2,265 call-outs for North West ambulance crews on New Year’s Day (From Lancashire Telegraph)

2,265 call-outs for North West ambulance crews on New Year’s Day

8:57am Wednesday 2nd January 2013 in News By Dan Clough, Reporter

THE North West Ambulance Service received 2,265 emergency calls between midnight and 7am on New Year’s Day — the equivalent of one call every 10 seconds.

Call-outs included 27 serious assaults, a number of traffic collisions, two incidents involving firework injuries and two people reported lost at sea off the coast of Blackpool.

However, not all calls were of a serious nature.

One call requested a paramedic response to take a dog’s temperature.

Of the calls responded to, 546 were deemed serious and immediately life-threat-ening, which is comparable with the same period last year.

Derek Cartwright, director of emergency service at NWAS, said: “The service always expects a high inc-rease in demand during this time. However we anticipate this surge and managed it appropriately by increasing resources.

“This included an additional 13 Rapid Response vehicles, more than 50 extra Emergency Ambul-ances and extra staff within the Trust’s three Emergency Control Centres. All our staff worked very hard both in control rooms managing emergency calls, deploying vehicles, and frontline crews tending to patients.”

“It is their dedication and commitment that enables us to continue to deliver excellent service to the people of the North West — a fact that I am sure the general public will recognise. I would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work and commitment.

“We will continue to push the message about acting responsibly and the importance of keeping ambulances free to attend to those patients with a genuine medical need.”

 

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