A person in a wheelchair has died after waiting six hours for an ambulance to get to them.
The tragic case has been passed on to the coroner by St John, which says its slow response time may have contributed to their death.
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It comes as St John sounds its own alarm about staffing pressures, which are being exacerbated by 100 staff now off work, due to Covid-19 or Covid-19 connections.
"We ask that if your problem is not an emergency, please don't call 111. Please call your GP, Healthline or make your own way to a medical facility," said St John clinical director Tony Smith.
On Thursday, Smith warned of delays, staffing shortages, and unprecedented demand.
"We would usually see 1700 calls a day. It's currently sitting at over 2000, and it's climbing. We typically in Auckland on any one day see around 400 patients requiring an ambulance. That's climbed to over 500 and it continues to climb."
There has been a 10 percent increase in calls nationwide and 20 percent in Auckland, which is being hardest hit, right as Omicron surges.
"We currently have approximately 100 people nationwide unable to come to work directly due to having Covid or having to isolate because of Covid."
An ambulance will come, but Dr Smith says if your situation is not life-threatening, it may take some time.
One patient waited 12 hours to be seen recently, he said.
"Calls where the patient has an immediate need for an ambulance to respond under lights and sirens - we are seeing some delays in those circumstances, but we are always calling back to make sure that delay is a safe one."
St John clinical director Tony Smith. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
He was at pains to stress that is not the case for life-threatening cases, but even those have had delays.
"We have seen a very small number of cases where an ambulance is required under lights and sirens. That's been approximately an hour. But those have been a very small number of cases."
Extra staff are being flown in from around the country and managers are helping boost frontline numbers, but it comes amid months of staffing struggles and delays.
Checkpoint has confirmed that in December a person in South Auckland who was using a wheelchair waited six hours for paramedics to arrive - by which time they had died.
The case has been referred to the coroner. First Union ambulance secretary Faye McCann said it was a heart-breaking situation that had hit staff hard.
"We did hear a few people who have raised this issue again. It's really terrible that has happened. People really are struggling with the fact that did happen and they are worried that it will happen again."
Other cases are causing concern too. Complaints about St John care to the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) more than doubled in 2021, jumping from 10 in 2020 to 22 last year.
HDC is assessing 35 complaints since 2019 and three investigations are underway.
McCann said staff were slammed and worried about the care they could provide.
"Really what we're hearing from members is that they're concerned that St John – instead of addressing the real issues – is hiding behind the short staffing. But the short staffing, what we're hearing from members, was avoidable and predictable."