London Ambulance Service - Alcohol-related calls

Alcohol-related calls now make up more than six per cent of our workload, which is more than 61,000 incidents a year. And this puts us under unnecessary pressure.

To give a snapshot of the problem in the run-up to the Christmas office-party season, we have made a short film looking at the work of the central London 'booze bus'.

We have prepared a text transcript for the video for site visitors who are visually or hearing impaired.

(This video can also be viewed on our YouTube channel, at www.youtube.com/londonambulance.)

As well as people who become ill through drinking too much, we have to help those who have been injured because they are under the influence of alcohol.

When we’re dealing with these patients, we are not available to go to people who are in a life-threatening condition and who really need our help.

We are not against people having a good time, but they need to take responsibility for how much they are drinking, and enjoy alcohol safely.

How many alcohol-related calls do we receive?

We are now responding to 28 per cent more alcohol-related calls than we did in November 2005, when new licensing laws were introduced.

They now make up over six per cent of our total workload, although this increases to more than 15 per cent during some hours of Friday and Saturday nights.

The boroughs with the highest percentage are Westminster and Camden, although all areas of London have seen an increase.

Our figures are based on information given at the time the 999 call is received in our control room, or where alcohol is recorded by our frontline staff as being the main reason for us being needed to treat a patient.

What this means is that the figures don’t take into account other incidents, such as assaults, minor falls and other injuries, that may have happened because someone had been drinking.

How are we dealing with alcohol-related calls?

We have developed a number of initiatives to ease the pressure of alcohol-related calls on our service, particularly at times of high demand in the summer and Christmas and the New Year.

The ‘booze bus’

We use an alternative transport vehicle, known as the ‘booze bus’, to respond to patients in the West End of London.

The brainchild of one of our paramedics, Brian Hayes, it can carry more patients than a normal ambulance, meaning that up to five people can be taken to hospital at any one time. This helps to free up other ambulances to attend other potentially more life-threatening calls.

The 'bus' can typically attend up to 20 patients during each shift, and currently operates every Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

A similar scheme has also ben trialled in the Camden area. The Camden Alcohol Response Team (CART) ran in partnership with the local council and Primary Care Trust (PCT) in December 2008 and is due to be evaluated in late 2009.

Christmas party season

The build up to Christmas tends to be a busy time, with more people than usual out celebrating with friends and work colleagues.

As well as running the ‘booze bus’, in recent years we have also set up treatment centres in the City of London to be able to treat patients without needing to take them to hospital.

A similar treatment centre has also been set up in Croydon during the festive season. A member of staff in a response car has been linked by a radio system with local police, street wardens and pub and clubs so that they can respond straightaway to any calls in the town centre.

New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve is traditionally the busiest evening of the year for us, with many of the calls in the early hours of the new year being alcohol-related.

During this period, we are supported by members of St John Ambulance and the British Red Cross, who set up treatment centres in the central London area.

How you can have a safe night out*

Eat before drinking: food soaks up alcohol, slowing it down on its way into the bloodstream. It will provide more energy, and lessen the effects the next day.
Drink lighter beers: stronger continental beers are popular, but make for a messy night and a bigger hangover. The difference between a pint of 5% lager, and a 3.5% or 4% one is one unit.
Set a drinks limit: plan what to drink in an evening and stick to it.
Have a strategic soft drink: this keeps the body hydrated, and will lessen the effects the next day.
Avoid drinking in rounds: this can often mean drinking at a faster pace set by another one of the group.
Be your own person: nobody should feel as though they should have to drink something if they don’t want to, and real friends should respect each others' wishes.
Keep track of what you’ve had: it is hard to say ‘That’s my limit tonight’ if you don’t know how much you’ve had.
Use more mixers: diluting a drink with another mixer will make it last longer, and lessen the effects.
Drink smaller drinks: A large glass of wine in most bars is equivalent to a third of a bottle!
Plan your journey home: Don’t leave it to chance—think about how you’re going to get home, and who with, before you go out. Make arrangements before you start drinking, and make sure you don’t get left to walk home alone.

*Source: Department of Health and Home Office: ‘Know your limits’ campaign

Alcohol-related calls