What should you know about healthcare and emergencies in Adelaide?
Emergency number
000
Updated July 2026 · Sources cited: studyadelaide.com, reloplanner.com
Good to know
Good to Know
- Save 000 (Triple Zero) as your main emergency contact — it covers police, fire, and ambulance in one call, and is free from any phone.
- 911 does not work in Australia — dialing it will not connect you to any emergency service.
- If you're a non-English speaker, you can still call 000 and simply say 'police', 'fire', or 'ambulance' — you'll be transferred and a translator arranged once connected.
- 112 only works from a mobile phone (not landlines) and offers no advantage over dialing 000 directly — it just routes to the same service.
- Download the Emergency+ app before you need it — it can share your GPS coordinates or what3words location with call-takers, which is especially useful if you don't know your exact address (e.g., on a hike in the Adelaide Hills).
- You cannot text 000 for help unless using the TTY-based 106 relay service for deaf/hearing-impaired users.
- For any life-threatening emergency, call 000 (Triple Zero) for an ambulance rather than trying to drive yourself to a hospital.
- Royal Adelaide Hospital, right on the edge of the CBD on Port Road, is the state's main adult trauma destination and is where ambulances take the most serious cases.
- Calvary Adelaide's private ED (CBD, corner of Angas & Pulteney St) is fast for non-critical issues but bills upfront fees — even Medicare card holders pay a facility fee — so it's not a substitute for a public ED if cost is a concern.
- If you're staying further out in the Adelaide Hills, southern suburbs, or northern suburbs, note that South Australia's other two major adult trauma centres — Flinders Medical Centre (Bedford Park, south) and Lyell McEwin Hospital (Elizabeth Vale, north) — are both roughly 20-30 minutes' drive from the city centre; ambulances will route you to whichever major trauma hospital is appropriate, not necessarily the closest one to the CBD.
- For urgent but non-life-threatening issues (sprains, minor cuts, infections), a Medicare Urgent Care Clinic is usually faster than a hospital ED and is bulk-billed for Medicare-eligible patients.
Secondary Numbers
International Standard Emergency Number
- Number
- 112
- Details
- In Australia, you can also dial the international standard emergency number (112) from a mobile phone, which will direct you to the same Triple Zero (000) service. This number cannot be called from a fixed landline or satellite phone, and dialing it gives no priority over calling 000 directly.
National Relay Service (Text-based)
- Number
- 106
- Details
- 106 can only be used with a teletypewriter (TTY) or a device for the deaf, connecting to police, fire or ambulance for people with a speech or hearing impairment. It cannot be accessed by regular SMS.
Non Emergency Numbers
Police Assistance Line / SA Police Non-urgent Line
- Number
- 131 444
- Details
- For non-urgent police matters, including reporting a non-urgent crime or a missing person in South Australia.
Crime Stoppers
- Number
- 1800 333 000
- Details
- To report information about crime anonymously.
State Emergency Service (SES)
- Number
- 132 500
- Details
- For flood, storm, and other non-fire, non-police, non-ambulance emergency assistance (SA and nationally).
CFS Bushfire Information Hotline (South Australia)
- Number
- 1800 362 361
- Details
- South Australia's Country Fire Service hotline for bushfire information; TTY access via 13 16 77.
Poisons Information Centre
- Number
- 13 11 26
- Details
- National poisons information line, relevant for South Australia.
Recommended Official Safety Apps
Emergency+
- Cost
- Free
- Publisher
- Australia's emergency services and government/industry partners (national)
- Description
- The Emergency+ app is a free app developed by Australia's emergency services and their Government and industry partners that helps you call Triple Zero (000) and share your GPS location, what3words location, or dropped pin with call-takers.
Platforms
- iOS (Apple App Store)
- Android (Google Play)
Alert SA
- Cost
- Free
- Publisher
- South Australian Government / Metropolitan Fire Service
- Description
- The Alert SA mobile app provides timely and relevant bushfire information, with notifications sent about incidents, warnings, and total fire bans in a user's nominated Watch Zone.
Platforms
- iOS (Apple App Store)
- Android (Google Play)
Healthdirect App
- Cost
- Free
- Publisher
- healthdirect Australia (federally funded)
- Description
- Allows calling triple zero (000) directly from the app and connecting to health advice services; also displays GPS coordinates for emergency operators.
