, and we wereundenruay again. Old time memberswill know who I mean.

Odd duties often occurred, a trip bypolice launch across a very rough,choppy Danruin harbour to attend apatient from Mandorah. On arrival atStokes Hill Wharf the patient asked ifI was ok. I think I was very whitearound the gills, and no, I wasn'talright, however land again put

things right. A white dress and "grey

mist' stockings, not at all practicalforthis kind of situation.

Public Duties often had one or twomembers with a First Aid kit onlyattending, not enough ambulancesfor everywhere. They always seemedto cope. A vehicle was present aimotor sports like speedway whichwas held in a venue to the side ofBagot Road. This was a fairlypopular duty especially if a certainfemale went. She was a good cookand always had something specialfor coffee break. I remember thelemon meringue pies. St Johnpeople were given oppoftunities tohave a race in borrowed cars on thelast meet of the season - most lovedthe chance - thoughts ofSchumacher in their head. Onemember did a somersault, everyoneheld their breath but allwas ok.

Darwin Show provided manyincidents, snake bite from the displaytent, or a K.O. from the boxingarena- we knew approximately when

- the drumbeat rounding up possible

next contenders. The meeting nightsprior to the show were always cleanup and prepare First Aid andAmbulance section in theShowground. I suspect a fewcouldn't attend those particular

nights!

Socral occasions were held

frequently. These nights were verypopular - Wear a Toga - Be acharacter from 'Lil Abner' comic stripetc. A form of line dancing was

done, so all could attempt it and loinin. The record 'Baby Elephant Walk'always seemed to be on hand.

Providing entertainment for theelderly was given a go oneChristmas, good fun was had byeveryone, individuals from thedivision being the 'acts'. TheSuperintendent on this occasionbeing a good spor1, carried out adare, dance Swan Lake in a tutu, he

made a very unsightly dying swanl Asing song around the piano finishedthe evening.

Another event for divisionalChristmas was a social-dance at theTurf Club, friends and family andauxiliaries making it a success.

Fitness of members was kept inmind; anyone not involved in sportswas enticed to play 10-15 minutesof basketball after the meeting onSaturday or Sunday morning.

Whilst allthis was going on I mustsay public ambulance or watchmanduties were covered. The latteroccurring after radiocommunications started inapproximately '69.

A three month trial was given, formembers holding a Home NursingCerlificate to do a duty in a Daruuin

Hospital ward, the novelty wore offeventually, not as exciting asambulance work I guess, first aid

events took priority and the systemfolded. Over the years I have seen

members go on to Medical, Nursing,Occupational Therapist training andmany more become ambulanceofficers and Paramedics.

Cyclone 'Tracy' brought out the bestin all members. ln Cyclone sheltersthere seemed to feature St Johnpersonnel who took charge of First

Aid and Triage, with whatevermaterials/facilities available, l'm sureeach would have a tale to tell. Thecruise liner "Patris" becameaccommodation for some post

ouTBACKAnTbukrnce JANUARY - 2OO5

Life in the Top End @ontinued)

cyclone and a venue for a divisionalmeeting - seeing the layout andpractical points, eg getting astretcher inlout of cabins andgangways. Not easy and of coursewith tide changes, where you wenton the ship may not be your exit.Good experience for members.

Post cyclone, members bonded,helping each other with transport,rebuilding homes etc. The divisiongot going again very quickly withnumbers increasing, more First Aidcourses and enthusiastic ideastaking over the ambulance serviceand input by lnstitute of AmbulanceOfficers (Aust) playing its part.

CHANGES

During my time many changes haveoccuned:

Uniforms

Females: White dresses with longsleeves, 'grey mist' stockings ,blacklace up shoes and black velour hatssimilar to school hats were worn. Alarge white apron, with St Johnemblem on the bib section andAmerican style nursing caps wereavailable for First Aid room work etc.Silver buttons on pockets/epaulettes.The hats were not liked- changed toa white hat (similar to lady bowlers)later to white topped, folded blacksides and peak, much smarter andaccepted. Black skirV culottesappeared, short sleeves on dress,The dress could be shortened to hiplength to be worn with blacktrousers. This was known as the"transport top" A shirt eventuallyreplaced this jacket style. Epauletteswere black but grey for nursingofficers until '99 when allwere towear black epaulettes.

Males: White shirt, black trouserspeaked cap, in '97 silver buttonsdisappeared.Hats always being debated- Akubrastyle introduced for males andfemales - current fashion, crown

OttlBAAKAmbulance JAi'NU,AiRY - 2OO5

r"* i: ft; _\,

flattened to 'pork pie' style and blackband has multiple St John crosses-Baseball caps for motor sports only.

Cadets: now uniform as for adultsMarkings: e.g NCO, chevrons, SgtMajor-moved from sleeve toepaulette.Equipment: lntroduced, taught andchanged,

Competitions

The 7O's saw a NT NursingMembers team enter the NationalCompetitions for the first time, Menand Women competed separately,on alternate years. This waschanged to combines teams andlater to incorporate officers and othergrades if desired.

NT has won a NationalCompetitionon two occasions, once by adultmembers and once by a cadetteam.

BuiHings and New Divisions

Casuarina Centre was built andextended. A stone from Clerkenwellwas sent to be incorporated in thefoundation laying ceremony by SirZelman Cowan in 1978 and heopened the new headquarters in

1980, Alice Springs had PrinceCharles and Princess Diana to opentheir new centre in 1983.

The latest building being Palmerstonin 2003. Many new divisions havebeen formed throughout the Territory.

Major Changes

. lntroduction and improvement ofcommunications

. St John taking over theambulance service throughout theTerritory.

. Tiaining of ambulance personnelwith volunteers able to participate.

o Commencement of lnstitute ofAmbulance Officers(Aust) in 1973(now refened to as A.C.A.P).

o Separation from S.A. and N.T.

becoming a District in 1977.

J}

*ryi's'

There are numerous events thatdeserye a mention, and a story butsuch things as;o A St John member winning the

Charity Queen Competition in

1969r The annualSt John Balls at

Government House.. Oddbods that applied to be

members!o Being lashed to a stretcher

(rescue work practice)and laid onan ants nestl

r District meetings- agenda itemHATS.

o PriorV meetings - the first in 1984o lnternational Camp and

Competition.o Fund raising issue - The annual St

John lottery and Pole Sit inRaintree Park

o Antibiotics request for a sick pig.o 'There's an accident up the road a

bit', turned out to be five miles.o Kiss of Life (continuous

Resuscitation) by Cadets atHibiscus Shopping Centre - brokethe record held in the U.K.

o The'Bromwich Cup'for openambulance competition.

And----------------and------------

Must wait for another time.

Overall my 'see it through to the endof the year' has been the longestyear ever, very time consuming alsofrustrating, satisfying, sometimesfunny, with many long termfriendships founded. And l'll take thisopportunity to give sincere thanks tomembers at all levels, and from all

parts of the NT who have given mehelp and support.

MARIAN GRAYDEN CSTJTerritory fficer Nursing.

Clinical 2

This year thae uere a far of us approued for clinical two

studia, so it uas decided for two courses to be run. The

Training Departmmt had 16 of us to train, lecture andinstruct infour week czurses. l4uch preparation wmt into

Our course consisted of lectures,skills stations, practical sessions,scenarios and of course a lot ofquestions (and I'm sure at timesfrustrating) to our instructors!

Each week went by as we gainedmore information and knowledge, gol

our structured course and all of us knat what the nextfourweeks uould be like! STUDY!/

We have been student paramedicsfor some time now and it has beenfantastic watching paramedics onroad use their skills and knowledge, itwas now our turn to get thatknowledge and start usingParamedic skills supervised out onroad.

at each others throats a little, gaineda little weight, got out of touch withthe outside world, and of course verydrained and tired.

