Healthcare system faces scrutiny after heartbreaking ambulance delay leads to loss

In a heartbreaking turn of events, a local resident is demanding answers after a medical emergency turned tragic. This incident has raised serious concerns about the efficiency and responsiveness of emergency services in our community.

The grieving individual is calling for accountability and changes to prevent such tragedies from happening to others.

The authorities are now under pressure to address these critical issues and ensure such failures do not recur.


The tragic tale of a Gold Coast man's agonising six-hour wait for an ambulance cast a harsh spotlight on Queensland's health system, leaving a bereaved widower in search of answers and accountability.

David Terelinck, who cherished a vibrant 24-year partnership with his husband Robert Miller, is now grappling with grief and unanswered questions.

‘We had a wonderful life together for 24 years. We travelled well; we saw the world,’ Terelinck reminisced.


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David Terelinck mourned the death of his husband, Robert Miller, who passed away from an unrelated illness after waiting six hours for an ambulance on the Gold Coast due to a fractured pelvis. Credit: Facebook / David John Terelinck


On June 11, after a fall at their Biggera Waters residence resulted in a fractured pelvis, Miller was subjected to a harrowing delay from 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM for an ambulance.

Terelinck, who stood by his husband's side during those torturous hours, expressed his dismay: ‘I'm just upset that his last six hours at home—in the home that we loved—were spent in agony.’

‘Eventually they arrived six hours after the event.’

‘They picked him up after they had stabilised him. They took him to Gold Coast private Hospital where he was ramped for nearly two hours,’ Terelinck narrated.


Tragically, Miller succumbed to unrelated illnesses days later.

‘But as you know with elderly people—the longer you're in acute pain—it wears down your resolve. So, I believe it contributed to his early death,’ Terelinck explained.

Terelinck's repeated calls to triple zero were met with the same response: no ambulances were available.

Gold Coast Health, however, refuted claims of ramping issues on that day, asserting that Gold Coast University Hospital had the capacity to admit patients.

However, the Queensland Ambulance Service stated, ‘On June 11, the Gold Coast region was experiencing higher than normal demand for ambulance services’ and that ‘the patient was transported in a stable condition to the Gold Coast Private Hospital as per the patient's request’.


The incident has prompted a broader discussion about the state of Queensland's health system, with Opposition Leader David Crisafulli arguing that ‘the system is buckling under pressure’.

Premier Steven Miles acknowledged the gravity of the situation, admitting, ‘Nobody here is arguing that it's good enough.’

‘And we're just saying that on that particular occasion, our paramedics were responding to more urgent cases, more life-threatening cases.’

Terelinck's plight is a stark reminder of the fragility of our healthcare system and the dire consequences that can arise from its shortcomings.

As he stood alongside Crisafulli at Parliament House, his resolve was clear, saying, ‘I want to do this. Not only for him—to advocate for him—I want to advocate for the people after him.’


Unfortunately, Miller’s case was not an isolated incident. It was part of a worrying trend in which delayed emergency responses have had fatal consequences.

In another heartbreaking story, an Aussie mum endured excruciating pain and ultimately lost her life while waiting for an ambulance.

In Adelaide, an Aussie woman had to wait outside the emergency department of a hospital for over two hours after experiencing a stroke.

More recently, another patient suffered inside an ambulance while waiting for hospital admission.

These incidents underscore the urgent need for improvements in our emergency services to prevent further loss and suffering.
Key Takeaways
  • David Terelinck is grieving the loss of his husband, Robert Miller, who died from an unrelated illness following a six-hour wait for an ambulance on the Gold Coast after suffering a fractured pelvis.
  • The widower is demanding answers from the Queensland health system, which he believes failed his husband in his time of need.
  • Gold Coast Health denied that ramping was an issue at the time of the incident, stating that the hospital had available capacity; however, the Queensland Ambulance Service acknowledged higher than normal demand for services that day.
  • Both the Opposition leader and the Premier commented on the situation, with the Premier admitting that paramedics were attending more urgent, life-threatening cases.
Have you or your loved ones faced similar challenges? How do you believe we can advocate for better health services for our senior community? We invite you to share your thoughts and experiences with the healthcare system in the comments below.
 
