Hato Hone St John continues to experience high demand for its emergency ambulance service, with 111 call volumes yesterday just under last Monday’s record.
On Monday 10 August 2,221 emergency calls came into ambulance via 111, below last Monday’s record of 2,404 calls (on 3 August), but above 2,107, the average number of 111 calls for an ambulance on a Monday in August last year, and well above the daily average of just over 1,900 calls.
''While we expect workload pressures to remain well above normal this week, we are hopeful demand will ease from last-week's record-breaking levels,” says Stuart Cockburn, Hato Hone St John General Manager Ambulance Operations.
“Our ambulance personnel remain focussed on making sure patients receive the most appropriate care for their needs. Not all patients will receive an ambulance; they may receive clinical advice over the phone or a referral to another healthcare provider.
“We are asking people to continue to call 111 for life-threatening emergencies; this includes symptoms like chest pain, severe difficulty breathing, stroke-like symptoms, unconsciousness, or severe injury, but for non-urgent health concerns, we encourage people to explore alternative healthcare options that may be more appropriate for their needs.
“We also want to remind the public some patients may also wait longer than usual for an ambulance to arrive, and we appreciate your patience”, Mr Cockburn says.
Hato Hone St John is in close contact with Healthline and is working with the service to ensure people know where they can get appropriate healthcare advice and support.
“While Healthline is also experiencing high demand, they have an option for a callback. For people who don’t need help or advice right away, the Healthline team can call them,” Mr Cockburn says.
Visit healthy.org.nz to request a callback. Healthline is free and available 24/7.
An overview of last week’s workload (3 – 9 August 2026):
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The most common reasons for requesting an ambulance over the past week included referrals from a health practitioner, chest pain, breathing problems, falls, and sickness including fever and infections, which is expected during the colder months.
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Demand has been particularly high in main centres, including Auckland, Christchurch, Hamilton and Hawke’s Bay due to their large populations.
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Around 80% of calls to 111 were triaged as immediately life-threatening, time critical or urgent, and around 20% were considered non-urgent or low acuity. This is no different compared with the same period last year.
“Despite the very high level of demand we are seeing, our ambulance personnel are doing an exceptional job, ensuring that those who call us receive the help they need,” Mr Cockburn adds.
“We are reminding the public again to please be kind and respect our ambulance staff, whether you’re on the phone to them, or they’re treating you in person. They are working incredibly hard under immense pressure.”
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Along with the emergency ambulance service, Hato Hone St John operates a significant number of community health programmes and other activities which help build community resilience. They include Waka Ora Health Shuttles, ASB Caring Caller, St John Youth, and St John in Schools.
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Hato Hone St John also delivers event health services, medical alarm services, first aid training, and operates retail stores across the country.
For further information please contact:
Hato Hone St John media team