Staff at the East Midlands Ambulance Service are not able to take scheduled breaks due to the increased number of “life threatening” calls.
This news comes after Trade Unions told the BBC that 111 operators are sending ambulances to people who may not always need them.
EMAS have said that each year they respond to over 610,000 emergency calls, and on average a new 999 call comes in “every 35 seconds”. This equates to over 2,000 calls a day.
Unions in Lincoln say that they are worried that 111 operators are adding pressure to ambulance staff.
The wellbeing of staff at EMAS is a cause for concern as some staff are missing their breaks entirely.
Yesterday it was revealed that EMAS are almost £12 million in debt and have had to take out a loan in order to cover costs. This is 23 times over the overspend prediction made at the start of the year.
Although they achieved their 2015/2016 savings target of £6.4 million in their Cost Improvement Programme, they have incurred costs in the service.
Richard Wheeler, director of finance at East Midlands Ambulance Service said: “We have experienced unavoidable extra costs due to responding to a significant increase in life-threatening emergencies, and we have also been required to provide extra crews in certain areas to compensate for delays in handing over patients from our ambulances at busy hospitals”
Mr Wheeler said: “Nationally the NHS has to save £22 billion by 2020/21.”
The current deficit for EMAS now adds to this challenge locally, Mr Wheeler said: “We will continue to work with commissioners and NHS Improvement to tackle the challenges that impact on our finances.”
“However, we are committed to protecting our frontline services and we will continue to invest in both people and vehicles so we can deliver improved quality to the communities we serve.”