The last day of the course couldn'thave come any faster!

After passing the course we aresupervised Paramedics out on theroad, with logbooks to complete andmany skills ready to practice.

We would like to thank the TrainingDepartment, in particular Sue and TMfor all their time, effort andheadachesl

LISA TREVASKIS.

Danvin City Council is proud to supportthe important role

St John Ambulanceplays at sporting grounds and events.

Deaf or Hard of Hearing?

We can help.

Deaf Association of theNorthern Territory Inc.

Shop 14, Casuarina Plaza,258 Trower Road, Casuarina NT 0810Ph/TTY: (08) 8945 2016 Fax: (08) 8945 1880

Mobile Text: 0439 894 425 Email: dant@octa4.net.au

OUlBACKArnbulance JAINUARY - 2OO5

C ross Cult waI Avareness

Followi,ng my readi,ng of Matt Daui{s article i,n June )utback

Ambulance I uould like to share slme experiences that may be

heffil to others.

I arrived in the NT in 1995, and like

many others observed that this wasquite a different place fromanywhere else in Australia.

I made a conscious choice not tojudge or try to form opinions aboutthe situations facing the differentcultural groups within the Darwinarea for at least a couPle of Years.

It is very easy to quickly look on thesurface of a situation and withoutknowing it in depth, form oPinions,either from previous exPerience,preludices, or what others tell you -good or bad!

I am commenting mainly on therelationship between my culturalgroup and the lndigenous PeoPle I

mix with and am involved with as aresult of my job. I realise that thereare many cultural groups within theNT, but would like to keep mY

discussion specific.

My main point is that the gaPs thatmay exist between any 2 culturalgroups are frequently due to a lack

of understanding between bothgroups.

I see this very much in myinvolvement in Katherine.

Every cultural group has a set ofbehaviours that is particular to thatgroup. I have heard themdescribed as "world view" lt effectsall areas of life. lt impacts on suchthings as - language, manners,family, behaviour, sickness, diet,

death, relationships, humour, andthe llst goes on. The waY You are

brought up moulds you into how

you view yourself and the rest ofthe wodd.

From my observations, thedifferences between my culture andthat of the lndigenous PeoPle are

vast. One is not better than theother just different. I know thereare aspects of Aboriginal cultureand lifestyle that I do notunderstand (not for lack of interest)and I know that there are manytimes that they observe us and donot understand why we do certainthings. l'm sure many of You wouldknow the differences that occurwith something as simple as eyecontact. My upbringing and culturetells me that if someone is speakingto me, I show my interest andrespect for them by looking atthem. The opposite may be truefor lndigenous people. Eye contactis not a sign of respect, and can be

offensive,

So what do we do? Do we ignorewhat we know about anothercultural group and just expect themto be "like us" or do we attemPt tochange our behaviour in order toshow respect to another.

Since working in Katherine (4 -years) I have had the opportunity ofgetting to know many lndigenouspeople. I have developedfriendship with a large number ofWadpid people. I have friends whodespite my clumsiness in language

and cultural issues have patiently

shared with me what is imPoftantto them. They are also a great

resource in terms of myunderstanding how they think and

act. I find this parlicularly helpfulwhen I am dealing with them in a

work srtuation. lf I am factng aproblem about communication forexample I can sit with them andhear their perspective.

About 12 months ago I was given a

Skin Name from the Wadpinipeople. While my understanding of

this is limited, what I do know is

that it changed my relationship wtth

almost every Warlpirri Person I

meet. lt has been exPlained to me

like this ; Warlpini call themselvesYapa which means "inside peoPle"

whereas I am referred to as KardiYa

which means "outside people"With the giving of a skin name, I

went from an outside Person to an

inside person. People I have not

met before are able to relate to me

in a different way. As I mentioned, I

do not fully grasp the significanceof this but I do know it has

enhanced my work on road, andenabled me to communicate more

effectively.

What am I trying to say You mightask?

lf we have an attitude ofunderstanding and make an

attempt at being sensitive toanother culture, not onlY do weshow that therr culture is of worth,but we also may find that our job ismade easier and more effecttve.

We cannot just look at what ispresenting on the surface andassume that ihis is exactlY what isgoing on inside. Many times theY

are vastly different.

TREVOR KEATCHKatherine

OlllBAcKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

Rescue! ! ! ! ! Who? ME! ! ! ! !

Ok, so far I have been a volley,

been talked into "going senvice", I'mnot too bad at the foreign languagething now (being Scottish) and theBP's are getting better! At least now I

don't automatically think I haveforgotten to put the ear pieces of thestethoscope in my ears, I'm confidenlenough to think that if I can't hear aBP, maybe I have a REAL job!l

So, the latest, they decide I shouldlearn to rescue people from water,drarns and down the bottom of cliffslNot bad considering I am terrified ofheights, extremely claustrophobicand my swimming ability would makea two legged dog doing doggiepaddle look like lan Thorpe! Ha, just

let me see them get me through thiscourse!l

Firstly they decide to teach mehow to tie knots in ropes. Yeah right,

I'm really going to tie a rope aroundme and trust the knot to hold mewhile I dive off a cliff with shark andcrocodile infested waters below! Well,surprise surprise, I actually did learnto tie some knots and all it cost mewas an utter hate for rabbltsl!!!

Then they took me and my peers

to meet some nice policemen - whothought I was gorng to climb a flightof stairs which would lead to the roofof a 40 storey building (well it lookedthat tall to me!). I get to the topeventually and here is the policeperson, a very young police person,

and he thinks he can convince me

that if I fall he will save me! So aftersome persuasive talking and a fewgentle nudges from this nice person,

I take a massive leap (well it wasmore of a messy roll) off the edge ofthe roof..... and get nowhere fast.They told me that if I kept my thumbup near my bum that it would act asa brake and I wouldn't fall, well mybrake was well and truly on, mythumb was buried!! But I did it, andthe nice policemen have learned tosay some choice words with a terrificScottish accent.

I thought that was it, all over.

WRONG. I had to do it all again off acliff, but I did it and a nice police manasked me if I would like to gothrough it all again, SILLY MAN!l

Next move, beat theclaustrophobia. This time a nicefireman at the airpod took pity on thelook of terror on my face when he

tried to explain that the mask withthe tank of air attached would saveme from suffocating if I ever neededto go into a blacked out house, onceagain I was proved wrong. I have notsplattered at the foot of the giganticcliffs or suffocated in a burning,blacked out blazing inferno. This

course was starting to be fun. Then

our two trusted trainers decided weshould go down drains and rescuesomeone, result, claustrophobia 1 ---me 0!

But, with the support of my peers

and the two guys who had the job oftraining us, I did return and gothrough the dreaded tunnels,THANKS to you all, your support wasgreat. Finally, the two weeks wereover. I feel like I am ready to tacklethe female role in the next lndianaJones movie.

To everyone in my group, to Gregand Jim, and to everyone involved inour course, I say a huge thank you, I

survived!!!!

LINDA McMEAKINKatherine

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OUTBACK/I/rnlnnce JANUARY - 2OO5

Nice Springs St John JuniorsAll this term in Alice theJuni,ors haue been participati,ng in ttao

proficrency baclges, Child care and Family care.

They have had a huge range ofactivities from taking temperatures,changing nappies and theY even gotto feed the 20 month old toddlerthat I care for. (which they allthought was an absolute blast. eventhe boys)

But when rt came time for them todo a prolect on the subject's, I

wanted to do something differentthis year. So the Juniors where givenfive subjects and told to choose twoof them. They where then to Preparean oral presentation lasting at leastone minute. Parents of the Juniorsand Divisional Officers lan andBarbara Mckie where invited toattend the presentation night onTuesday 21st September, andaffiliate member Liz Talbot and

myself where blown away bY

the turnout, by both Juniorsand their parents.

