Ambulances – No urgency to get to an emergency
City of Johannesburg’s (CoJ) ambulance response times to emergencies are being questioned following an incident where a man who was stabbed waited two-and-a-half hours for medical treatment.
Manager of the Bertrams-based Gerald Fitzpatrick House and Nursing Home, Ms Merle Howroyd, said a man stopped outside the property on September 18.
“He said he was stabbed in Doornfontein. He walked all the way here and sat on the pavement. He was bleeding a lot. He asked our security guard to call an ambulance. I called the police and another staff member called for an ambulance. Jeppe SAPS came immediately. The ambulance did not arrive. I called for an ambulance on numerous occasions. The operators answered and put the phone down. There were occasions where the operators were chatting with each other instead of taking my call. When I was put through to dispatch the call was dropped again. When I eventually got through, the operator said an ambulance would be dispatched,” said Ms Howroyd.
No one attended and Ms Howroyd called for an ambulance again. After no response Ms Howroyd contacted Clr Carlos da Rocha, ward 66.
“The man was in desperate need of assistance. I called for an ambulance again and when I eventually got through I spoke to the supervisor. After about two-and-a-half hours, two ambulances arrived. This is an emergency service. I was so frustrated. What if there was someone else in need of an ambulance? The paramedics then just stood around and ordered the man to get up. The service was ridiculous,” said Ms Howroyd.
She said this is not the first time she has experienced problems. “There were instances when we called for an ambulance for people at our home and it took forever to get a response,” said Ms Howroyd.
Clr Da Rocha was livid. “There were apparently also instances where people who called for an ambulance to attend to the man who was stabbed were told that there was no ambulance available. I have a serious problem when residents cannot get assistance during an emergency. I have a serious problem when Emergency Management Services (EMS) put the phone down when residents call. I also have a serious problem with EMS when it takes two-and-a-half hours to attend to an injured man who could possibly have bled to death on a pavement.
“It is scary to know how useless CoJ call centres are. A city the size of Johannesburg should not operate like this. People’s lives are at stake. People who do not perform should be fired,” he said.
Ms Howroyd said she was thankful to the police officers who stayed at the scene even though they were about to change shifts.
The EXPRESS forwarded an enquiry to CoJ officials including Ms Nana Radebe, from EMS. At the time of going to print, no comment had been received.
