At around 7.30pm on Friday, five police officers attended a call at Kingaroy Hospital, where they were allegedly threatened by a man with a knife.
"At that point, that male person was shot by police," Southern Region detective superintendent coordinator George Marchesini told reporters on Saturday.
The man was treated and flown to Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
His condition remains critical but stable.
An investigation is ongoing and Det Marchesini would not confirm how many officers had fired their weapons or how many times the man had been shot.
"At this point in time, I'm not able to make any comment further, as it's still under investigation."
He said incidents like this were traumatic for all involved.
"It was a last resort with no other option in terms of what unfolded," Det Marchesini said.
"The first thing that police are trained in is around de-escalation of incidents," he said.
The incident is also subject to oversight by the Crime and Corruption Commission.
Det Marchesini would not confirm if police had attempted to taser the man before the shooting.
"They utilise the training that's been provided," he said.
"They've got to make a split second decision. It's not something that we like to see.
"Community safety is a priority, not just in terms of how police responded, but, obviously, in making .. the community feel safe as well."
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