Service welcomes new 999 call handling standards

A NEW system for triaging blue light calls is getting paramedics to patients faster and helping save lives.

The region’s ambulance service was among the pilot sites for the response programme which redefines performance standards.

Now rolled out across the country, civic health scrutiny officials were given an update on progress made by East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS).

The aim of the programme is to ensure patients receive the most appropriate response - although this might not always be the quickest.

Previously ambulance services were required to meet a standard where emergency and life-threat- ening calls were responded to within eight minutes.

To meet this, services, including EMAS, routinely sent out any vehicle which could get to the patient in that time frame, often sending two vehicles just to be sure.

However Dr Bob Winter, clinician and EMAS medical director, said this regime was inefficient and not good for patients nor staff morale and well-being.

He added: “In most 999 calls we know the best clinical outcome for patients is not about the fastest response by the nearest vehicle but the most appropriate one.”

He said the new standards allowed more vehicles to be freed up and provided an improved service for people suffering potentially fatal strokes and heart attacks because the patient got the right medical transport, clinicians and treatment first time.

The new system means that when calls are made to EMAS, an algorithm automatically assesses the urgency of the call and allocates the best available vehicle, taking into account the nature of emergency and location of vehicles at the time.

For category one calls - patients with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, the average response time is seven minutes.

Emergency calls have an 18-minute average, urgent calls may involve patients being treated at home with a requirement that nine out of 10 be responded to within two hours, while less urgent calls may simply mean offering advice over the phone or referral to another service.

A response time of 90 per cent within 180 minutes is expected with this type of alert.

If crews are delayed in reaching the most serious cases, welfare calls kick in at 20 minutes or 30 to 45 minutes depending on the severity of the situation.

Analysing call data has also enabled EMAS to allocate resources more aligned to peak activity.

The data revealed a demand curve every day, starting from a low point at 7am, peaking at noon.

That level was maintained until 2pm, then dropping until around 5pm only to spike further up to 11pm.

Leicestershire County Council representatives on the health overview and scrutiny committee welcomed a report on the changes at a recent meeting.