Christmas and New Year Activity

Ambulance activity over the Christmas and New Year period compared with the year before is:

• On Christmas Day we responded to 979 incidents compared with 1,037 in 2014.
• On Boxing Day, we attended 1,111 incidents compared with 1,145 incidents in 2014; and
• On New Year’s Day, we attended 1,280 incidents compared with 1,316 the year before.

  Emergency 999 call volumes were also very similar to the year before:

• On Christmas Day we answered 1,077 emergency 999 calls, compared with 1,213 in 2014.
• On Boxing Day, we answered 1,403 emergency 999 calls, compared with 1,521 in 2014; and
• On New Year’s Day, we answered 1,897 emergency 999 calls, compared with 1,733 the year before.

  One reason for the fewer emergency 999 calls may be because there was less illness and vomiting this year compared with Christmas 2014. However, we did see a significant increase in calls to NHS 111:

• On Christmas Day we answered 1,870 NHS111 calls, compared with 1,801 calls in 2014.
• On Boxing Day, we answered 3,574 NHS111 calls, compared with 3,121 calls in 2014; and
• On New Year’s Day, we answered 4,533 NHS111 calls, compared with 2,573 calls the year before.

Paul Liversidge, Chief Operating Officer for North East Ambulance Service, said: “Our call levels and incidents levels have remained fairly static, but we have seen a slight reduction in 999 calls and a slight increase in 111 calls, which confirms that the message we asked public to think about making that call to us seems to have got through.

“Over the festive season, we had some busy days, with levels of activity similar to last year; but we don’t appear to have broken any records on number of calls received or incidents attended, which has been the story in previous years.

“Many of these calls are alcohol related and this type of call has always been a challenge for the ambulance service at this time of year. Having a long weekend for Christmas and New Year has also had an impact on our service.

“We will continue to reflect on the period and have a wash-up event with others in the health service to better understand what worked well and how we can improve our plans for next year.

Paul added: “I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has worked over the Christmas and New Year period keeping us safe. The pressure on our service, particularly in emergency care and control, has been relentless and I think we all appreciate the excellent work that our crews and control room staff have carried out over the festive holiday period.”