Severe pressure remains for NI emergency departments and ambulance service
Severe pressures on emergency departments across Northern Ireland and the NI Ambulance Service are continuing on Wednesday evening, health officials are warning.
People are again being urged to seek the appropriate level of medical treatment for their condition and to only call 999 in the event of an emergency for life-threatening conditions.
A spokesperson for the Health and Social Care system in Northern Ireland said: “Whilst staff are continuing to work hard to ensure that patients receive the treatment and care that they need, it is regrettable that some people are having to wait longer to be treated in emergency departments, or to be admitted to hospital, than normal.”
It is the second night in a row that such a warning about the pressures facing the health service has been issued.
The HSC spokesperson explained: “If you have a life-threatening condition, or are seriously ill or injured, then the emergency department is the appropriate place to go.
“On arrival at emergency departments, all patients are assessed by a triage nurse and then dealt with in clinical priority. Patients who are most ill must be seen first.
“Patients not assessed as emergency cases are likely to have to wait for a long time.”
Patients and their families are also being urged to “support timely discharge from hospitals” in order to free up beds during what officials describe as an “extremely challenging time”.
For those requiring urgent care for issues that are not life-threatening, a ‘Phone First’ service is being trialled across the Western, Southern and Northern HSC Trusts’ areas.
It helps redirect patients from busy emergency departments to other more appropriate services.
Patients are being asked to ‘Phone First’ before attending emergency departments at the Causeway, Antrim Area, Daisy Hill, Craigavon Area, Altnagelvin, and the South West Acute hospitals.
Patients are also asked to ‘Phone First’ before attending the Minor Injuries Units in South Tyrone and Mid Ulster hospitals and the Urgent Care and Treatment Unit in Omagh.
How to contact the Phone First service
Southern Area: Craigavon Area Hospital/Daisy Hill Hospital, Newry/South Tyrone Hospital Minor Injuries Unit, Dungannon
Phone First: 0300 123 3 111 (9am-6pm, Mon-Fri)
Interpreter Now app: https://interpreternow.co.uk/hscni
Phone First text relay number: 18001 0300 123 3 111
Northern Area: Antrim Area Hospital/Mid Ulster Hospital Minor Injuries Unit, Magherafelt/Causeway Hospital
Phone First: 0300 123 1 123 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
Interpreter Now app: https://interpreternow.co.uk/hscni
Phone First text relay number: 18001 0300 123 1 123
Western Area: Altnagelvin/South West Acute Hospital/ Omagh Hospital Urgent Care and Treatment Unit Service
Phone First: 0300 020 6000 (8am-midnight, 7 days a week)
More information