East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) has urged the public to consider whether they need to dial 999 after receiving 1,222 calls within the first nine hours of 2023. The service asked members of the public to be responsible for their own health and think "very carefully" about which service they need.
The demand continues to be as a result of pressures on the wider healthcare system, including Nottinghamshire which declared a second critical incident in as many weeks on Thursday, December 29. Despite the high number of calls on New Year's Day, EMAS strategic commander Richard Lyne said it was not actually outside the figures they would see on a normal day because of the "unprecedented" levels of demand.
"As we go into 2023, we need each and every person in the East Midlands to play their part by being responsible for their own health and really considering which healthcare service they need before taking action," he said. “This will enable us to continue to focus on getting to those patients who really need us in a life-threatening emergency such as a cardiac arrest or experiencing a stroke.
“I would like to send my personal thanks to all our amazing staff who have worked hard to keep our communities safe this new year, and who I know will continue to do so over the next 364 days too. This includes crews in our emergency ambulances and fast response vehicles, those manning the city centre triage units, teams in our Emergency Operations Centres, our Patient Transport Service, our mechanics, support staff and administration teams, as well as all our volunteers too. In addition, I wish you all a Happy New Year."
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