As occupational violence continues to impact ambulance personnel across the Northern Territory, St John NT has engaged a leading expert in high-risk operational environments, leadership and resilience to support frontline crews operating in challenging and unpredictable situations.
Mark “Squiz” Squirrell OAM has spent almost two weeks embedded with ambulance crews in Alice Springs, learning firsthand about the realities of delivering emergency medical care in the region and working alongside staff to strengthen operational judgement, communication under pressure, team dynamics and personal safety.
From frontline negotiations and humanitarian deployments in conflict zones to summiting Mount Everest in support of the United Nations World Food Programme, Mark’s career has focused on how individuals and teams perform, communicate and make critical decisions in high-pressure environments where conditions are constantly evolving and the consequences are significant.
St John NT Acting Operations Manager Abbey Studley said the engagement forms part of a broader organisational commitment to protecting and preparing staff for the challenges they face on the frontline.
“Over the past fortnight, Mark spent significant time alongside our crews, observing operations, discussing real-world incidents and exploring the unique challenges of delivering ambulance services in Alice Springs,” Ms Studley said.
“These conversations have generated valuable insights into occupational violence, dynamic risk assessment, decision-making under pressure, communication, resilience, leadership and team performance.
“Importantly, the engagement has already delivered practical outcomes, helping refine a suite of operational safety tools and resources tailored specifically to the realities of our environment.”
A key theme that emerged from the engagement was the high level of adaptive safety behaviours already demonstrated by many of St John NT’s experienced clinicians.
“The opportunity now is to make those behaviours more visible, more deliberate and more consistently shared across our workforce, particularly with newer staff and interns,” Ms Studley said.
Learnings from the Alice Springs program will be shared across St John NT ambulance operations as part of a broader, multi-faceted approach to addressing occupational violence, enhancing workforce safety and developing community engagement.
“Every day our people respond to members of the community in difficult and often unpredictable circumstances,” Ms Studley said.
“This work reinforces our commitment to ensuring staff have the skills, confidence and support they need to make safe decisions, look after one another and continue providing high-quality care to Territorians when they need it most.”