The presentation's whereexcellent and I congratulatedeach and every one of theJuniors for an outstanding job.

Our plans for the last term are torelax and have a good time, maYbea trip to the movies and another toMcDonalds. I think that the Juniorshave well and truly earned it, with all

the hard work that theY have donethis year.

With 16 Juniors and onlY two adultsat present, it can sometime's behard to keep them busY and stoPthem from getting bored, but the

kids are great and if theY get boredor don't like something theY willwork with us to make it better.

I couldn't ask for a better grouP oikid's, and I couldn't have a bettersupport team in Liz,lan, Barbara,Noel and my husband Jarrad,

Thank you all very much.

REBECCA JONESDivisional OfficerA/Springs Juniors

Sponsored in oppreciotion ofthe dedicoted work of the

St John Outbock Ambulonce SerYice

Marie Et Thomas McKay

UMBEARRA STATION

via Alice Springs

Teron e Taqianl Senc/4"z/iEst 1975

Dignitied, Personalised SerwiceN/EMBER

O RIflCJS

ENsxrArloN. lnterstate & Overseas Repatriations ' Floral Tributes. Headstones & Plaques ' Pre-Arranged Funeral Plan

ServingAlice Springs & Tennant Creek

Ph: 8952 2953 (Ar Hours)

Mobile: 0418 897 230 Fax: 8952 45.18

12 Kidman Street, (PO Box 1943) ALICE SPRINGS

oulBAc;KAmbul?ttce JA,NUAiRY - 2OO5

il

tI

Phil Langdon History

ljoined the St John AmbulanceBrigade at Marion Division in SA inOctober '1966; the same year I

started work with PMG as aTechnician in Training. Nocomments on the acronym please.The division had 54 male membersat the time. The nursing divisionhad about 30 female members andthere was also 2 cadets divisions,male and female.

I did my mandatory 2 years as aFirst Aider attending Public Duties.ln 1968, I attended the AmbulanceTransport Nursing course at UnleyDivision. This course took B weekson the weekly parade night, andwas the necessary requirement tobecome a Trainee AmbulanceOfficer. I passed that course andstarted my shifts on theAmbulances as a Trainee. Soon I

became an Attendant, and afterdoing a driver assessment, becamea Restricted Driver and then anUnrestricted driver. There was noformal course, you could eitherdrive or not.

One Saturday night in winter I

was on duty at Marion, and wereceived a call for a roll over onTapleys Hill. I got up, put myuniform on and put my tunic on,got into the drivers seat, did up theseat belt and proceeded to do upthe tunic buttons as I drove. (Yes! I

know) I got out of the car at theaccident and immediately crashedback into the panel behind thedoor. The seat belt was inside thetunic buttons and I was stuck thereuntil I undid allthe buttons andreleased the seat belt.

ln September 1971, I wastransferred to Nhulunbuy in theNorthern Territory to install a newexchange. The Swiss mining giant,Nabalco, planned to mine thebauxite there to make aluminium,so a town to house three thousandpeople was being built out of bushland.

A year went quickly with the helpof a 1O hour working day, 6 days aweek.

I was asked if I wanted to workin Darwin for a year, so inSeptember 1972 1 arrived thereafter bidding Nhulunbuy a fondfarewell. ljoined the DarurinAmbulance Division, and settleddown to renewing my ambulancequalifications.

I soon became a corporal andput in charge of Communications.At that time, the Darwin Hospitalran the ambulance service from0600 to 1B0O hours 5 days aweek. At 1800 hours, the phonelines, including OO0 were switchedthrough to the Communicationsroom at Ross Smith Ave, where thevolunteers would operate.

The speedway at Bagot used tobe a regular public duty on everySaturday night during the dry. Otherduties included the Go-karts andscramble way out in the bush atthe 13 mile, a short distance awayfrom where Shell Palmerston isnow. Drags were also a good dutyat the 33 mile airstrip.

ln 1974, the lnstitute ofAmbulance Officers was born in theNT and I became an Associatemember.

ln October 1974,I was onceagain transferred with PMG, thistime to Alice Springs to upgradethe telephone exchange. ljoinedthe Alice Springs Division and asthe Hospital orderlies ran theambulance service 24 hours a day7 days a week there, I stafteddoing Public Duties. Alice had aHolden panel van ambulance asthe public duty vehicle. This wasthe same as the ambulances whichwere used in SA before I left. StJohn covered speedway, races andother sporting and social fixtures.

I decided to attend the horseracing every Saturday. The trackwas a long way out of town andthey only held 2 races, one at thebeginning of the afternoon, andone at the end, just so that theycould keep the betting open. Thiswas going to be a long day so I put$500.00 into an account and usedit to bet each Saturday at the racesto while away the time. After 6months I closed the account with

Pbil Langdon OSU and Joan Jobnstorl DSIJ

OUTBACKAmbulance JAiNIJA'RY - 2Oo5

to upgrade the telephoneexchange. As there was no divisionof St John there, I decided to startone. I called for expressions ofinterest and immediately got intotrouble with the unions, as theythought I was treading on toes.

That little problem solved, I ran afirst aid course in the school, andon the 4th of March 1981 , theNhulunbuy Division was born. Anex Divisional Superintendent fromTasmania, Grant Wiggins, kindlyvolunteered to run the division, ableassisted by Dawn Bat (neeHorrocks).

I was transferred back to Darwinwith work and was asked to startanother division. I ran another FirstAid course at Howard Springs andon the Sth of July 198.1 , I wasappointed DivisionalSuperintendent of the new HowardSprings Combined Division.

Soon after, Wayne Dillon tookover as Superintendent, and I wasappointed Superintendent ofDaru,vin Division.

The District Surgeon, Dr LionelCrompton was in the process ofupgrading the quality of AmbulanceOfficers, and some of theattendants were involved in furthertraining, including infusion andintubation.

ln .1982 as a result of thattraining several St John memberswere elevated to Members of thelnstitute of Ambulance Officers. I

was also promoted to ServingBrother of The Order of St John in1982.

Back to Nhulunbuy for a short 3month trip in 1984. This was timeenough to get a Casualty Care andTransport course running andorganize driver training andassessment with the police so thatmembers can take an ambulanceto duties.

ln 1987, my brother died inCanberra, so I managed to arrange

jj

a transfer to Canberra withTdecom. I was appointed SubDistrict Superintendent of the ACTin 1988,

There was a lot of work to bedone, and the Training Manager ofSt John ACI my personalsecretary and wife, Mandy, took abig load of the work. She is onlyone person, but did the work ofthree.

I became a First Aid lnstructor,and ran several courses a year. TheSt John Council used to run carraffles to raise money, so on theweekends when I wasn't running aFA course, running NCO andOfficer Training courses or doingPublic duties, I used to sell ticketsin the local shopping centres. I hadbeen in Canberra for 3 days andwas selling raffle tickets at theWoden shopping centre, Agentleman came up to me andasked where the toilets were, WhenItold him I didn't know, he becamevery abusive. I explained mysituation and he calmed down andapoligised. I often telltrainees on apublic duty, the mdn thing youhave to know at a duty is wherethe toilets and pay phones are.

ln 1990, I was admitted to theOrder of St John as an OfficerBrother and the ACT became aDistrict tearing away from NSWDistrict's apron strings.

St John managed to fosterrelationships with the ACTAmbulance Service and assistedeach other in training. St Johnreceived a sizeable donation fromthe Service clubs and was able tobuy some portable radios with ourown frequencies and the ACTAmbulance Service frequencies, sothat we could call for assistance atthe Public Duties. This was a bigboost to moral.

I transferred back to Danvin inSeptember 1993 and wasappointed Divisional Officer,Palmerston Cadets in 1994. ThisDivision was once part of the

I

{.*

Phil Langdon Histo\ Gontinued)

$498, and didn't transpoft anyoneto hospital.

