999 staff thanked by bosses after busy Christmas workload

WEST Midlands Ambulance Service, which covers Burton, received a huge number of 999 calls over the Christmas period – 17 per cent more than in previous years.

From December 24 to 28, control room staff took 22,836 emergency calls. This compares with 19,467 for the same dates in 2019.

The trust has compared the data with that of 2019, as last year much of the West Midlands was in some form of lockdown and therefore the data may not be comparable.

Trust chief executive Anthony Marsh offered his thanks to the staff who worked out of the Dudley control room.

“I would like to thank the many thousands of staff who worked over the Christmas period while most people were enjoying time with their family and friends,” he said.

“It is not just the staff on the road who worked so hard; I want to particularly note the work of the staff in our control rooms. These staff are at the forefront of everything that we do, finding out where we are required but also what is wrong with the patient so that our ambulance crews know what they are going into.”

He continued: “The task at hand for our call handlers and dispatchers is often just as difficult as that experienced by our road staff; they all work exceptionally hard.

“I also want to thank the staff who support these staff, be it the vehicle preparation operatives who clean, fuel and restock the ambulances; the fleet mechanics who make sure we always have ambulances available, but also the managers who look after the staff – it is a real team effort.”

The ambulance service has said that the public can assist the trust by using 111 for urgent advice and only calling 999 in life-threatening cases.

A spokesman said: “Please do not call back to see where the ambulance is or if there is an ETA – only call back if the patient’s condition has worsened or you no longer need an ambulance.”