999 Emergency Ambulance – What happens next?

A new campaign launched by the Welsh Ambulance Service is aiming to reassure the public on what help they will receive when they dial 999.

As the Trust gears up towards the traditional busy festive period, staff are highlighting how the ambulance service deals with and classifies each emergency call to make people aware of what resource is available when they put down the phone.

The ‘999 Emergency Ambulance – What happens next?’ leaflet and poster campaign aims to highlight the different categories of calls frontline crews attend to, how ambulance staff deal with them and alternative routes for people if they feel an emergency medical response is not needed.

Using a traffic light system to represent the seriousness of the call category, the Trust is working to make the general public aware that if they are deemed ‘green’ for non seriousness, they may not need an ambulance, freeing up resources for life threatening emergencies around the corner.

Ambulance control at Carmarthen deals with an average of 300 calls a day, call takers deal with the initial 999 call to classify the incident and help dispatchers get the right kind of response out as quickly as possible.

“Our primary concern is to make sure we have the resources free to get to life threatening emergencies…every second counts for a cardiac arrest” said Regional Utilisation Manager Mark Winter.

“We are launching this campaign in Central and West Wales to make the public aware of how we treat each and every call that arrives in ambulance control, especially with the Christmas period around the corner.  And to remind them that by being sensible when deciding what help they need, they could be helping us get to someone who really needs us.

Mark added: “Our focus is firmly on the red calls, these can ruin the holiday for families, for years to come. We will dispatch resources if needed to the other category calls, but please, I would ask the general public to really take note of other resources available to them and remember that using an ambulance doesn’t mean you will get treatment quicker at hospitals than anyone else.”

Regional Director Richard Lee will be overseeing the services in Central and West Wales this holiday season to make public enjoy the festive period for all the right reasons.

“I’ve had years of experience of helping the public as a paramedic. What I hope this campaign will do is open everybody’s eyes to the way in which we go to work when a call is classified and urge people to really stop and think if they need an ambulance on their doorstep before calling for our help.

Richard added: “I’ve seen serious incidents that have affected families in a big way over Christmas. Myself, frontline crews… we want to make sure we don’t see any of these this Christmas. Please, take note of this campaign and support our life saving role.”

The posters and leaflets will be distributed through GP Surgeries, Hospitals, Dental Practices, Libraries, Community Health Centres and by Welsh Ambulance Service staff at local events.  PDF versions are available to download on the Trust’s website – www.ambulance.wales.nhs.uk or contact the Partners in Healthcare Team on 01792 311773, 8.30am-4.30pm to obtain copies of the leaflet.