During my stay in Alice Springs,Tracey visited Danvin, and soonafter that, St John was asked toassist at the airport and atroadblocks just north of the town tohelp with the evacuees. We spentmany hours assisting passengersat the airport and at the roadblock.

Service clubs were assistingpeople who had driven out ofDaruuin, and had set up aroadblock just north of the town.Cars needing repairs were sent oneway, people needing clothes andbedding went another. One carpulled up, obviously ex Danvin, andthe Service club member spoke tothe driver. He asked him whatassistance the family needed, howthe car was, and so on. A little girlin the back seat wound the windowdown, and was listening to theconversation. The Service memberturned to the girl and said "Hullo,what's your name." The girl had abig smile on her face and said, "Myname is Tracey." She then burstinto tears and cried "But I didn't doit.'

Easter 1975 saw Mandy and I

drive back to Darwin where I

worked in the Smith St exchangerestoring more services to Darwin.

I became the Divisional Officer ofDaruuin Division in November 1975.

ln 1979, I trained the DarwinFirst Aid competition team andwent to the National FA compsPerth. The lndividual was GlenDenmead and the team consistedof Lindsay King, Tony Beckitt, andTed Wiltshire. The team came 4thout of the 7 states. This was thefirst time the NT entered a teamand lndividual in the Nationals.

The Commissioner, AlanBromwich sent a telegram, "Halfway up this year, the top next year."

Once again my employmenttransferred me back to Nhulunbuy

OUlBACKAmbulance JAINU,ARY - 2OO5

I used to drive back and forthfrom Darwin to Katherine eachfortnight and maintain contact withthe Palmerston Cadet division, butin 2002, Telstra decided thatKatherine was my home for awhile,so I relinquished my DOappointment and transferred to theKatherine Adult division as aprivate.

Since being here I havemanaged the NT district comPs forAdults and Cadets on 3 occasionsand in 2003, I obtained mY statusas Paramedic, comPleting mY

Diploma in Health Studies(Ambulance, Pre-Hospital Care).

to be continued one day

Phil Langdon Histof\ Gortittuett)

Howard Springs Division whichrated a mention back in 1981 , sothe Cadets so kindly pointed out tome in one of their social night skits.I started doing public duties andwent to the speedway, this time atHidden Valley. I noticed names ofthe riders and drivers in theprogramme. They were the sameas I remembered at Bagot, but thefirst names were different. Thesewere the sons of riders and driversI used to know. I must be gettingold!

As the ACT did not haveambulance officers (St John) I hadto start my Ambulance studies all

over again. I enrolled in the NT

Ambulance Officer Training Collegein 1996 and soon became a rookYagain.

I continued with my Ambulancestudies, taking recreation leavefrom work to attend courses.

ln 1999, I was transferred toKatherine with work. There was nocadet division any more, so inNovember 2000, we held ameeting to see if anyone wasinterested. During November andDecember, I ran a First Aid coursefor potential Cadet Members and aCadet Division was rekindled with14 new members.

BATCHELOR INSTITUTEOF INDIGENOUS TERTIARY EDUCATION

(efe|rating 30 {ears ofI nfig eno us'le rtiary E fuc ation

Courses in the areas of:

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\bor'rginal H""lth Wo'k (Ch";."I)

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f ttdig.'to,rr l-1""lth $t"di.uAlcohol "ttd Oth. r P rugs

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Aged (ur.With over 80 courses to choosefromBatchelor Institute can provide the

right study optionfor You

Proud to deliverincreased health services

in the bush.

Thank you to allhealth professionals

and volunteers

health outcomes.

OUlBACKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

Duke of Edinburgh

0n the lBth lVouember 6 members of Humpty Doo Cadet Diunion

and 1 member of the adult Diui,sion, (she nas a Cadet) uti,ll be

presented aith their Siluer autard for the Duke of Ed,inburgh.

These members have been workinghard for the past year to meet therequirements for thts award. Theyhave studied music, taken up gym,

worked on the Chief MinisiersRound Table, attended theLeadership camp, horse riding,swimming, acting, represented theirschool in quiz challenges andcompleted first aid courses. Aswell, some have completed years

1 1 and 12 and an apprenticeshiP.

These members will now go on andbegin their Gold Award. There is amuch higher commitment neededfrom them to do this next section.It will take them the next year tocomplete.

Receiving their Silver are

Ross Jacobsen, Kathryn Ainsworth,Emily Macmillan, Lauren Jacobsen,Kiran Klessa, Melissa Miller andMegan Zabell.

There are 2 members from otherDivisions receiving their BronzeAwards, they have completed theirAwards through their school.

They are

Amali Laine from Kormilda Collegeshe is also a member of KormildaCadet Division. Mathew Spedingfrom Palmerston Cadet Division has

worked for his award throughPalmerston High School.

As well as attending school, doingtheir work with St John thesemembers have taken on the extrachallenge of the Dukes as well.They need to be commended for all

the effort and time they put intoachieving more for themselves.

Free and confidential Sexual

Health Screening(no Medicare card or name required)

Testing STIs & BBVsPap smears lPregnancy tests

Emergency Contraception

Referrals / Advice / InformationSupport services for HIV/AIDS & Hepatitis

CondomsFree needle and syringe

Community education

Freecall: 1800 880 899Ask for Deb / Alina I Liza

46 Woods Street, Darwin, 0800

g-{g-ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE

OF AUSTRALIA

VISITOR CENTRE ALICE SPRINGS

. Visit a working base in operation since 1939' and learn moreabout this unique service.

. View an informative video and observe the coordination of"real time" medical evacuations.

. Enjoy our interactive museum.

. Purchase quality souvenirs from our souvenirs shop.

. Refresh 8c relax in our cafe housed in one ofthe town's finestheritage buildings.

#on"" *ffi't;K,K#-#rffiClose? Christmas & New Yeari Day ' 5-"11 admission fee applies.

OUIBA.CKAII lrul(rn ce JANUA'RY - 2OO5

Training Depafiment

The teaching section of Trantirtg Brctnch is amixecl bag oJ Thesptans. We hat,e to be. Sorne

oJ the thitrgs u'e d0 to get lLtr tnessage acrlssccm be quite ntteresting,

We get shot, knifed, run over, blown up, trapped, gassed,electrocuted and burnt. We have lost various bit of ourbodies, been bandaged, resuscitated and often beentagged deceased. One of us is an excellent senile,busybody little old lady, who can cause havoc most ofthe trme. We get into some very unreal situations that cantest our acting abilities. Not only are acting abilities a job

requirement, but we are conservationist as well. Wekeep the bamboo under control at various locations inthe rural area. We put our lives on the line when wecollect the plant, as when a certain member ended upfeeding insects, he was off on sick leave because heswelled up. We can chop, trim, load and deliver thebamboo in record time now, as we have had so manyideas given to us on developing this skill. We are regularsat the Salvo's and St Vinnies. We are always willing toaccept cast off clothing from anywhere. We all have acertifrcate in Play dough making and take great pride inthe end result. We can turn the end product into cuts,lacerations, fractures, chest injuries and amputations.Paul E can make skeleton parts out of it as well.

Oh!!! By the way we also teach first aid.

We have lost a few Staff members this year, but gained afew, lost are Paul Barnes went to Tassie, Belinda Lynnwent South, Danny Maher went to Gove, lan McKiechanged direction and Peter Demptster we don't know.New ones are Paul Pankhurst, Owen Torres, AllisonDocken and Daniel Macmillan. Paul P introduced us tohis new daughter,Yasmin and Danny to hrs new son,Daniel, so now we are involved in babies (but not Greg,as he will go to any means to ensure his child free area).

We are a caring and sharing group of people whoseoffice is always open, but be aware of the dangerous softcreatures that live in our area.

