Paramedics took 15 minutes to reach Phillip Hughes at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Tuesday as he lay critically injured on the field, and it took two calls to triple-0 to get them there.
NSW Ambulance Commissioner Ray Creen will be hauled before the Health Minister on Thursday to discuss the incident after the service put out two conflicting statements on Wednesday about how long it took for an ambulance to get to the SCG.
The first triple-0 call was made at 2.29pm, six minutes after Hughes was struck in the head by a ball from Sean Abbott during a Sheffield Shield match and fell face-first into the pitch.
When an ambulance failed to arrive, a second call was made eight minutes later, at 2.37pm.
Ambulance NSW then sent a crew to the SCG from nearby Princes of Wales Hospital at Randwick. They arrived seven minutes later, at 2.44pm, making it 15 minutes between the first call to triple-0 and an ambulance arriving.
The ambulance sent out in response to the first phone call arrived second, at 2.52pm - 23 minutes after the first triple-0 call was made.
Across the state, ambulances take on average 7.65 minutes to respond to a call of the highest priority, when the patient's life is potentially under threat.
After the call was made to triple-0, NSW wicketkeeper Peter Nevill left the ground to stand on Driver Avenue and wait for the ambulance, so he could direct it onto the field.
NSW team doctor John Orchard was working on Hughes from the moment he collapsed at the crease, performing CPR and ventilating him.
He arrived at St Vincent's Hospital at 3.30pm and underwent emergency surgery at 4.15pm to relieve pressure on his brain caused by a catastrophic bleed inside his skull.
The former Test batsman remains in a critical condition in intensive care, where he is in an induced coma.
He underwent brain scans on Wednesday to provide further information about the extent of his injury. His family, friends and teammates are maintaining a vigil by his bedside, waiting for news.
Commissioner Creen's office released two statements on Wednesday about NSW Ambulance's response to the freak accident, detailing different versions of events.
The first, just before 8am, said paramedics had arrived at the SCG within eight minutes of receiving the triple-0 call.
"The initial triple zero call was received by NSW Ambulance at 2.37pm, arriving at the patient at 2.44pm where two paramedics provided support to the doctor on site treating the patient," the statement said.
But it was usurped by a second statement issued just before 5pm, which clarified that two calls had been made from the SCG - the first at 2.29pm, not 2.37pm, as initially stated.
"The first ambulance to reach the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday was dispatched from Prince of Wales Hospital following a triple zero call ... at 2.37pm," the release said.
"It arrived at 2.44pm and provided support to the team doctor who began treating the patient within seconds of the incident."
This has the second ambulance arriving first. The ambulance sent after the first call was received arrived at 2.52pm, the media statement said, 23 minutes after the call.
"NSW Ambulance always tasks the closest available paramedic crew to all triple zero emergency calls regardless of the station at which their shift originates."
Health Minister Jillian Skinner said on Wednesday night that she would be meeting Commissioner Creen on Thursday for an explanation.
"Due to the conflicting information distributed today by NSW Ambulance regarding [Tuesday's] response to the Sydney Cricket Ground, I will be meeting with NSW Ambulance Commissioner Ray Creen tomorrow to discuss the circumstances surrounding the incident," Ms Skinner said.
"My thoughts remain with Phillip Hughes and his family, who I know are receiving the very best care at St Vincent's Hospital."
