The Northeast Ambulance Service (NEAS) reported a critical incident for the second time in nine days due to “unprecedented post-Christmas crowds.”
A critical incident was announced this morning, meaning the service can no longer provide critical services and patients are at risk.
This comes after delays in transferring patients to hospitals in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham, Darlington and Teesside had significantly more than 100 patients waiting for an ambulance and reduced the number of paramedics available to respond to calls.
The public is advised to use NHS 111 or contact their GP or pharmacist with health concerns and dial 999 only in case of a life threatening emergency.
Shane Woodhouse, strategic commander for NEAS, said: “This is the second time in nine days that we have declared a critical incident due to the unprecedented pressure we are seeing in the healthcare system.
“A critical incident alerts our healthcare partners to provide support where they can and means we can focus our resources on the patients who need it most.
Patient transportation to appointments will only be provided for essential travel such as dialysis, chemotherapy, oncology and cardiac care during a critical incident.
The reduced service allows NEAS to reallocate these teams to support other ER and hospital discharge patients.
“The public should call 999 only in case of danger to life. For all other patients, we strongly recommend that you use www.111.nhs.uk to speak to your GP or pharmacist,” said Mr Woodhouse.
“We will advise some patients to go to the hospital themselves if it is safe to do so.
“We know that patients have to wait longer for an ambulance – call only if your condition worsens, or cancel the call when you no longer need it. We are currently seeing an increase in 911 calls and ask callers to consider online 999 first and only call 999 if your condition is life threatening.”
NEAS said it was on full alert during the Christmas holidays, maintaining many of the measures taken after prior notification of critical incidents.
Most emergency services in England last week reported critical incidents ahead of strikes by NHS workers and increased demand around the Christmas period.
The second day of the rescuers’ strike was supposed to take place on December 28, but the GMB union called it off on Friday.
Critical incidents are defined by the National Health Service as “any localized incident where the magnitude of the disruption results in an organization being temporarily or permanently unable to provide critical services, patients may be injured, or the surrounding area is unsafe and requires special care and assistance.” required from other authorities. Agencies to resume normal operation.”
Source: I News
I’m Raymond Molina, a professional writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. I currently work for 24 News Reporters, where I write for the health section of their news website. In my role, I am responsible for researching and writing stories on current health trends and issues. My articles are often seen as thought-provoking pieces that provide valuable insight into the state of society’s wellbeing.