As the annual surge of festivities approach, with celebrations including Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, emergency services are gearing up for potential incidents across the region.
We are urging the public to celebrate responsibly and look after each other and only use emergency services for life-threatening calls.
Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Victoria Court said: “We want everyone to enjoy their festivities this Christmas and New Year but please be responsible and look after each other when you’re out celebrating. We want everyone to have a good time, but don’t ruin your fun by ending up in the back of an ambulance.
“Each year we see an increase in alcohol-related calls. Please think before you pick up the phone, do you really need an ambulance or is there another way of you getting help?”
If it isn’t life-threatening, please consider using 111 online first.”
Susan Taylor, Head of Alcohol Policy for Balance, said: “Paramedics, police, A&E doctor and nurses are already working flat out with winter pressures and have to deal with the inevitable impact of higher levels of consumption when people might be drinking up to a couple of weeks’ worth of alcohol in one night, often pre-loading with cheap, shop-bought alcohol.”
The Safe Haven van in partnership with Northumbria Police will be in operation in Newcastle City Centre during these busy periods as well as Medicar in Cleveland which is supported by Cleveland Police.
Victoria Court continued: “These services are available to protect vulnerable members of the public by providing them a place of safety, whilst reducing the impact on front-line policing and ambulances. This also helps relieve pressures on local hospitals and provide a secure environment to pass on safety information and give medical assistance to anyone might need it.”
Examples of medical emergencies include:
- Chest pain
- Breathing difficulties
- Unconsciousness
- Severe loss of blood
- Severe burns
- Choking
- Fitting
- Drowning
- Severe allergic reactions
North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (NEAS) covers 3,200 square miles across the North East region. It employs more than 3,200 staff and serves a population of 2.7m people by handling all NHS 111 and 999 calls for the region, operating patient transport and ambulance response services, delivering training for communities and commercial audiences and providing medical support cover at events.
NEAS has 55 ambulance stations, three emergency operations centres, and three training and education centres, and covers 3,230 square miles. It has three emergency operation centres based in Newcastle, Hebburn and Wynyard. It operates around 172 double crewed vehicles and 214 patient transport vehicles as well as 63 emergency response cars, used by specialist paramedics, advanced practitioners and officers, and a fleet of support vehicles including driver training and specialist vehicles for the Hazardous Area Response Team.
In 2022/23, the service answered more than 1.3m emergency 999 and NHS 111 calls, with more than 268,000 patients taken to hospital, more than 37,000 patients treated and discharged over the phone and more than 118,000 patients treated and discharged at home. It responded to more than 20,000 C1 serious and life-threatening incidents in 7 minutes.
