SOUTH Western Ambulance Service (SWASFT) is encouraging people to use the right healthcare service ahead of the bank holiday weekend, as it continues to experience high demand.
The service is responding to around 3,000 emergency incidents per day, which is the equivalent of more than two new emergencies every minute.
Numbers are 15 per cent higher than the same time last year, due to unprecedented high-level demand on NHS services in the south west.
Various factors are thought to be contributing to the rise in demand, including more people socialising and an increase in Covid-19 transmission rates in the community.
Bank holiday weekends tend to generate more 999 calls to the Clinical Hubs, especially when the weather is warm.
SWASFT is continuing to prioritise treating the most seriously injured and unwell patients, and is reminding people only to call 999 in genuine, life-threatening emergencies.
People should not ring back to ask for an estimated arrival time, and should only call back if the patient’s condition worsens or they no longer need an ambulance.
999 call handler Ella said: “Before you ring 999, please think – is this a life-threatening emergency? Is someone completely unconscious that you can’t wake them up? Are they having significant difficulty breathing? Are they having an uncontrollable bleed? Do they have chest pain or stroke symptoms? If that’s the situation, please call us straight away and we will help you.
“If it’s not, please use one of the other NHS services, such as 111, to ensure the patient gets the most appropriate care, and to make sure we’re able to help other people in the south west who needs us.”
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