Paramedics say they have to be combat-ready to respond to medical emergencies during the festive season. At this time of the year, paramedics say they deal mostly with road crash victims and people who are under the influence of alcohol.
However, sometimes they get frustrated as they cannot access some of the areas they are called out to due to poor infrastructure. Paramedic, Joy Seseane narrates some of the challenges they are faced with.
“When we come to that place we find that there’s nobody there. So we have to call the control room from our radios to tell them that there’s no one here. Then they will call that person again, even during the day or night is still the same. Then you would find out that most calls during the year are medical cases but this time it’s trauma cases.”
Meanwhile, Kelebogile Nkala has urged parents to teach children not to abuse emergency cell phone numbers.
“My plea to the community is that they must take care of the kids because during this time the kids are playing with the number 112 because it’s free of charge and you would find there’s somebody out there in need of an ambulance whereas the ambulance is attending a false call.”
Pressure mounts on paramedics during festive season:
