Queensland ambulanceBurnett and Bundaberg residents can now see exactly how many ambulances are available in our region and what their workload is, with a simple click of a computer mouse.

In an Australian first, the Queensland Ambulance Service is using social media to release real time tracking of the fleet of more than a thousand vehicles.

Government should be open and accountable, and now for the first time anyone can see exactly how many ambulances are available at a given time across the North Coast region, covering Burnett and Bundaberg.

Families want to know that if they have an emergency, an ambulance will be available and this is now possible.

If there is pressure on the ambulance service, that information will also be freely available.

We promised at the election to restore accountability and we also promised to revitalise frontline services.

The tracking tool is now up and running on the QAS website via facebook and twitter, and is directly linked to the Emergency Services Computer Aided Dispatch system.

It should end the fallacy on ambulance availability.

One of the biggest misconceptions is that when there are ambulances dropping patients at a hospital, there are none available to respond to other emergencies.

Use of the QAS social media stream has more than doubled in the past six months. We can use this tool to dispel some of the myths.

In fact, the QAS is streets ahead in ambulance services in Australia. 

The QAS is embracing technology and social media for the benefit of Queenslanders and better workforce management.

It shows the Government has a strong plan that is creating a brighter, healthier future for Queensland families.

The link is available at https://ambulance.qld.gov.au/iroam.html. Twitter @QldAmbulance.