[BBC News] Increase in 999 calls to 50 a day

[Lost Login]

That filtering is a real pain when you have a real emergency. Several times I have rung up due to serious sporting injuries at my club and I have been left fuming that I have to go through a long rig marole before you gets through to the control room or whatever and an ambulance is sent. I appreciate they need to check but if there in a person on the ground badly hurt surely the priority must be to the ambulance moving whilst they go through the long list of questions rather than as it appears occasionaly the other way around.

 

I appreciate that on a Saturday afternnon it can take a whilst for an ambulance to come as I think only three are on duty and they may be strategically placed around the Island but "waistng" several minutes on top of that whilst they filter is annoying. Especially since they seem to judge response time from the moment you get past filtering not from when you actually ring!

 

I don't understand you? As far as I understand from speaking to some of the ESCR operators:

 

You dial 999 and get answered by a Manx Telecom Operator asking "Emergency - Which service do you require? They also ask for your phone number. They then put the call through to the Emergency Services Control Room and when the Operator there answers, the MT Operator says something like "Ambulance call from 412345" and the ESCR operator takes over the call. You say "Someone has broken their leg on the football field at wherever" and they type it into their computer. As soon as the address is confirmed, it will pop up on another ESCR operator's screen who will look to see where the nearest Ambulance is and send them on their way.

 

Whilst this is going on, the first ESCR operator is asking you lots of questions about is the person conscious and breathing, any bleeding, any dangers around the area etc etc along with the callers details and the patients details. These are all entered on the computer and the second ESCR operator will update the Ambulance crew (who should be on their way by now) with further details so that they have some idea as to what to expect. It also means that when they arrive, they can make sure the right equipment is taken to the scene i.e. if it is a broken leg, then they won't need to take a defib, but would need to take a splint and some pain relieaving gas.

 

If when the first call comes in, all the Ambulances are busy, then there may be a slight delay in sending the Ambulance whilst the questions are being asked about the casualtys condition as this is used to help prioritise the call. It maybe that an ambulance on their way to one job could be diverted to another one if it is more serious.

 

For an Ambulance call, the first ESCR operator usually stays on the phone line to the caller until the Ambulance arrives or they are happy that the condition of the patient isn't going to deteriate before the ambulance arrives.

 

I also understand that if there is say a road accident and the Police, Fire and Ambulance are all needed, then this is counted as 3 seperate incidents or calls.

 

It may be supposed to work line that and many times I am sure it does. But I have had on the odd occasion been subjected to a long barrage of questions twice before it was obvious they were at last going to send an ambulance. It was a couple of years back, definately post the new year hospital and possibly around the time of the new control room.

 

I have to admit to forgetting some of the exact details now but I remember at the time being ncensed about the time it took for an ambulance to arrive and a complaint was made. It was very clear from the response we received how they handled the call as we could match the times to mobile phone records. On that occasion the ambulance despatch time was very close to the time of the end of the call and not when we had rang.

 

Certain parts of that incident will always remain fresh in my memory as the guy was subsequently flown to Walton and will not play a contact sport again. The reason it remains vivid is that the previous season we nearly lost one of our guys when they went down with a head injury and it was only two life savers from our side on the pitch that day that kept the guy alive whilst we waited for an ambulance. Within 30 minutes he was in Walton. At the time we all wondered what would have happened if the incidents had been reversed

[SteveP]

Next you'll be trying to tell us that sport is good for us!

 

 

Couch potatoes have the right idea.