Emergency dispatchers in parts of England have been told to ask some people requesting ambulance service to come to the hospital on their own. An internal memo from the West Midlands Ambulance Service directs dispatchers to ask patients with severe abdominal pain, who have fallen, or who are vomiting to bring themselves to the emergency room. It says that during periods of high demands, the dispatchers should also ask people who may be having a stroke or heart attack or have suffered major burns to come to the hospital themselves. Officials cited high demand for ambulance services and long response times as the reasons for the change.
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