Non-emergency call-outs ‘worrying’

AN MP has described the number of ambulance call-outs for non-emergencies as “worrying” after figures revealed that less than half of emergency calls in part of his constituency were being met within the eight-minute guideline.

By The Newsroom

Published 10th Dec 2012, 06:00 BST

Beverley and Holderness Conservative MP Graham Stuart visited all the ambulance stations in the area after statistics obtained from Yorkshire Ambulance Service showed that only 48 per cent of emergency calls were being met in the Mid-Holderness area on time.

Speaking after his visits, Mr Stuart said: “I came away with a strong message that ambulances could be better used and managed by both the service and service users to produce faster response times.

“It is worrying to hear that 60 per cent of ambulance call outs are not life threatening emergencies and could be dealt with by a call to the GP or NHS Direct.

“If an ambulance is called to a non-emergency situation then it is unavailable for real emergencies. This means that ambulances could be held up and off-area while they deliver the non-emergency patient and hand them over to the hospital.”

Yorkshire Ambulance Service