1(.\.t"

"*4*. 'i\.\Sponsorecl in suppot't of

St.lohn Ambulance NTO tttba c k Ambu I an c e .l ourna I

IIUTITIEESATUAGE8918 248t

OUIBACI(.In brlzrrci, JANUARY - 2OO5

i t: '' dirI ' ,' 'r'i

FI

i,

Trainhg Trip To WoolaningHom e\a:nd, Christi an CollegEWoolaning Homeland Chri,stian College had requested a 2 day

S,F.A, clurse to be deliuered for the teachers and I was the

lucky Traini,ng )fficer to be chosen for this assignment. The

only problem uas - where the hell was this place?

I asked other Trainers, I looked onmaps and I even asked people whocame from that region. They eitherdid not know or they couldn't give

me a clear answer. All I could findout was, follow the LitchfieldNational Park road and I would notmiss it. So with some apprehensionit was off you go and hope for thebest. As it turned out my fears ofgetting lost where unfounded

The Woolaning Homeland ChristianCollege is a small school in themiddle of nowhere. As I arrived, thelast of the students wherepreparing to leave for theircommunities the following day.

The accommodation was a fully air-

conditioned and furnished twobedroom house with ensuite. lt

even had T.V but unforlunatelythere was no aerial - so I couldn'twatch the Friday night football! Thestaff were friendly and helpful and I

was made to feel comfortable asthey were always offering to cookfor me which I had to decline as I

had bought my own food with meto cook. As it was - I ended uP

eating at the Monsoon Caf6 whichwas about fifteen minutes drivedown the road from the community(loved the percolated coffee!).

The following day I set up for the 2day course in their staff room whichwas a little cramped for fourteenpeople however we managed torearrange the room by shuffling thefurniture around!

After a late start due to theteachers having to send the last ofthe students back to their homesfor the school holidays, we finallycommenced the 2 day course. Thestaff were all keen to learn First Aidas they proceeded to inform me ofthe regular road accidents thatoccur out in Litchfield. This I couldunderstand as the roads I foundwere narrow and winding and if you

weren't careful an accident wouldsurely follow.

The students were allfrom differentnationalities were keen andenthusiastic. One student was sokeen she practiced on a stick figurefor E.A.R./C.PR, while I beganconducting some E.A.R./C.P.R.assessments on other pafticipants.All up the 2 day course went wellwith positive outcomes from all

who attended. The 2 days werequite productive for the 14parlicipants and myself. I enjoyedmy stay there and had a lot of fundoing the course.

I would like to thank all the staffmembers for their hospitality,generosity and enthusiasm while I

was there, also I look forward todelivering another S.F.A. course outthere again because not only werethe people wonderful to work withbut the scenery is spectacular toview ddving out there.

OWEN TORRES

OUlBACKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

ffi'jii'?n.il;iul&

StJohn Baby Boom again!!

And so it has come round again, yetanother baby boom in St John.Management and Staff would like tocongratulate the following proudparents.

Paul Pankhurst - first of our trainingofficers to become a parent(recently), daughter Yasmin, sister toRheanna.

Former training instructor DanielMahet now residing in Nhulunbuybecame first time father to DanielMaher Junior.

Three of our Ambulance Officersgave birth a matter of weeks apart,congratulations to Lezlie Saundersand Steve Denton on the birth oftheir first child Samuel Denton.Congratulations to Carmen andSeru Waqanaceva on the birth oftheir second daughter Taris, sister toTyla. Congratulations also toNatasha and Sven on the birth oftheir daughter Annika, sister toDeclan.

Also proud first time parents areMark & Melanie Ferguson whoadded baby Chloe to their family thisyear. Kelly & Julie Green who arefirst time parents to baby Alex. Andyet another for the St John family,AbiTrewin gave birth to Ella earlier inthe year, sister to William. The list ofbubs just keeps on growing. Whoknows what next year holds!

qT6ris Wa.fnt.tcer'a

Ncttctsb ct t t t tcl A t t t t i kct Sc h tt trtcu t t t J ntolberc kr be Cttrnrctt. LL'zlit'trrrtl Taslt

Daniel Mober attd DattielJtrniot Pattl Pankbtttsl and Ylsntin

Samuel Denton

OUlBACKAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

ChrisJmasPartyFun for kidsWe couldn't have a Christmas edition of Outback, without lettingyou in on the fun of the St John Xmas padies.

Our Children's Xmas parly this year, was held on Sunday Sth

December at the Palmerston Rugby Club. Although not as well

attended as last year we still had 25 excited children eagerly

awaiting the arrival of Santa Claus.

As the photos show, Santa was a popular guy and after the

children had all received their gifts, there was plenty of fun had by

all and plenty of parly food to be devoured. Many of the kids got

their faces painted, thanks to the talents of Abi Trewin, whocreated some masterpieces.

Thank You to Terry Trewin who helped set up for the day and tookall of the great photos. A very special Thank You, to Santa and his

helper, who braved the blistering weather to deliver the presents.

. rlt.#.'rfirtr{,$fr'r''tt-.rtlf*'.

; [r'tt#Ylf a

'*t€

l*'"

OUTBACK. larDllrrrrr'r' JANUARY - 2OO5

F.: '

ChristmasPafiy F'un for adults

After all of the fun had by the kid'sit was the turn of the adults to havesome fun of their own. Members andVolunteers turned out in force for ourDarurin Xmas pafty which was heldon Friday 1Oth December at theSkycity Casino. Thank you to Slrycityfor a fantastic buffet dinner and agreat night in the lnternational room.Music by DJ George and a few partygames to liven up the night.

There were many prizes to giveaway thanks to our valued sponsorsand staff are very much appreciativeof your donations for the pafty.

Sponsors include: Skycity Casino,The Palmerston Sporl Club, EquinoxFishing Charters, Pee WeesRestaurant, Knotts Crossing Resort,Palms City Resort, Danruin CentralHotel, Garden's Park Golf Links, RonLawford, Daru,iin Sunset Cruises,Airnorth, Territory Wildlife Park,Crocodylus Park, Birch Carroll&Coyle and Starshots Glamourphotography.

Highlight of the night was part ofour fundraising effolcs for a fellowemployee in need, which involvedMark Ferguson demonstrating hisgymnastic skills on the dance floor inhis jocks!! The photo says it alll Thenight was great fun with thanks toAbi Trewin, Lisa Trevaskis and LouiseWinter for their help to pull ittogether. Looking fonruard to anothergreat party next year.

OUlR,AGl(Ambulonce JANU.ARY - 2OO5

Name anAmbul ance Competition

St John Ambulance held a competition of a 3. Papa

dffirent ki,nd this year, )ur aim was toencourage public a,wareness of the

Ambulance swuice and giue members of the GovE

public a sense of ownership of what is 1. Ray Ross

TENNANT CREEK - 3 vehicles

1. Flynn - After John Flynn, who had a substantialinput into the medical services in Barklyand the surrounding area.

2. Barkly - The name of the local area.

3. Fullwood - After Bill Fullwood, founding memberof the St John Ambulance TennantCreek division.

ALICE SPRINGS - 7 vehicles

1. Central Saviour - Because that's what all theSt John crews are.

2. Stuart - The original name of Alice Springs

3. Ossie Cole - Ossie dies in 19BZ and his heaft wassuccessfully transplanted into a recipientin Sydney. This was the first from as faraway as Alice Springs.

4. The Bernie K- Bernie Kilgariff - a respected andadmired member of the Alice Springscommunity.

5. Alice Wanderer - The Ambulance travels far & wide

6. Desed Sfar - Desert - as we are in the 'Red

Centre' and'Star' being unique, makinga difference and saving [ves.

