Scottish Ambulance Service handle over 400 calls in one hour during Hogmanay

Scottish Amublance Service staff dealt with a total of 2,149 calls to Ambulance Control Centres between 7pm on Hogmanay and 7am the following day, compared to 2,376 the same time last year.

The total volume of calls fielded by the service was 9.5 per cent lower than last year’s total.

Despite the slight decline in festive call-outs, periods of high demand saw 225 calls per hour between midnight and 7am and ambulance crews at their busiest. During this timeframe, ambulance crews responded to 5 per cent more incidents than last year.

The most demanding period of the night occurred between 2am and 3am, when control room staff took over 400 calls as many pubs and clubs around the country began to close for the night.

Chief Executive of the Scottish Ambulance Service Pauline Howie said: “Although call volumes were slightly lower, over three quarters of overall call demand occurred between midnight and 7am with intense periods of activity in the early hours.

“As always, our staff in ambulance control and out in our communities showed their professionalism and commitment on what is always a very challenging night. They did a fantastic job managing high demand across the country, ensuring that patients received appropriate care.”

In anticipation of Hogmanay demand - traditionally the service’s busiest day of the year - additional ambulance crews, dispatchers and call handlers were recruited to deal with the surge in calls.

Of the country’s three Emergency Medical Dispatch Centres, the West centre was most in need, with 1016 calls this year compared to 983 last year. Less than half this number of calls (361) were made to the North centre, which saw a decline of 79 calls this year.