Ambulance service issues warning for time-wasters
AMBULANCE crews are at their wits’ ends as a result of emergency calls which turn out to be a total waste of time.
The South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) has released recordings of inappropriate 999 calls which show people misunderstanding what an emergency is.
One man called up after he had pain in his feet. “I’ve got an ingrown toenail on both big toes,” the man can be heard saying. “I need some bandaging very badly. I wouldn’t say this is an emergency.”
Another incident saw a man ring up because he thought he may have caught a sexually transmitted disease from kissing someone. He said: “I’ve been with a certain person and she is herpes infected and I’ve been full on snogging, yeah. Can you please send an ambulance to my location right now?”
The operator replied: “We can’t guarantee an ambulance will be sent,” after having asked the man if anyone was unconscious or bleeding. The man then became abusive over the phone.
As well as people ringing up for their non-emergency ailments, the SWASFT released a recording of a woman who called an ambulance for a beanbag in the streets.
“I’m on a walk and I’m ringing from a local business because it looks like someone in a sleeping bag curled up and I’m just concerned for their welfare,” she said. “It looks like a person but I couldn’t be sure because I’m keeping my distance. But it looks like they’re curled up.
“It could be rubbish but the shape of it looks like a person. They were motionless.” A paramedic attended the scene to find out there was no patient, but instead someone’s abandoned furniture.
According to the SWASFT, hundreds of non-emergency calls are made to them every day, which wastes valuable time and puts pressure on their services which are stretched thin.
A spokesperson said: “Our 999 service should only be used when someone is seriously injured or ill, and their life is at risk.
“Inappropriate calls are a waste of our time, put additional pressure on our limited resources, and may mean
‘Inappropriate calls are a waste of our time, put additional pressure on our limited resources’
we cannot reach those who are most in need of our help.
The ambulance service is appealing for people to “make the right call” this winter, as its services are expected to be needed more and more in the coming weeks.
The spokesperson added: “If you someone is unconscious, not breathing, or has serious bleeding, 999 is the right number to call. But if you call for an ambulance when you don’t really need one, you are misusing the 999 service and may well be delaying our emergency care to others.”
The Trust serves Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire.