East Midlands Ambulance Service has coped with a 20% increase in calls while maintaining its emergency call answer times by implementing a new communications system.

The service worked with ATC Solutions to review its call handling technology during the development of a new ambulance control centre in Nottingham. As a result, it introduced Mitel’s call flow management system.

The system has allowed it to cope with the 20% increase in calls that came when Northamptonshire’s 999 calls were routed into the regional centre, without employing more call handlers.

The service initially maintained its eight second average answer time for a 999 call. Kelly Macmillan, public sector specialist for Mitel, said: “Increased staff familiarity with the Mitel system has contributed to that average answer time dropping below five seconds.”

Read full article: E-Health Insider.