7. Kevin H - Longest serving Communicationsmember in the Northern Territory.

Winners of the competition were invited to attend anunveiling ceremony of the newly named ambulances in

their respective centres. Launches were held in AliceSprings on 3Oth December, Tennant Creek 1stDecember, Katherine 2nd December and Darwin 1Oth

December. Allwere well attended, with presentationsmade to the winning entrants of a Family First Aid kitand vouchers to the value of two First Aid courses, valid

for 12 months.

Congratulations to all winners and thank you to all

members of the public who participated in thecompetition.

essentially a clmmunity Ambulance seraice.

5. Prindi Aboriginal name for Lizard

6. Goolara - Aboriginalfor Moonlight -

7. Sam

- Named after Clem Larcombe who wasa prominent member of the AmbulanceService in Katherine for many years,now deceased.

We had a staggering amount of entries for the Name anAmbulance competition, with names originating frommany backgrounds. Some chose their name becausethey associated it with the vehicle, some with pastmembers who had made a lasting impression on thecommunity, and some because they thought it was fun.

We had a total of 24 vehicles to name across theTerritory, a decision which was very difficult due to thevolume and quality of the entries. The final nameschosen for each region are as follows:

DARWIN - 10 vehicles

7. Str'tches - After a friend

2. Amber - First name that came to mind!

3. Grace - St John personnel do their job withsuch grace.

4. Kettle - After famous busy nursing sister EllenKettle, who helped people in remote areas,just like the Ambulance service does today.

problems always seem worse after dark.

- 'S' for St John, 'AM' for Ambulance

B. The Beagle - Charles Darwin's boat name.

9. Eric - After former Administrator of theNT Commodore Eric Johnston

10. Joseph H Schembri- Killed on duty withSt John in Pt Pirie 10-4-55

KATHERINE - 3 vehicles

1. Daisy - Named after Daisy Angus Jaru,ron, whoworked at Katherine Hospital for 3Oyears.

2. Bluey - Aussie traditional name for a Red Heelerdog and the Ambulance has red stripes.

rtaFY - 2005

IIifl

I

OIITB,AC!(AI/bulonce JANUA'RY - 2OOs

i-* it'fs-A$: -,

c i"'#i'

Th^nkyou speech by NT Chaffmanfor Nati onal Conference 2004Thank you all for coming to Ali,ce Springs and making our

IVational Conference and First Aid Competi,tion such a success.

I said at the start of the week that I uas sure if I asked ylu nza

that you uould all hauefallen in loue ruith our Alice Spri,ngs -I knou you haue and I th'ink o -fw may stalt! There haue

actually beut, a number of requests lodgedfor transfer to IVT

Diuisi,ons uhich ruill haue to be uettedfor standards.

Congratulations to the competitors,and a special congratulations to thewinners - it is nice to win. Thankyou to our sponsors pafticularly, theoffice of the Administrator, Laerdal,the NT Government, the AliceSprings Town Council, Colemansand ITS / Optus.

St John is in good shape and onthe right track and much of thecredit must got to our Chancellor,Villis Marshall, who has given usgreat leadership over many years.

The Conference would not havehappened without a lot of workfrom our people and this isespecially so with the smallerStates and Territories as the burdencannot be spread to the sameextent.

It would be remiss of me not tomention the impact of our DeputyPrior, Ted Egan and Patron, Nerys

Evans over the past week. Thankyou also to our Governor-Generaland Prior and to Mrs Jeffery forcoming to Alice and for their help

and assistance.

Another group we should.remember is Len Fiori and hisNational staff who have a priory

each year, not just every eight years

like the rest of us. Thank you LenFiori and staff.

On behalf of my board I would liketo each and every member of StJohn in the NT, their spouses andallwho contributed to Priory. Thankyou to Mr Lennox, the TasmanianAmbulance Service CEO for beingour MC this evening for his greatpresentation the other day. Thankyou also to my wife Rosemary forher personnal support.

Quite obviously I cannot name all

the individuals who helped butthere are some outstandingcontributions.

Special thanks to Brendan Quirke,what a magnificent compare hewas and Annetta Albanese whotogether with their team fromTraining Branch presented a superbtwo day health seminar - also toCraig Garraway, transpotl co-ordinator extraordinaire, ScottLoechel, for all his assistance and aspecial congratulations on winningthe individual event and to the everenthusiastic Steve Peers for asuperb effort.

There are three people who really

took on the full responsibility ofConference 2004 and deserve ourunqualified congratulations. Thefirst two, Debbie Downs and GwynBalch turned all our thoughts into

action and created this great week,my very special thanks to Gwynand Deb. You would have all

noticed the effort they put in overthe last week, but I know they havebeen working since before Priory in

Hobad last year.

The third person is our CEO DavidBaker. This is his second Priory asCEO, but he is not committing tonumber three as yetl David took full

responsibility for this week andcame with a lot of ideas includingmoving the conference to Alice andencouraged them to happen. He

allowed his staff great freedom onlytouching the rudder when required

or putting out the occasional bushfire.

Again my special thanks to David.

Thank You.

.tf.?EAG't4ml)tknce JANUARY - 2OO5

National Conference 2004 (cottttrtuect)

ouTBNcxAntbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

National Conference 2004 (cottrittuertl

OUTBACK,In/, u I u tt ce JANUARY - 2OO5

Leadership CampOn the 27th September 29 Cadetsfrom 6 Cadet Divisions stared aLeadership Camp at Mary River withWould Yal Outdoor Challenges. Theygave up their School holidays to go off

and sit in a class room and learn

about what makes a good leader andhow they can become good leaders.

They were divided into two teams andthe Divisions were mixed up so theywere learning to work with membersfrom other Divisions.

As well as the classroom work theyhad some practical challenges to tryand put the theory into action. ln thebeginning they had some problemsgetting everyone to work together as

a team. Because members were late

to class or unprepared for activitiesthere was a lot of running done (this

was the result of being late) by the

end of the week they realized thatthey should be on time and prepared.

One team came together very well bythe end of the week and were workingtogether to achieve the goals set tothem, the other team were still havinghassles by the Friday. lt would seemthat there were too many sensitivepeople and a few Cadets that just

wanted to get the job done any waythey could in this group, for it to worktogether, But that was pair of thewhole exercise, to work out that therewere different people around.

The week was hard for some Cadetsand very hard for the rest. Wecamped in tents for 4 nights and werein a un-airconditioned classroom oroutside for five days. Some of theactivities while having to think about it

were physical as well. Many of thecadets felt there should have been

more physical and less classroomwork. You could see who were thethinkers and who were the doers in

the groups.

I think that most of the Cadets will

have learnt something that they will beable to use in their personal lives andto the benefit of St John. Some it maytake awhile for many of the conceptsto be understood, but we have madea beginning.

There were a couple of Cadets thatneeded a little extra incentive to settlea night, but I would like to thank theCadets for their excellent behavior,(l expected nothing less) during whatwas a hard week. I would take thisgroup of Cadets anywhere.

VICKI MACMILLANLeadership Camp Co-coordinator

Paterson Street, Tennant Creek 0860

Ph: 8962 24o2Fax: 8962 3034

Stay for a nigbt, a day, a week incomfor-table accommodation uh ile youexplore tbe surcounding counttyside.

sERPs0llAt,tTY Nlillt &, lllililt pAnT$ T0 $lllI T(lYllTA, l.ANDlilllllliIll &, llll.llx

4rllD AttT0 ltHtY0l.liRll AND lll$f{ANTl.[n$ll0lrlPl.Hll rlTTlNli $llllVllifi AUllll.Alll.[ rt llli|tAlllll

titxt|)$ DIillNt!il|llt p[0lflPTlJ T0 lll.l, All[AllAt.t, pllnT$ ill\tff A MlNll{lt,lrl $0 Dl\y ltfAiln[NlY

33 GEoBGINA CRESCEiIT P0. BoX 36852 Email: spares@4wdspares.c0m.auPALMEBST0N NT 0830 WINNELLIE NT 0821 Website: www4wdspares.com.au

n[00NlllTlllNHl INlilNl:$, Dl[[$, li[ARB0Ni$ & TnAN$[Hl$

OUTBACKAnbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

NeWMONTAUSTRALIA

Newmont Australia is the operator of the TanamiGold Mines located 550klm NW of Alice Springs.The operation employs over 600 people on a

fly-in, fly-out basis with approximately 7Oo/o ofstaff based in the Northern Territory.