Platforms
- iOS (Apple App Store)
- Android (Google Play)
Hospitals
Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH)
- Type
- Public tertiary hospital
- Hours
- Emergency Department open 24 hours, 7 days a week
- Address
- Port Road, Adelaide SA 5000
- Trauma Designation
- State's largest and primary major trauma centre — one of three adult major trauma services in South Australia. Royal Adelaide Hospital is the largest trauma centre for South Australia supported by cardiothoracic, neurosurgical, orthopaedic, burns, spinal injuries and hyperbaric medicine specialist units. The ED is served by a helipad which can accommodate up to two helicopters and is the complex multi-trauma destination for the state.
- Notes
- Also runs a 24-hour on-site stroke team and 24-hour on-call acute coronary syndrome service. Primarily treats adults, but maintains facilities for emergency paediatric and obstetric care if required.
Calvary Adelaide Hospital — Emergency Department
- Type
- Private hospital
- Hours
- Emergency Department open 24 hours, 365 days a year
- Address
- Corner of Angas and Pulteney Streets, Adelaide CBD, SA 5000
- Trauma Designation
- Not a designated major trauma centre. It is the only private emergency department in Adelaide operating around the clock, but the network itself advises that major trauma (e.g. serious road accident trauma), major burns, acute stroke, and obstetric emergencies are better directed to a public hospital ED such as the RAH.
- Notes
- Treats adults and children aged 2 and over for most medical emergencies. Being private, it charges upfront fees even for Medicare-eligible patients — worth knowing before choosing it over a public ED for anything non-critical.
Women's and Children's Hospital — Children's Emergency Department
- Type
- Public paediatric hospital
- Hours
- Children's Emergency Department open 24 hours, 7 days a week
- Address
- 72 King William Road, North Adelaide SA 5006
- Trauma Designation
- The designated paediatric trauma centre for South Australia — trauma services for children under 16 are provided here rather than at the adult trauma hospitals.
- Notes
- Entry to the Children's Emergency Department is from Kermode Street, Sir Edwin Smith Avenue or Brougham Place, on the ground floor of the hospital.
Important Notes
Important Notes
- Calling 911 will NOT direct you to the emergency services in Australia.
- You cannot contact the emergency services by sending a text message (SMS) to 000 or 112.
- Triple Zero does not have translators built in; non-English speakers are transferred to the police in their capital city, and a translator is arranged once connected.
Universal Emergency Number
- Number
- 000
- Cost
- Free
- Name
- Triple Zero
- Covers
- Police, Fire, Ambulance
- Details
- Triple zero (000) is the emergency number for ambulance, police or fire services in Australia. Calls to Triple Zero are free from any type of phone (mobile, landline, payphone) and connect to a Telstra operator who asks whether you need police, fire, or ambulance and then transfers you to that service.
Healthcare
- GP Access
- GPs available across Adelaide via searchable directories; some practices do not accept new patients, so registration with multiple practices is advised. Consultation costs typically around AUD 50 or more depending on the GP and insurance coverage. Non-permanent residents must have private health insurance (OSHC for students, or voluntary private cover for other visa holders); Medicare is restricted to permanent residents and citizens.
- After Hours
- After-hours GP services available; 24/7 telehealth services (bulk-billed for eligible Medicare patients) available through providers like NewDoc
- Emergency Care
- 24/7 emergency departments available at major hospitals. Emergency ambulance services covered by OSHC or private insurance.
Hospitals
- Note
- Multiple private and public hospital options with emergency departments
Major Facilities
- Royal Adelaide Hospital (Port Road, Adelaide) – major public teaching hospital with comprehensive medical services and emergency care
- Burnside Hospital (120 Kensington Road, Toorak Gardens) – private facility
- The Memorial Hospital (Sir Edwin Smith Avenue, North Adelaide) – private facility
Pharmacies
- Services
- Pharmacists can provide health advice for minor issues without GP referrals. Expanded scope includes treatment for urinary tract infections, oral contraceptive pill resupply, minor wounds, dermal conditions, and musculoskeletal pain. Online delivery services available (e.g., Chemist2U) for prescription medications.
- Availability
- Adelaide has extensive pharmacy coverage. Four state-funded 24/7 community pharmacies operate around the clock, every day of the year: TerryWhite Chemmart Hallett Cove (45 Lonsdale Road, Hallett Cove), National Pharmacies Norwood (156 The Parade, Norwood), Chemist Warehouse Salisbury Plain (83 Saints Road), and Chemist Warehouse Clovelly Park (1156–1158 South Road). Many standard pharmacies operate extended hours until midnight or later.
- Prescription Costs
- Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) co-payments remain frozen at AUD 31.60 (general) and AUD 7.70 (concessional). Maximum patient co-payment for PBS-listed medications set federally; after-hours pharmacies pricing comparable to standard hours for PBS medications.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this emergencies research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
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Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.