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It's just not good enough! If our roads could stay crappy for a year or two and we don't upgrade any footy stadiums or host the Olympics, I'd gladly see the money spent on a working health care system.

My home budget says I can't afford to go to the footy when I need to buy medicine. Govt budgets should work the same way.
 
Something definitely needs to be done asap when people are losing their lives .
Gov needs to get priorities done before worrying about olimpics and new sports stadiums etc.
sports should never be a priority it doesn't cover all sports- unjust right there amongst sports types. Health is the number one priority always/ Put the $ there and make a difference.
 
If there were not so many time wasters calling 000 for non-urgent matters the shortage problem for ambulances would be much less & the ramping at hospitals waiting for the patient to be handed over would be much faster. Not perfect but it would make a difference. With the influx of people who have moved to Qld all the resources are stretched & short falling.
 
Yes, in my 80,s with a partially collapsed lung, waited two hours. Also waited in emergency sitting in a hard chair barely able to breath for a further two hours. The poor ambulance guys were so upset but couldn’t do anything more for me.
 
It's just not good enough! If our roads could stay crappy for a year or two and we don't upgrade any footy stadiums or host the Olympics, I'd gladly see the money spent on a working health care system.

My home budget says I can't afford to go to the footy when I need to buy medicine. Govt budgets should work the same way.
"Opposition Leader David Crisafulli arguing that ‘the system is buckling under pressure’."

Yes. Why? Australians prefer State Governments, such as the Liberal gov't in Tasmania, to waste $750 000 000 on new AFL stadiums rather than employ adequate numbers of doctors and nurses to work in Australia's healthcare system. It is that simple. The problem is compounded by there being too few public hospital places for our junior doctors, that university entrance to medical school is restricted to the top 1% of Australia's school-leavers, and that the fees charged by our universities are too high and especially those fees charged by medical schools.
 
IT is every were waited with smashed T3 for over 1 & half hours for ambulance in Townsville was then taken to Marta private Hospital & seen asap thanks for Private Hospital
 
This is pretty disgusting. I feel bad for the people waiting and also for the medical staff. We welcome lots of migrants, host major events, grow our cities but forget about putting additional funding into essential services such as hospitals and schools. I guess hospitals and schools don't get votes
 
This is pretty disgusting. I feel bad for the people waiting and also for the medical staff. We welcome lots of migrants, host major events, grow our cities but forget about putting additional funding into essential services such as hospitals and schools. I guess hospitals and schools don't get votes
Public Hospitals, Public Schools and Public Housing don't get votes; that's socialism!
 
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God Bless our Front-line Workers who all carry out an amazing job. The problem is simple, we need more of them. They are low in numbers so can only do their best. I had a medical issue in Wollongong during Covid. I fell and dislocated my ankle plus fractured 2 bones in my leg at the same time. I sat on the roadside in the pouring rain wondering what had happened to me. When I came to my senses I knew I could not get up so picked up my phone and called for an ambulance on the 000 system. They arrived within about 10 minutes and whisked me off to Wollongong Hospital where I was treated with lots of care and expertise by their people. They were fantastic. What irks me when I look back is the time I sat in the rain on the side of the road trying to get someone to stop and help in some way. I just needed some comfort as I was distressed. No one stopped, they all just drove by and left me. Admittedly I had my dog with me who was doing his best to help. The Paramedics in the ambulance even picked up my dog and took him home for me. As I said, God Bless the front-liners.
 
I waited ten hours at emergency department for assistance in great pain and very high blood pressure from serious neurological conditions. In the end they had forgotten to page doctor for me and the doctor had gone home. They took me in after my complaining and they did a phone consultation with th doctor before leaving me another few hours in a bed in emergency ward. After tests I was admitted. No medication given for over 12hours to help me.
 