St John's Ambulance Australia has provided sitemedical staff and related training services for ourworkforce since 1994 and we look forward to a

contin ued association.

Contact us on:

Newmont Tanam i OperationsTel: 08 8957 8200Fax: 08 8957 8500www.newmont.com

PO Box 8020, Alice Springs, NT 0871

u(t"r'Best Wishes to St lohn Ambulance

Members and Families

from the Management and Staff of the

MURRINHPATHANIMMIPA STORE

Port Keats, N.T. 0822

rerephone (0s) 8978 2350

* Lnrge Format Digital Printing and Laminating* Manufacturers and Suppliers of kffic /Safety Signs

* Trffic Control Products and Airport Equipment* Vehicle Markings /Magnetics /Bumper Sticlcers

* Computer Graphics and Layout Designs

* Display Signs /Banners Indoor and Outdoor

Phone: (08) 8947 0733Facsimile (08) 8947 0713

141 Coonawarra Road, WinnellieEt'aen Orprcp: sales@norsign.com.au

Err,te[ Gnc.pHrcs: graphics@norsign.com.auffi

IITilSWTAR.XL-lEXt

. Business & Casual Shifts

. Business & Formal Suits

. Hawaiian Shirts

. Undenvear & Boxer Shorts

. T-shifts, Singlets & Polos

. Hats & Caps

. Belts, Ties & Socks

. Micro-Fibre Trousers

. Casual Pants

. Denim Shorts

.314 Length Shorts

. Jeans

THE P@RTLV @ENTLENAANCentrepoint Arco,de

The Moll, Dorwin NTPhone: (OB) 894 1 6900

Web: www.theportlygent.com.ou

OUlBACRAmbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

Nice Springs Cadet Division2004 Pres entation Ni ght

Even with the Division onholidays the work neverstops, at the time of writing -

competition training is still in

progress with Sara Rilstonecompleting final preparations

for the World Wide ComPs inPer'rh in January'O5. OurComp' Team for next years

District Comps is well intotraining, and all being wellAlice Springs will go into the2005 District Comps with aCadet Leader, 2 lndividualsand 2 Teams.

Many Thanks! go to thefollowing for the continuedsupport of the Alice SpringsCadet Program- Mrs BarbaraMoKIE for filling in the role of

LEFT. Ot t I.l' g rad r rct I i I t,q

.fj'o nl -lr ! n iots ea rl ic r t lt is

.\,eur Cassie lglledatt ltrtspilt itr tl)L'.'lli)fl iu'lti!inin!, pul)li. tluIrcs 4tllDirisiotldl Nigllls. Cassieu'us this.l)eai\ u,itttter o./'

tbe Boci t tg Cu t I racto tsSlrield.lbr tht .lIost Scn'ic(Hoilts o/ 2OO1.

RIGH'l-: DesPite b(n'i ltg.itA/ coDP oul ( l bos7il0lu li e r ct t r t 4tpe t ul ec to ut-1'

the.J'outryesl ol lhc Ellis.ld Dt i I.l', Bc 1 t, ntct t t ct gctl I ontake il lhrottglt lbenillltt to cdlact l.tis truurrd

.lbr lhe llosl IntPro|ed-h0tior ol 2OO4.

At(ther bt6.y attd haPP! Iitllerclaentil( is Alice SPrinUSCti dcts. llel issa G olcl i r t14 L[lt ct

bus rccettll-1t bectl prollloledto Cotl)ordl uttd u'rts ttttntetlthe Cldd Dirisioits lloslInlprorc.l (lrulel ol 2001.

Divisional OIC while I took abreak to get on toP of workand other issues. MrsRebecca Jones and Liz Talbotfor turning the Junior programaround into such a success,we have to implement waitinglists because it's become sopopular - well done ladies.

Thanks also go to allthe HQStaff for there continuedsupporl and input into ourprogram, with special thanksto our District SuperintendentSusan Cooper and to T.O.

Craig Garraway and BrendanQuirke for the ongoingsupport by Service andTraining Branches in theSouthern Region.

.Jt ! n i o ts €- Cu tlels u t t t t b i t t tt l .fi t r l h e t t t t t t t r t t l I)t asL' l t l d l k ) 1 1'\: iql ) 1.

ulthrnryl.t a-feu' nnutbats uarc ail'(t.J'dt!c t() scJ)(xl L-()Dlllliltttat1ts

Jctcob Pietsch u'trs deligbtetlul beitry Protnotcd toCcnporal. HuL'i t tg or t 1.1'.icti tt etlAlice Spriltgs Ca.lels tltis J'ear..lacob bas hacl a btts.t')'earnot onl.t u,itb Sl -/ol11t. brll bosjttrt rclt!rttLal li1'|tt (t lO rlL!-t'

ltl1 lo E(ts! Titnt'r u hL't e lPhas helped u le]n of Sludetltsliotit OLSH rebuilcl atul re-

''equiP sone schools - \li'ell

Dotte!.krke.

Michella is olrc oJ lhrecnrctnlrts d the Lllis.lhnill.J' itttbc Alice Spritrys CadclDiuisiott, rUtd the lrcuntittg-srrrr'/c, .rborr:s .s/:c,'.s pretl-J, llupp.t'dbout beitry Pronbtcd loCotpu'al.

]:o fl n ('r a'udcl St tpcri I ile1 t dct t IPtt t r I rlltr t'btt rt k lttts ft't M I te(lto Cctc\c\s ufier trcurl.'t'.fittrI'e?N u'ilh A(lults. I'0ul'reccitql

Itis t0rrdltt.fbr D.O.G tt r rlL'. l'.fir t n t T.O. Cr(t i!

This Iitrl? ltrtlv rcct'irLtl lltaJ t t n io r sect io't ts ct uur rtl .lL r t l.tc

,l losl Ot ! lstt t t (/ i n!<

abt t t ri bt t I io t t t ( ) I l.1a Di risio) tI t.)' tt .J t t t t k t r, cot tl1tu I t t I ul iolt s

a(tiIIi1t'l.ltt tI! ()tI (I,qr(rtI4f t ) fl ! /.) r( )r | !1.\ )t t ! I l.)( .)

( t r.

aitillitl tt ill ,qnt(lt!ul( l()(.:(t(l(l\ u!rl) itt )()05

oulB,AcKAmbuluttce JANUARY - 2OO5

SPONSORED IN SUPPORT OFSt JOHN AMBULANCE NT

for the vitol role St John PIoy in theOutbock Communities

APIWENTYE PASTORAT CO PTY tTDATULA STATION

via Alice Springs

PH: 8956 6501

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LOWRANCE EQUIPMENT

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Ph: 08 8981 7244Fax: 08 8981 251

r:IohrE A

LARGE RANGE OFSEAJAY BOATSYour PersonalisedAluminium Boat Manufacturer ffio, F

{i!,P,"ftPi6;; \ f;

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REGULAR SERVICES FROM DARWIN TO EAST COAST

OF AUSTRALIA AND RETURN

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JAPANESE ENGINE GENTRE. SEIIVIGE & REPAIRS TOCARS & LIGHT TRUCKS

. SPEGIALISING lN JAPANESE 4WD's. MOTOR \TEHICLE REGO INSPECTIONS

8947 1879^72 Coonawarra Road, Winnellie 0820

www.japaneng.com.au

Proud. to support St John Ambulance NT

. CLUBS. SGHOOLS o BUSINESS' INDUSTRY

PROMOTIONAL. KEYRINGS . GLASSWARE . PENS

. BAGS .MOUSEMATSFor all your corporate & promotional requirements

AND fHE OUTBACKAs(a6out ftee engrarting *--*

Wt--A# 4fouhtes

EIfiENSIVE RANGE OF TROPIIIES

P*/FA,( 895? 122? n,[! !ii,',!'i',,Polana Cenlrc, Snith Slrcet , Alice 9Pfings

ouTBAcKAmbulance JANUAiRV - 2oo5

Kormilda Colle ge Cadets

This year the Cadets at Kormilda

College have been working theirway through a Senior First Aid

Course. They began in Term 1 and

covered different areas of thecourse each week. At the end of

every term, they were assessed on

the work that they had just

covered, by doing it this way theassessment was relevant to thework freshly taught. Term threeposed a problem as on the meeting

afternoon most of the membershad football training, this wassolved by moving the meeting dayto a Wednesday. This will be theday the Cadets will meet next year

as it should be more suitable forthe members.

