EMERGENCY calls for an ambulance are being answered in two seconds in the region according to health bosses.
There have been 1,365,117 999 calls to the service so far this year – with a total of 173,834 in October, according to West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS).
The service says that despite the ‘huge volume’ of emergency calls, answering times had ‘not faltered’.
And Call Assessors, Dispatch staff and Clinical Validation Team at the Brierley Hill and in Stafford bases have been praised for their efforts to get help to West Midlands residents.
Jeremy Brown, WMAS’ integrated emergency and urgent care and performance director, said: “A call answering time of two seconds, on average, is a remarkable effort and is one that doesn’t go unnoticed.
“This has displayed, once again, the dedication and commitment our team puts into every single shift to delivery outstanding patient care, in what has been a significantly testing time for the service.
“We are at the starting point of a patient’s journey and need to do everything we possibly can to give the best care to our patients in their hour of need.”
The ambulance service is set to launch a new campaign ‘Is the Patient Breathing?’ in a bid to raise awareness about what is happening behind the scenes when a 999 call is made and shows the contrasts between an emergency Category 1 response, and cases where an ambulance is not required but the most appropriate care referral is made.
