South West ambulance service received 22,000 calls over Christmas

South West Ambulance NHS Foundation Trust had a busy festive period

Christmas day saw a slight decrease in the number of incidents compared to last year, coming in at 2,874 – 2016 saw 2,986 incidents on the 25th. However, Boxing Day was up by four per cent - 3,211 incidents were tended to this year compared to 3081.

From Christmas Day up until noon on New Year’s Day, figures for calls were pretty much the same as the previous year, with an overall figure of 22,254 incidents compared to 22,799.

A SWASFT spokesperson said: “This is the ambulance service’s busiest time of year and we would remind people that 999 should only be called for conditions including cardiac arrest, choking, severe chest pain, suspected stroke, serious blood loss and unconsciousness. 

“South Western Ambulance Service is experiencing extremely high demand over this festive period. Since Christmas Day and Boxing Day we have seen around 3,000 calls per day. Today has been incredibly busy, up almost 15% on last year, and demand is expected to rise as we head into the New Year celebrations. Despite having as many extra staff on duty as possible and every available vehicle on the road, meeting this severe level of demand remains a significant challenge. 

“Since we must prioritise our available resources to respond to the most critically ill patients, this means that some less poorly patients may experience considerable waits for a response during this very busy period. We would like to apologise for this – please be assured that we are doing our best to reach everyone as soon as we can. 

“999 should only be called for conditions including cardiac arrest, choking, severe chest pain, suspected stroke, serious blood loss and unconsciousness. This will help us reach those in serious need as soon as possible."