Which 999 calls drive Dubai Ambulance round the bend...

When you face an emergency, you dial 999.

This is common knowledge, you would think. However, the definition of 'emergency' is not for everybody the same.

This website has already documented the crazy, funny and heartwarming 999 calls that Dubai Police have to deal with (scroll down to read).

Dubai Ambulance responds to almost 60 ambulance requests daily.

In some cases, an ambulance is much required and is the difference between life and death.

It is therefore all the more important that the vehicles are available when really needed.

Much to the dismay of ambulance staff, in many of the cases the so-called emergency case turns out to be nothing more than a little discomfort.

When arriving at the scene, there is not more to do for the staff than to educate the 'victim' that a women’s menstrual cycle “is not an emergency”.

"This really happened to me," says Marwa Jafar, paramedic at Dubai Ambulance on the sidelines of Gitex Technology Week last week.

 "I arrived at the scene, and the lady who had called for help was complaining of pain in the lower belly.

“When I educated her that this was not a reason to call an ambulance, the lady answered that she was really in pain."

A random screen shot of the ambulance requests received over a 60-minute window while at Gitex gives an indication of the various reasons the vehicle was considered needed.

Among the complaints are mild bleeding from nose, dizziness, jelly fish sting, throat pain, nausea, or limb pain.

In all of the mentioned cases, transport was refused.

"When we find that transport to a hospital is not necessary, we tell the person that a charge will be added for the transport.

“This charge is Dh310 within Dubai, and Dh620 to reach a destination outside Dubai.

"We try to discourage the transport, but if the patient insists, we cannot refuse," explains Marwa.

In other cases, the 'patient' might have decided that the complaint was maybe not as serious as it first seemed. "Sometimes we reach the scene, and the victim is gone. The ambulance is stood up."

Valid reasons to call an ambulance are anything that requires emergent medical care, such as when a trauma is suspected.

A broken bone, dehydration, chest pain, a stroke, or a heart attack would qualify, Marwa says.

"We really want people to be more considerate before calling an ambulance, because there might be a real emergency somewhere, and ambulances should be available for such cases."

Click to read: 999 Calls: Crazy, funny and heart-warming

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