I have previously written about the GoodSAM App that dispatches willing volunteers to ambulance calls to encourage early CPR where that is required – see
- Crowd sourcing first aid (August 12, 2014);
- Responding third parties to 000 ambulance calls (May 7, 2023); and
- The GoodSAM App and good Sam(aritan) laws in Queensland (October 27, 2023).
NSW Ambulance have announced that they have now joined up with GoodSAM and can respond volunteers to cases where CPR may be required – see NSW Ambulance GoodSAM (undated).
I have two concerns with the NSW Ambulance announcement. First on the page Volunteering with GoodSAM, they say:
You can become an GoodSAM volunteer if you are:
- 18 or over
- willing and able to perform CPR. Formal First aid or CPR training are not necessary.
Not requiring a volunteer to at least have some training is creating a risk of adding a number of bystanders with no skill to an already hectic situation. Presumably there is already at least one person on the scene, it the person calling triple zero. Adding more people who may have watched a video but have no more experience is sending a lot of people to the scene who may or may not be able to add anything and who may just want to watch.
The page Responding as a GoodSAM volunteer says:
If the scene is safe, introduce yourself to any bystanders or family members as a GoodSAM responder. Explain that NSW Ambulance has told you that someone needs help, and that an ambulance is also on its way…
Once you have introduced yourself, perform CPR or use an AED.
I think people would expect that someone responding does have some training and they are going to let the volunteer act on that basis. Without training they’re just another bystander although I accept that they contribute a lot if they have managed to collect an AED along the way and they may also make an invaluable contribution if they are the only other bystander on scene.
When I first saw this App as it was operated in WA a person had to upload a current first aid certificate to be registered as a responder. It probably doesn’t affect the legal issues but it does seem to me that it would be reasonable to limit volunteers to those who have demonstrated some competence in the skill they are being asked to perform – both for the protection of the responder and the potential patient and other bystanders.
My other concern is really just a typo. On the page ‘Staying Safe’ it says
… As a GoodSAM responder, you are covered by NSW Ambulance’s personal accident and injury insurance, as well as medical indemnity insurance.
Giving Chest Compressions to a nearby person after a GoodSAM alert is the same as if you’d seen them collapse yourself. As a member of the public providing simple first aid, you are protected as a Good Samaritan under the Public Liability Act 2002 (NSW).
The typo is that there is no Public Liability Act 2002 (NSW). They mean the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW).
The statement ‘… As a GoodSAM responder, you are covered by NSW Ambulance’s personal accident and injury insurance, as well as medical indemnity insurance’ is very generous. In my post Responding third parties to 000 ambulance calls (May 7, 2023) I argued that the use of the GoodSAM app by NSW Ambulance could mean that a volunteer was eligible for compensation under the Workers Compensation (Bush fire, Emergency and Rescue Services) Act 1987 (NSW) or as deemed employees of NSW Ambulance. It certainly seems that NSW Ambulance is willing to accept that sort of liability. It does create an anomaly that a bystander at the scene who suffers an injury whilst doing CPR would get nothing, but a bystander who goes to the scene in response to a GoodSAM app may get compensation for the same injury even though the cause of injury and motivation is the same.
This blog is made possible with generous financial support from the Australasian College of Paramedicine, the Australian Paramedics Association (NSW), Natural Hazards Research Australia, NSW Rural Fire Service Association and the NSW SES Volunteers Association. I am responsible for the content in this post including any errors or omissions. Any opinions expressed are mine, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or understanding of the donors.
Australian Emergency Law 
Interestingly, the removal of holding a competency is now the case in Victoria too. Recently, I was prompted to upload my latest certificate and it was rejected, because it wasn’t photo ID. I queried this with Ambulance Victoria and met with a response, in summary, that there is no more qualification or currency required but rather a way to identify you. Interestingly, I wonder where this places Ambulance Victoria with Working with Children requirements given we are now engaged as volunteers.
It will be an interesting argument, on day, whether people are ‘engaged as volunteers’ (and see the discussion at https://australianemergencylaw.com/2023/11/25/vicarious-liability-for-volunteers-2/). The issue may arise if a GoodSAM responder steals from a patient. As for working with children, the risk that someone responding to a GoodSAM call will be able to interfere with children would seem pretty slight. And would you rather die than be resuscitated by a person who is not eligible for a working with children clearance?
Someone who can’t hold a Working with Children, is likely to have had conduct that could go toward their character as being appropriate or not. A situation arose many years ago in relation to a recruit firefighter who had been struck off as an osteopath for professional misconduct. They were denied employment as a firefighter as he would be working with patients in an emergency medical response context.
In this case, my concern relates to working with children, where it is the case (at least in Victoria) if you are specifically excluded from holding a check (you held a check and have been negatively assessed due to new offences, or applied for a check and have been denied an assessment due to previous offences) – then the organisation (and yourself) engaging in child related work would be committing an offence in itself.
It’s not obvious that the GoodSAM responder would be engaged in child-related work which does not include work that has ‘occasional direct contact with children that is incidental to the work’. But if they are responding to a child in cardiac arrest that may be child-related work. But there is still an argument that they are not actually a volunteer for Ambulance. It would be no offence for a person to give CPR to a child that they observed in cardiac arrest and the argument is that the GoodSAM responder is no different to that person. But all that may come to be tested one day but I would think ambulance is being advised that the risk is low compared to the benefit of trying to increase the rate of CPR for all.
Dr Eburn,
I understand your comments regarding the difference in coverage for those activated by GoodSAM vs spontaneous bystanders.
I also note your comment regarding being eligible for workers comp under the volunteers, but that being said after your post a couple of months ago regarding the disparity between the volunteer scheme vs the ASNSW scheme which (hopefully!) doesn’t have those same problems identified in your post.
I’m not sure what you’re referring to when you refer to my ‘post a couple of months ago regarding the disparity between the volunteer scheme vs the ASNSW scheme …’ On September 25 (two months ago) I wrote a post about the disparity between fire fighters and non firefighters – https://australianemergencylaw.com/2023/09/25/rfs-operational-officer-deemed-firefighter-v2/.
The discussion there may be relevant as there would be a different compensation scheme for paramedics v non-paramedics rather than employees v volunteers.
And if the novice suffers a psychological injury from responding to traumatic events, they have no training or support system in place to deal with (particularly if more than one instance), NSW Ambulance will deny liability like they do with their own professional workforce.
In my own experience in Victoria (alongside GoodSAM themselves) conduct post incident debriefs and offer to provide you updates in relation to the patient if you request it. They also offer to make further contact if required.
You raise an interesting question, especially considering the competency requirements as first aid training and resuscitation training in particular has a learning element related to post incident stress and psychological trauma response as a responder.
Great initiative! The collaboration between NSW Ambulance and the GoodSAM App is a commendable step towards improving emergency response. This innovative use of technology can make a real difference in saving lives. Kudos to the teams involved!