Welsh Ambulance Service Experiences Increase In Inappropriate 999 Calls

The Welsh Ambulance Service and A&E departments across Wales have come under sustained pressure due to inappropriate and unusual 99 calls this summer.

NHS Wales said that they have received calls ranging from men who are hungover to a woman who was bitten on the finger by a hamster.

In another incident a man called 999 just to get ambulance crews to rub ointment on his back.

Another man complaining of stomach pains was taken to A&E only to jump out and shout “thanks for the lift!”.

Whilst some of the calls may sound amusing NHS Wales has warned that 999 calls should only be made in the event of a serious medical emergency.

A combination of increased 999 call volumes and a rise in attendances at A&E has caused increased pressure over the past few weeks.

Examples of inappropriate calls made across Wales include:

· A woman who dialled 999 after being bitten on the finger by a hamster.

· Two separate 999 calls recently for males with hangovers following a night out.

· Afternoon calls where patients have injured themselves the night before but didn’t feel it at the time as they were under the influence of alcohol. As the alcohol has worn off they found themselves in pain so dialled 999.

· A woman phoned 999 saying she had a bad hand wound and was bleeding badly. A 999 ambulance crew arrived to find she’d had a minor scratch on the hand by her cat and was worried it might get infected.

· A man had been to the GP in the morning and had been given ointment to rub on his back. He later phoned 999 and said he had a back problem. A crew turned up and he answered the door. Crew asked ‘We thought you had a back problem?’, to which the man replied ‘I have. I haven’t got anyone to rub this ointment on my back!’

· A crew responded to a member of the public who said he was ill with stomach pains at pub in the centre of Cardiff. The crew conveyed him to UHW only for him to jump out at A&E and say ‘thanks for the lift mate’ and he ran off never to be seen again!

Acting Chief Medical Officer and Medical Director of NHS Wales Dr Chris Jones said: “We are seeing a growing number of inappropriate emergency calls to the ambulance service.

“A 999 call should only be made in the event of a serious medical emergency, such as when life is in immediate danger. All emergency health services are very busy and patients should only attend Emergency Departments (A&E) if they are very badly hurt or if they become very seriously ill.

“Patients have a role to play in helping ease this current pressure on emergency services by choosing well. This ensures patients will get the best treatment and allows busy emergency NHS services to help the people who need them most.

“I’d urge people who need NHS care and are unaware of which service to access to consider using other services, such as NHS Direct Wales, by downloading the free Choose Well app for the iPhone, contacting GP out-of-hours services or visiting local pharmacies to self care at home.”