IT is every were waited with smashed T3 for over 1 & half hours for ambulance in Townsville was then taken to Marta private Hospital & seen asap thanks for Private Hospital
Quite probably the Public Hospital was paying for that. Maybe not, but that sort of thing happens because of too few beds/too few staff in the Public system. It happens.
 
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University places should not be so restricted. The MMA have been doing this for decades, obviously to keep the numbers down ensuring high payments to doctors. Many students who would make excellent doctors are overlooked."Opposition Leader David Crisafulli arguing that ‘the system is buckling under pressure’."

Yes. Why? Australians prefer State Governments, such as the Liberal gov't in Tasmania, to waste $750 000 000 on new AFL stadiums rather than employ adequate numbers of doctors and nurses to work in Australia's healthcare system. It is that simple. The problem is compounded by there being too few public hospital places for our junior doctors, that university entrance to medical school is restricted to the top 1% of Australia's school-leavers, and that the fees charged by our universities are too high and especially those fees charged by medical schools.
 
In SA when the current clown pretending to be Premier, Peter Malanarskis was health minister he created havoc in our health system with what he called Transforming Health. It involved cutting costs to health, closing hospitals and supposedly making the health sector more efficient. When he became leader of the opposition, malanarskis blamed the LNP for the health sector problems despite LNP reopening closed hospitals, building new and expanded facilities at 4 major metro hospitals, fixed a plethora of defects at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, built extensions to a number of country hospitals, and recruited over 200 new emergency services personnel. Since then, malanarskis lied his way into office in typical liebour fashion with his headline that he would fix our health system. Since then he has done nothing except waste money on unnecessary projects, taken credit for LNP projects and allowed the health system to deteriorate again. Ambulance ramping in SA is now worse than it has ever been. In addition to that, several people have died after waiting up to eight hours for an ambulance to arrive.
 
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In SA when the current clown pretending to be Premier, Peter Malanarskis was health minister he created havoc in our health system with what he called Transforming Health. It involved cutting costs to health, closing hospitals and supposedly making the health sector more efficient. When he became leader of the opposition, malanarskis blamed the LNP for the healthsector problems despite LNP reopening closed hospitals, building new and expanded facilities at 4 major metro hospitals, fixed a plethora of defects at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, built extensions to a number of country hospitals, and recruited over 200 new emergency services personnel. Since then, malanarskis lied his way into office in typical liebour fashion with his headline that he would fix our health system. Since then he has done nothing except waste money on unnecessary projects, taken credit for LNP projects and allowed the health system to deteriorate again. Ambulance ramping in SA is now worse than it has ever been. In addition to that, several people have died after waiting up to eight hours for an ambulance to arrive.
I have come to the conclusion that many of our politicians, despite the varied colours of their ties, are all tarred with the same brush. They will say anything to get a job with perks and lurks and a good salary, they have very little competence in the fields, such as Heath Minister, that they operate in and they refuse to be held accountable for their policies that they order the Public Service employees to implement I don't know why we employ them.
 
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David is my friend. I was devastated to hear of Robert’s death and the tragic circumstances which could have been avoided. As a medical practitioner I am conscious of these delays being the norm rather than the exception. Hospitals need funding to open more beds and recruit staff.
 
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If there were not so many time wasters calling 000 for non-urgent matters the shortage problem for ambulances would be much less & the ramping at hospitals waiting for the patient to be handed over would be much faster. Not perfect but it would make a difference. With the influx of people who have moved to Qld all the resources are stretched & short falling.
I agree, there seems to be too many people calling 000 when they could/should be able to get to the hospitals via other means. Then there are the prank callers who waste valuable ambulance time. There are many more people who use the ambulance who really need to, than people who fall into the above categories, but every unnecessary call to 000 means someone in need is waiting longer.
 
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