Without the co-operation from thestaff of the Training Branch thecompletion of this course wouldnot have been possible. Each staffmember has put time and effort

into the success of running a

course such as this over a year.

Thanks everyone.

The 10 members of the Division

who completed the course werepresented with their certificates at aschool assembly on Thursday 2nd

December. lt was nice to see thesupport these proud membersreceived from the different sectionsof St John at this presentation. I

know that it increased theimportance of this certificate and

the Division in the eyes of themembers and the other students ofKormilda.

A huge thank-you must go to Emily

Macmillan for her work in theDivision since it began just over 3years ago. Without her continued

efforts this Division would not begrowing as it is. Emily, Debbie and

loly have all worked hard to help

fellow members understand and

complete work during the year.

Receiving their Senior First Aid

Certificates were

Phillip Brooks; Lincoln Mungatopi;Julie Murry; Nicholas Stassi; Gareth

Trew; Nicholas Daniels (Lucky);

Darcy Neil; Amali Laine; PatrickHeenan and Arnold Tipaloura.

Cadet ExcellenceThis year Cadets from Humpty Doo

and Kormilda have received awardsfrom their schools for therecognition of achievements duringthe year.

Emily Macmillan and Shaun

Washington (Humpty Doo CadetDivision) have both received the

'Australia Day Student Citizen

Award' for 2005 from KormildaCollege and Litchfield Christian

School.

Debbie Valadares (Kormilda College

Cadet Division) received the 'Rotary

Community Service Award', fromKormilda College.

Hailee Skinner (Humpty Doo CadetDivision) has been accepted as aregional representative on the 2005Chief Ministers Round Table and

Emily Macmillan (Humpty Doo

Cadet Division) has just completeda successful year as a regional

representative on the 2OO4 Chief

Ministers Round Table.

OUTBACKAnzbulance JANUARY - 2OO5

PartylMonday the 6th of December, at 6

o'clock, at the Knuckey RecreationalReserve (Benimah Scout Hall)members from Top End CadetDivisions arrived bringing themselves, aKris Kringle pressie and a plate offinger food.

Why were they there?! For the firstof its kind, combined Top End CadetDivision Christmas Palry!

This came about because of themany complaints that were heard onthe recent leadership camp, no notonly about amount of physical activity,but about the lack of Cadet Divisioninteraction. So with an idea in her mindand the attitude of 'l'm not going torest untilthis is done'Vicki Macmillanroped in the other CadetSuperintendents and organized this

party. Lucky for her she found LindaHaslett who turned out to be a big bigbig help when Vickiwas rendered'unfit for duty' due to a recentoperation.

Members from the Humpty DooCadet Division arrived flashing it up inthe new Cadet Bus, and were greetedby other cadet divisions.

Provided was music (in the form ofa Karaoke Machine!), St John's ownSanta Clause Steve Peers and Santa'sLittle Helper NoelTalbot. Fun was hadall round and we even a few beers(only joking no alcohol was consumed,honestly we were only intoxicated onthe atmosphere), and on a sad note,many goodbyes and thank yous weresaid to our departing Linda Haslettsuperintendent from Band Division.

The Karaoke Machine (provided byHumpty Doo Cadets) proved to be agreat success with even Steve andNoel getting up, strutting their stuff andbelting out some tunes (for evidence orblack mailtapes you can contact me!)Michael, Jonathan and Kane, fromband stuck high notes and kicked offthe singing from the cadets, and thenJason and Mitchellfrom Danruin

Cadets show their stuff off with arendition of Shania Twain's 'Man, I feellike a women'

Without the HUGE efforts from VickiMacmillan and Linda Haslett (and

assistance from Kelly Raven) this paftywouldn't have happened, THANKYOUVERY MUCHII!We're all lookingfonruard to next years, if the NTYCdoesn't organize it first!

Proud to support the vital role oSt John Ambulance

in the Northern Territory

Wave Hill Station8981 3777and staff

online bookings wWw.radiotaxi.com.au

OUlBACKAnbulutrce JANUARY - 2OO5

Phonez 8975 O7B7

ANGLICARE res llveNT

RESOTVE . COUNSETTING & DISPUTERESOTUTION SERVICEResolve division provides o ronge of counselling ond dispule resolulion

services to individuols, couples ond fomllies ocross the Dorwin region. Some

services ore oLso provided to Nhulunbuy ond Groote Eylondt Resolve services

ore provided by on experienced leom of psychologisis, counsellors, sociolworkers, lowyers, mediotors ond troiners. Services delivered os port of lhe

Fomily Reloiionship Services Progrom ond ore funded ond fully occredited bythe Austrolion Govbrnmenl Atiorney Generol's Deportment ond Deportment ofFomily ond Communily Services. These include:. Fomily mediotion for seporoting couples to negotiole porenting ond

properly ogreements. Fomily ond odolescent counselling. Relolionship counselling ond relotionship enrichment servicesr Porenting educotion,/koining through group ond individuol progroms

Pleose contoct Resolve for its fees policy ond scheduleAdditionol to its Fomily Services, Resolve offers o ronge of professionolcounselling ond mediotion services for o fee for service or controctuol bosis.

These include:r Personol Counsellingo Commerciol Medioiionr Employee Assistonce

Resolve Division is locoted ot Unit I / 5 Goyder Rood, PoropTelephone FREECAII |SOO 898 5OO or 8946 48OOFqcsimile: 8946 48Ol

,s@oo

,3!o&cL

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9xyten <-eicD

i9FFi. : ;r' ; -r;

9r;tr" /

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t---n' E r'-- e--!

ProudlysuPPortingSt John AmbulanceAustralia

lnhalo flnnovation in cylinder technology

^%' BOC Medical

PROTECT THE NATURAL GAS PIPELINE

The Natural Gas Pipeline transports natural gas from the Amadeus Basin in Central

Australia to Darwin for the purpose of providing energy for electricity generation in

the Northern Territory.

Damage to the buried pipeline could not only interrupt the Northern Territory'svital energy supply, but could cause severe injury. Under the Energy Pipelines

Act, unauthorised activity near the pipeline could incur severe penalties.

Q: How do you know when You arenear the Natural Gas PiPeline?

A: You will see this sign.

For your own safety DO.,...

. contact NT Gas when planning workon or near the pipeline and get theirapproval before starting work;

. notify NT Gas if you see othersworking near the pipeline;

. ask NT Gas for information orassistance regarding the pipeline;

. inform NT Gas of any damage orerosion you may observe.

And DO NOT.....

. cross the pipeline with heavy loads; or

. blast within 200 metres of the pipeline;

or

. excavate, sink wells, bore holes, erectfences or structures; or

. use vibrating equipment near thepipeline.

TENNANT CREEK

24 HOUR CONTACT pHoNE FREEcALL" 1800 019 LLz