THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU PHONE 999!
With the ambulance service at breaking point and our hospitals struggling to cope, the Health Secretary’s latest plan?
‘Ambulance service is at breaking point’
THE Health Secretary has been accused of putting lives at risk after he said people should think twice before calling 999 for an ambulance.
Humza Yousaf was branded ‘reckless’ after making the extraordinary comments during an interview about the growing crisis facing the Scottish Ambulance Service.
He said people should only dial 999 if it is ‘absolutely critical’, and warned the NHS is facing an ‘extraordinarily difficult winter’ ahead due to the challenges of flu and Covid.
It comes after it emerged last week Scots are waiting an average of six hours before they are taken to hospital by ambulance.
Asked if people should ‘think twice’ before calling an ambulance, Mr Yousaf said: ‘Yes, is the short answer to that. I don’t doubt that people do that [call 999] because they are in distressing situations, I think most people only call when they are in extreme distress.
‘But you can imagine the pressure that our ambulance service and our health service as a whole is under so please do think, if you are picking up the phone to call 999, to call an ambulance, is it absolutely critical? If it is, of course make that call and the ambulance service will get to you as quickly as they can.’
Tory public health spokesman Sandesh Gulhane, a GP, said: ‘It is astonishing to hear the SNP’s Health Secretary try to discourage people from calling for an ambulance.
‘Humza Yousaf is making people feel guilty about dialling 999 and seeking urgent help. This sort of reckless messaging could put lives at risk. When people suffer conditions like heart attacks or strokes, they might think twice about calling an ambulance, which could lead to unnecessary deaths.
‘The Health Secretary should be guaranteeing that he will improve waiting times, not telling people to stop phoning for an ambulance. On Humza Yousaf’s watch, our ambulance service has reached breaking point and NHS is in crisis.’
Last week, the Unite trade union said that the average time from 999 calls being received to a patient being delivered into hospital has grown from around one hour to around six hours.
The problem is being caused by massive logjams at overstretched hospital A&E departments, which are forcing ambulances to queue for hours outside until they can offload their patients. As a result, an ambulance can miss three 999 calls while waiting.
A surge in Covid cases has led to many more people being admitted to hospital with the virus.
Yesterday’s figures showed the number of Covid-19 patients in hospital increased by 15 to 1,079, the largest number since February 22, while those in intensive care increased by two to 91 and there were 30 newly confirmed deaths.
Scots Lib Dem leader Alex ColeHamilton said: ‘Humza Yousaf is proving a reckless Health Secretary. Encouraging people not to seek treatment is a huge gamble.
‘Winter pressures come around every year. Many NHS boards are having to cancel elective operations. The Health Secretary should liaise with them immediately about what support and resources are necessary.’
Yesterday Mr Yousaf told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland: ‘We are in for an extraordinarily difficult winter.
‘We know that the flu season could be extremely challenging, we know that people who are presentour ing – whether it is presenting to the ambulance service or GPs or A&E – they are presenting more sick because they haven’t presented in the last 18 months.’
Referring to the rise in the number of Covid patients in hospital, he incorrectly said the last time there were 1,000 patients in hospital with the virus was December 2020, while A&E presentations are now ‘40 per cent higher’.
He added: ‘We are in an extremely challenging winter and that is why we’re investing as much as we possibly can. Whatever money I can find, additional resources I can find to help the NHS, I can promise you that will all be spent to tackle what will be a challenging autumn and winter.’
Mr Yousaf also stressed the ambulance service was being given an ‘extra £20million injection’ to help boost staff numbers. He added: ‘We are beginning to see more ambulance staff recruited.’
Scottish Labour health spokesman Jackie Baillie said: ‘Ambulance services are in crisis due to the SNP’s failure to support frontline workers and paramedics.
‘This crisis has been unfolding for some time, unaddressed by previous SNP health secretaries, and the current one is now missing in action. Humza Yousaf should focus on fixing the problem rather than shaming Scots who are fearing for their health.’
Mr Yousaf yesterday defended his comments by highlighting that the Scottish Ambulance Service had said on social media: ‘We’re facing an unprecedented period of significant and sustained pressure on our services, so please call NHS 24 or 111, or call your GP during the day, unless it’s an emergency.’