Open AccessFrequent callers to UK ambulance services in the COVID-19 pandemic: managing mental health, social isolation and loneliness
Author(s) -
Jason Scott,
Helen Burtrand,
Tim Churchill,
Robert T. Cole,
Tracy Collins,
Nathan Daxner,
Gayle J. Fidler,
Jonathan Hammond-Williams,
Benjamin Marlow,
Angela McNally,
John O’Keefe,
Robin Petterson,
Deborah E. Powell,
Stephanie Scott,
Jayne Scaife,
Joanna Smylie,
Annette Patricia Strickland
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
british paramedic journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1478-4726
DOI - 10.29045/14784726.2021.09.6.2.66
Subject(s) - mental health , medicine , pandemic , population , loneliness , social isolation , medical emergency , agency (philosophy) , nursing , covid-19 , psychiatry , environmental health , disease , sociology , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , social science
Patients who frequently call ambulance services are a vulnerable yet heterogeneous population with unmet multiple and complex physical health, mental health and/or social care needs. In this article, we report the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced for ambulance services across the UK when managing frequent callers, and reflect on how existing systems and practices are adapting to support changing patient needs.