The South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) is urging communities across the region to use its services responsibly this festive period, as it prepares for a challenging and busy time.
The Trust is expecting a period of significant and sustained demand across its 999 services - a position that is reflected across other health and care organisations locally,...
The South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) is urgently appealing to the public to think carefully before dialling 999 due to the extreme demand it is currently facing following the four-day Christmas break.
At 11:30 on Wednesday 28 December there were 482 patients waiting for ambulances across the South West, with 106 patients awaiting handover at hospitals...
Winter is one of the busiest times of the year for the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) – and we need continuing support from the public.
Ambulances must be available for patients who are facing a life-threatening medical emergency. To help with this, we are asking for the public’s support to ensure the service is used correctly.
People in Devon are being urged to only go to their local emergency department in immediately life-threatening cases.
The NHS in Devon is under severe pressure at present due to several factors, meaning GP surgeries, hospitals, community health services, mental health services and social care are all extremely busy.
High numbers of emergency attendances, combined with the...
South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) is reminding people only to call 999 in a genuine life-threatening emergency this Christmas.
The trust is anticipating a high demand for the 999 service over the festive period, due to the ongoing coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic alongside normal winter pressures.
It has dealt with around 2,650 calls a day so far...
The South West will receive £29.7 million to expand and upgrade A&Es at five Trusts, ensuring they have the physical space to treat patients, manage patient flow and improve infection control, the Health Secretary Matt Hancock has announced today.
This is in addition to the £300 million announced recently for 117 Trusts to upgrade their facilities, meaning the Government has now...
NHS hospital teams across Devon are reassuring local people that emergency services are there for them if they are unwell and need help.
Doctors are concerned that some people who should be getting medical help for non-COVID-19 illnesses are staying away from hospital and not seeking help due to fears they might catch the virus.
Now that the summer season is upon us and the holiday makers are arriving in all corners of the region, South Western Ambulance Service (SWASFT) is reminding people to Choose Well and only dial 999 in a life threatening emergency.
Over the last weekend (Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th July) the Trust attended a host of incidents including stabbings, cardiac arrests, a sky diving accident...
Across England, more than 30,000 patients each week now wait too long to be seen in local A&E departments – an increase of more than 50 per cent on the same period last year. In Derriford Hospital, this figure is at 54%.
For the first time, Labour Party analysis of official NHS England data names the A&E departments where performance deteriorated most significantly in the last...
Plymouth City Council will be testing its Emergency Notification System next week (commencing 17 November).
The system, which was introduced in Plymouth in 2006, is a free text messaging service for residents living near the Devonport Site – ‘The Dockyard’. In the unlikely event of a nuclear emergency at the site, people who have registered for the service would receive a phone message...
