Preserving historical documents and musuem archives may not seem urgent for many organisations, but for Mick Davis, an ex-Ambulance Paramedic with 60 years of service and now Manager of QAS Heritage & History, it is crucial. Mick has witnessed the evolution of ambulance procedures and gained insights into improvements in emergency response systems across diverse communities. His extensive knowledge is at risk of being lost if not digitised.
Mick advanced through various roles, including senior and training positions. In the 1990s, he helped establish local ambulance committees in two Queensland regions to enhance community communication, leading to Queensland’s first ambulance museum archive to preserve the service’s history.
Recognising the risk of losing valuable knowledge as experienced personnel retire, Mick initiated a project to digitise over a century of Ambulance Service history for future generations to access and learn from.
Why Digitise?
The primary motivation behind Mick’s digital museum archive project was to preserve decades of accumulated knowledge and avoid the risk of potential deterioration or destruction. By digitising founding documents, procedural manuals, and historical records, Mick ensured that crucial insights into emergency medical practices remain accessible.
“Those records date back to the very first minutes of the Queensland Ambulance Service when it started as the City Ambulance Transport Brigade (CATB) in Brisbane in 1892. So we have records way back to those dates.
Why is that important? The Queensland Ambulance Service has now been here for 132 years and it’s now an essential service, it’s very heavily relied on, and its history is regarded as very important.”
2. Facilitating Research and Education
Access to a digital archive facilitates research into the evolution of ambulance services. Researchers, medical professionals, and student paramedics can search through historical protocols and treatment regimes, to gain perspective on how ambulance practices have evolved.
Mick highlighted the importance of keeping up with records and practices, using the “Sparklet’s Resuscitate” device as a great example of this need.
“The idea was that when people are short of oxygen, their blood CO2 is high. So, by administering more CO2, it would stimulate them to breathe and gasp and make efforts to to breathe, in theory. But, after suffocating a few people, they realised wasn’t really the case, and so they stopped using this device.”
Mick’s digital library ensures that records are preserved, easily searchable, and widely available. This Queensland Ambulance Service archiving project serves as a vital resource for researchers, educators, and practitioners, informing current practices with historical context and enhancing understanding of the evolution of medical and paramedical care.
3. Enhancing Accuracy and Verification
Digitisation allows for cross-referencing and verification of historical records. Errors in minute-taking, a common occurrence in manual documentation, can be corrected through comparisons with original documents, ensuring accuracy in historical accounts.
“One of our team members came to us saying that we celebrated a significant event ten years too early. The query originated from a senior officer, who received questions from community members concerned about jumping the gun on the centenary.
We’ve been able to review the digitised records, which Avantix scanned, and accurately pinpoint the dates of significant events, proving that the local service did begin when we had advised, and the event was held as planned. The electronic records have proven exceptionally valuable.
More recently, important evidence of past ambulance standards from 30 years ago, quickly found in the scanned records, provided valuable information to assist our legal team with a legal case dating back to that time.”
4. Community Access
Digitising the museum archives makes Ambulance Service history accessible to the broader community, allowing local schools, interest groups, and the public to explore exhibits virtually or visit museums with digital archives, like the one at 33 Tingal Road, Wynnum.
For instance, an ambulance manager in Brisbane researching the historical development of CPR can find valuable information on transitions in techniques. Providing precise details and context highlights the importance of digitising records, ensuring that essential knowledge is preserved and accessible for educational and professional use.
“There Are things that come up every day of the week that I answer or get someone to answer. So, our scanned records are a real living repository. It’s not just for the sake of keeping it, just for people to look at. Scanning is critical resource.
Before we scanned documents, we had to get in the car and drive to the museum archive location, put the records on the table, and physically thumb through the pages.
Now we can type in what we’re looking for, and everything to do with that comes up in SharePoint. It is just magical. Avantix has saved me a lot of petrol!”
Precision and Practicality: The Role of Resolution in Digitisation
Mick Davis, in his quest to preserve the Queensland Ambulance Service’s rich history, recognised the importance of adhering to established standards for archival digitisation. As such, leading institutions have established guidelines for archival digitisation. The National Archives of Australia (NAA) recommends 400 ppi for bound books and 600 ppi for rare or significant documents. Similarly, the U.S. National Archives suggests a minimum of 600 ppi for archival materials.
“We needed to ensure that even the finest details of our historical documents were preserved,” Mick explains. “But we also had to consider our resources and storage capabilities.”
Guided by these standards, Mick and his team adopted a strategic approach to digitisation. They implemented a tiered scanning system, assessing the value and condition of each document to determine the appropriate scanning resolution.
“For our most significant and fragile documents, we use higher resolutions,” Mick says. “But not everything needs to be scanned at the highest quality. It’s about finding that sweet spot between preservation and practicality.”
This balanced approach allows the QAS Museum to optimise its resources while still meeting preservation standards. Mick emphasises the importance of planning for future needs while addressing current limitations.
“We’re not just preserving these documents for today,” he notes. “We’re making sure they’ll be accessible and useful for generations to come.”
By carefully weighing preservation standards against practical constraints, Mick has developed an effective digitisation strategy that ensures the long-term preservation of QAS’s rich history while managing project resources efficiently.
“It’s about more than just scanning documents,” Mick concludes. “It’s about preserving our legacy in a way that’s sustainable and accessible. That’s what makes this project so valuable.”
The Role of Museums
The ambulance museum not only houses artefacts showcasing the evolution of the Ambulance Service but also serves as a hub for community engagement. Hosting events such as award ceremonies and school tours, the museum educates visitors on the service’s heritage and its impact on local communities.
Interestingly, the museum features operational vintage ambulances, including original Holden models like those seen in popular media, alongside noteworthy relics such as the oldest running ambulance at Wynnum, the 1926 Arrol-Johnston. This tangible connection to history enhances public appreciation for the service’s evolution and the dedication of individuals like Mick to its preservation.
Mick’s initiative exemplifies the transformative impact of digitising historical documents. Beyond preserving the past, it empowers future generations with knowledge that shapes the future of emergency medical services. By safeguarding institutional memory and making it accessible, Mick ensures that the Ambulance Service continues to evolve while honouring its rich legacy.
“Value is important to us and the value of the document scanning work performed by Avantix exceeds the cost of it by millions.”
Through initiatives like Mick’s, institutions can embrace digital transformation not just as a modernisation strategy but as a means to honour the dedication and expertise of those who built the foundations of their fields.
