Wales’ ambulance chief is calling on New Year’s Eve revelers to drink less

The chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service has urged New Year’s Eve revelers to drink and eat in moderation before partying to help the service deal with an ongoing “critical incident”.

Jason Killens admitted people may already have been harmed by delays in reaching paramedics and said the crisis was likely to continue for the rest of Tuesday and Wednesday.

Killens said: “I expect the pressure to continue for the rest of today. It is of course New Year’s Eve and we expect a busy evening and early morning hours. People partying tonight can help us.

“We want people to enjoy themselves and have fun, but to drink in moderation. Eat something before you do that and if you’re out with friends and they have one too many, please take care of them.”

Speaking to the BBC, Killens said the forecast bad weather would cause “additional complications”. He added: “Communities can continue to help us while we remain under extreme pressure by only calling us when really necessary and by using the 111 service or accessing care from their pharmacist or GP if appropriate.”

The critical incident was announced on Monday evening at a time when around 350 emergency calls were waiting to be answered and more than half of the service’s vehicles were also waiting to transfer patients outside hospitals.

Killens said: “I want to say sorry to patients who waited a very long time yesterday and who this morning continue to wait much longer than we would like.”

Asked if lives were at risk, he said: “There is no doubt that some patients who have waited longer have unfortunately been harmed by that wait, but of course we always prioritize every emergency call and respond to the sickest patients first . .”

Killens said: “This is definitely one of the worst periods I have seen. We have always seen pressure in winter due to flu and other respiratory viruses in circulation, but the last 24/48 hours have been particularly acute for us.”

The Welsh Ambulance Service advised people on New Year’s Eve to:

• Consume alcohol in moderation, eat before drinking and alternate alcoholic drinks with soft drinks.

• Arrange transportation home in advance and never drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

• Avoid high-risk activities such as fireworks. In addition to burns, inhaling smoke from bonfires and fireworks can also irritate respiratory conditions, such as asthma.

On Monday morning, before the critical incident was announced, the agency said there had been a significant increase in calls.

Judith Bryce, the Assistant Director of Operations, said: “The number of immediately life-threatening ‘red’ calls we have had over the last seven days remains very high, with the service receiving 1,716 calls, compared to just 1,213 in the same period. last year.

“Demand for our NHS 111 Wales service has also increased significantly and has resulted in us answering over 1,200 more calls compared to the same week in 2023.”