Striking ambulance staff must cover all ‘emergency’ calls, say ministers

Ambulance staff will need to respond to category 2 calls during strike action under new government proposals.

The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a consultation on minimum service levels in ambulance services. It comes as industrial action continues across the NHS and as legislation to ensure minimum services levels in key industries during strikes is making its way through Parliament. 

The consultation document read: “Our proposal is that calls classed as life-threatening and emergency incidents would always receive an appropriate clinical response when there is strike action.

“In England, currently, these calls are classified as category 1 (immediately life-threatening) and category 2 (emergency) calls…

“On strike action days, some workers would continue their work to ensure that these calls can be answered and responded to appropriately to protect the life and health of patients.”

The proposals added services must also have “adequate capacity and resourcing” in call control rooms, to ensure all emergency 999 calls to ambulance services were answered.

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Source: HSJ, 13 February 2023