With more than 100 years of dedicated service, our history is long and illustrious. Please feel free to browse through the different era's in our history.
The beginnings (1880 - 1890)
Enter the 20th century
A new era - motor vehicles (1920 - 1946)
Communication and expansion (1950 - 1970)
MICA begins (1970 - 1990)
New technology, new concepts in service delivery (1990 - 2000)
Beyond 2000
Melbourne's first ambulance, a horse drawn cart started operations from stables in the city in 1899.
This basic transport facility is a far cry from the sophisticated vehicles and equipment we take for granted today but it was a significant advancement on earlier patient transport services.
1880 Melburnians had no transport facility to call on when they fell victim to sickness or injury. Social classes were strictly divided in the community of 250,000 people. Medical attention was readily available to those who could afford to pay. For the poor, the unemployed and the working class the situation was pitiful.
1883 Ambulance began in Melbourne with a public meeting deciding to form a branch of St John Ambulance Association. Its aims were to teach first aid and home nursing to as many people as possible. It was common to see sick or injured being carried through the streets on a wooden door unscrewed from the patient's house. Or patients were bundled into a Hansom cab or any other available transport to get them to hospital.
1887 Sufficient funds were raised for St Johns to purchase six Ashford Litters. These were placed at police stations.
1899 The first horse drawn ambulance began operation. Again thanks to the fund raising of an association of ladies of St John. The first Melbourne Ambulance Station was a stable complex off Bourke St, at the rear of the Windsor Hotel.
1905 Ambulance was one of Melbourne's first telephone subscribers and by this year call boxes were located on the docks and at city street corners.
1907 The first ambulance branch station was opened at Prahran. By this time the service had four horse drawn ambulances.
1910 The first motor vehicle ambulance began operation. In its first year it responded to 700 of the 4000 ambulance calls.
1916 The St John Association split its functions between three entities - the first aid training provider, the first aid service to public functions and the Victorian Civil Ambulance Service (VCAS) to provide the patient transport service. The ambulance service was plagued with lack of funds throughout its history relying on donations and support from Municipal Councils. The State Government refused to subsidise the service in the same way as the fire brigade and police saying ambulance was not a Victoria-wide service. The service was insolvent by June 1916 and closure was contemplated though it was transporting 5600 patients a year and travelling 60,000 miles.
1918 A serious outbreak of influenza in Victoria made the ambulance service essential and with Public Health Department funding for the epidemic staff rose to 85 drivers and attendants and the fleet increased to 16 cars and horse drawn ambulances.
1919 By January the VCAS had carried 10,000 influenza patients to temporary hospitals, the staff working 18 hour shifts. Fear of the epidemic was so great ambulance staff were refused accommodation and slept in the service's Lonsdale St headquarters. Tragically 57 ambulance staff contracted influenza and 4 died.
1923 The fleet comprised six motor ambulances, a motorcycle and side car and three horse ambulances. There were 27 operational staff. Country ambulance services began at Yarram, Yarra Junction and Rushworth.
1925 The end of the horse drawn ambulance era and the development of a new Dodge Ambulance.
1931 Camberwell ambulance station opened.
1933 Footscray ambulance station opened. Four berth ambulances made mass transport of patients efficient.
1944 One way radio transmission to ambulances via the Melbourne City Council transmitter began.
1946 The fleet of 27 vehicles were all fitted with radio receivers.
1954 Two way radios were installed in the fleet in time for the Queen's visit and the first ambulance communications centre began operation.
1955 Ringwood station opened.
1956 Workload had reached 88,000 telephone calls and 10,800 patient transports a year.
1958 New headquarters were opened in Lonsdale St.
1962 Air Ambulance began.
1966 The fleet of Chrysler Royals outside the LaTrobe St , Melbourne headquarters.
1969 The first specially developed Ford F 100 series general purpose ambulances went on the road.
1971 MICA (Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance) concept trialed in a bid to address the avoidable deaths from road accidents and heart attacks.
1972 Ambulance officers trained over some months at Royal Melbourne Hospital replaced medical registrars on the MICA ambulance. The network of MICA ambulance teams based at hospitals grew to 10 over the next 20 years.
1978 The first student ambulance officers began the Certificate of Applied Science Course.
1986 Helicopter retrieval of trauma and time critical patients began.
1989 The current Doncaster headquarters opened.
1990 UHF radio introduced
1991 Cranbourne and Epping branches opened. MICA 8 opened at Maroondah Hospital.
1992 A Computer Information System was introduced to streamline dispatch of ambulances.
1993 State Government opened non-emergency patient transport services to competition. Twelve new emergency ambulance stations were opened. Emergency and non-emergency patient services were separated and five sub contractors appointed to provide non-emergency stretcher transport.
1994 The number of operational MICA Paramedics increased from 75 to 126. The Clinical Support Officer role was created.
1995 Computer Aided Dispatch/Automatic Vehicle Location systems introduced with the commissioning of the Intergraph BEST (Vic) Pty Ltd communications centre. The first of 10 new peak period emergency ambulances commenced. Creation of the Duty Team Manager to manage resources in the Communications Centre.
1996 Advanced Medical Priority Dispatch system introduced to the Communications Centre. Recruitment drive to expand operational staff recommenced.
1998 State Government approved MAS' three year plan to significantly expand emergency ambulance services in Melbourne to meet projected workload growth.
2001 Metropolitan Ambulance Service celebrated their 100 year anniversary with a street parade. Also started the First Responder Program, where firefighters from the Metropolitan Fire Brigade co-respond to life threatening emergencies.
2002 In a major upgrade to our fleet, commenced changing vehicles across to Mercedes Benz Sprinters, increasing safety, efficiency and visibility.
2003 Two paramedics tragically killed in a road accident while responding to a case in Melbourne's outer east.
2005 The Victorian Ambulance Clinical Information System (VACIS) is rolled out service wide.