Supporting the Scottish Ambulance Service over festive
period.
Health Secretary visited the Scottish Ambulance
Service's (SAS) Edinburgh City Station ahead of the busy festive
period to express gratitude for the hard work and dedication to
delivering vital services during challenging times.
He encouraged people to use healthcare services appropriately
this Christmas and New Year and only dial 999 for genuine
emergencies.
An additional 1,388 paramedics and call handlers have been
recruited following workforce investment since 2020, with further
recruitment underway. Senior paramedics at an Integrated Clinical
Hub review all emergency calls to prevent unnecessary ambulance
journeys and ensure only patients needing A&E care are taken
to hospital.
Mr Gray said:
“The festive season is always a challenging time for health and
care services and the incredible team at the Scottish Ambulance
Service is rising to meet this challenge head-on. I want to thank
all staff for their hard work and dedication, especially at this
time of year.
“In a life-threatening emergency, always dial 999. However
everyone should familiarise themselves with advice on the best
way to access health services, such as NHS Inform's online tools,
to get the right care, quickly, and ensure that services such as
the ambulance service can focus on those who need urgent care.
“The 2025-26 Scottish Budget, if agreed by the Scottish
Parliament, will provide record funding of £21 billion to health
and social care. This includes an increase to the Scottish
Ambulance Service of more than £88 million. This will help the
service continue to develop, enhance capacity and deliver high
quality patient care across Scotland. I urge Parliament to get
behind the Budget to unlock this funding.”
Michael Dickson, Scottish Ambulance Service Chief Executive,
said:
"In December, we typically handle over 100,000 calls - almost
double our average monthly call demand.
“However, this year, all indicators point to an even more
challenging few weeks ahead over winter. This is directly linked
to system-wide pressures such as lengthy hospital handover times
at key areas across the country and we are working with health
boards to do everything we can to get our crews back on the road
to help patients.
“Our staff are working extremely hard and we continue to
prioritise those patients who are most critically ill. For those
patients who are not critically ill, they may have to wait longer
for an ambulance than usual and we thank the public for their
patience; we will try to get to them as quickly as we can.”
Background
The Right Care, Right Place campaign reminds the public to use
healthcare services appropriately:
- For advice on minor illnesses and injuries, visit www.NHSInform.scot.
- Call your general practice or NHS 24 on 111 for urgent but
non-life-threatening health concerns.
- Always call 999 in an emergency.
