A public lecture hosted by Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Port Macquarie and titled Advances in emergency medicine: when does time really matter? has been sold out. The lecture is the third in a series run by CSU in Port Macquarie in 2013 and Campus Director Dr Muyesser Durur said the community response had been very encouraging. “The community has really embraced this concept,” she said. “Part of Charles Sturt University’s role on the Mid North Coast is to bring the latest ideas from the Universitty’s areas of research directly to the community and this lecture series has demonstrated that’s something our community is very interested in.” The lecture, to be delivered by CSU paramedic program leader Mr Joe Acker, deals with recent significant advancements in emergency care that have affected the health and well being of patients. “In many cases, the success of these treatments begins when people call ‘000’ and the paramedics arrive,” he said. The lecture will explore these medical advances with examples from the Mid North Coast, and educate the public on how they can make a difference between life and death. Mr Acker has more than 22 years experience as a paramedic, educator, manager, and health executive in Canada prior to joining CSU in 2010. He has worked as a paramedic in urban, regional, rural, and Indigenous communities and spent 10 years as a critical care helicopter flight paramedic.