Shropshire Star

Star comment: Follow the 999 call guidelines

Public services have been squeezed continually during the past five years.

Published

There have been cutbacks after cutbacks, efficiency drives and rationalisations. Jobs have been lost and facilities cut. It has become harder than ever for public servants to fulfil their duties. The emergency services, in particular, work under conditions that test them to the limit.

And yet it seems the public sometimes fail to realise the pressure under which such workers toil.

A new report has shown the caustic effects of time-wasting calls on our emergency services. All too often they are called out by people whose use of the service is ill-conceived. Some of those calls are genuine errors and it is better that people decide to be safe rather than sorry.

  • See also: Ambulance crews get 255 calls in a year to one Shropshire home

But there are two types of caller who ought to moderate their behaviour.

Our 999 services are there in case of emergency. Our fire service does not need to be troubled by those who make 'joke' calls. Hoaxers fail to realise the potential consequences of their irresponsible actions. Their call could, quite literally, be the difference between life and death.

There are others who should also learn more about the way the emergency services operate. They are the people who make unnecessary calls: dialling an ambulance, for instance, when they ought to instead book an appointment with their doctor. Their behaviour is equally troubling for those charged with keeping us safe and well.

The emergency services run on an increasingly tight budget and can ill afford to divert resources unnecessarily when they might be needed elsewhere.

In Shrewsbury, one 999 caller made a staggering 255 calls to the ambulance service in the space of a year. Eightyfive per cent of those calls did not result in a hospital visit. That is a considerable drain on resources at a time when budgets have been slashed and the number of workers is relatively low.

The message to the public is clear. If they have a genuine emergency, or if they are unsure, they should call 999 and make sure that indecision does not cost a life. However, if it is not a genuine emergency, they should follow the guidelines that the ambulance and police services continually repeat.

The police service operates a 101 service for non-emergencies while those in need of non-urgent medical care can use other health services.

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