North West Ambulance Service dealing with 'significant demand'
At one point there was more than 600 people waiting
Last updated 13th Dec 2022
North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) is today thanking the public for their support following last night’s appeal to only use its 999 service for life-threatening emergencies and, where they do need to go to hospital, to use alternative transport.
At one point there were more than 600 patients waiting for ambulances and 100 emergency vehicles at hospitals waiting to handover patients.
As of today (Tuesday 13 December), the trust’s 111 service is still experiencing a significant number of calls, currently 300 calls waiting, while over 300 patients wait for an available ambulance and over 40 emergency vehicles are experiencing substantial handover wait times with patients at several regional hospitals.
The main conditions the public have called 111 with in the last 24 hours include sore throat, hoarse voice, back pain and queries on repeat prescriptions. These conditions can be assessed and supported online at 111.nhs.uk. NWAS urges the public to continue to think 111 online first.
Ged Blezard, Director of Operations at North West Ambulance Service said:
“Our ability to respond to patients as quickly as we’d like is still an issue, mainly due to the continued severe weather and hospital handover delays, which are tying up our crews at hospital sites making it difficult to get to other vulnerable people in the community. We urge the public to continue to follow our guidance on when to use our services. We are not where we want to be yet and supporting patients with life-threatening conditions remains our priority.
“If you think there is a threat to your life or someone else’s life, call 999. If your condition is serious but you are able to call on relatives and friends to take you to A&E, please consider this option.
“We will get to you as soon as we can and we thank you again for your support.”
Public guidance:
· only call 999 for life-threatening emergencies
· do not call 999 to check on ambulance arrival times, we cannot answer this question, and this blocks the line for other calls trying to get through.
· For all other health concerns, urgent or minor check your symptoms at www.111,nhs,uk where you’ll be directed to the appropriate health care for you.