Please attribute to Doug Gallagher, Hato Hone St John Director of Ambulance Operations.
Hato Hone St John’s Level 1 major incident declaration will remain in place this weekend (15-16 August) as we continue to manage sustained pressure across the emergency ambulance service.
On Thursday 13 August, 2,404 calls came into ambulance through 111, with demand continuing at the record-breaking levels experienced over recent weeks. We expect ambulance workload to remain high this weekend.
Despite the demand into ambulance yesterday, on average Hato Hone St John call handlers answered 94.1% of 111 calls within 15 seconds, and 8.3% of calls were managed through our Hear and Advise pathway, where patients received health advice without the need for an ambulance response.
Maintaining the major incident response gives us a clear national structure for monitoring demand, ambulance availability and patient-safety risks, coordinating decisions and resources, and taking further action as conditions change. It also supports close coordination with Health New Zealand and hospital partners.
Emergency ambulance help remains available. People should call 111 immediately when someone is seriously ill or injured or there is an immediate threat to life.
For non-emergency health concerns, people are encouraged to seek advice early and check which services are available locally. These options may include an online GP, a pharmacist, an urgent-care clinic or a free call to Healthline on 0800 611 116. This is available 24/7 and there is a callback option available if you would like Healthline to call you. Visit healthy.org.nz to find out more.
We will continue working with health-sector partners to manage demand, maintain patient safety and support patient flow. The major incident declaration will be reviewed regularly against demand, ambulance availability and wider health-system conditions.
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.
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.