Ambulance Crisis Continues
It continues to be a challenge to find an available ambulance squad to answer every call in the county.
Just after 2 am on Friday, a patient took too much insulin and became unresponsive. Dispatch tried multiple times to raise a squad before turning to Portsmouth Ambulance, but they didn’t have a squad available. However, 10 minutes later, the original squad requested was able to respond to the scene.
Two hours later, an elderly patient needed help on St. Rte 104. However, Portsmouth Ambulance didn’t have a squad, and there was no response from the two squads dispatch tried to contact out in the county. Pike County 911 ended up covering the call.
Ten minutes after that, a squad was needed for an 86-year-old patient having medical issues. Portsmouth Ambulance still did not have a squad. Dispatch tried to contact four different squads without success.
A family member of the patient said they would attempt to get the patient to the hospital in their own vehicle.
At 3:30 am, dispatch once again had a hard time getting help for another patient having cardiac issues. The call came in at 3:36 am, but dispatch got no response from a squad. They contacted Portsmouth Ambulance, but they said they only had one ambulance for the whole city. An EMS squad acknowledged dispatch at 3:53 and contacted Portsmouth Ambulance themselves to request a medic.
Just before 2 pm on Sunday, a caller reported a man with severe abdominal pain on Greenbriar road. However, dispatch was unable to find a free squad and a family member took the man to the hospital in their car.
