MIRI: The management of Hospital Miri is intensifying its publicity campaigning of encouraging members of the public to use the emergency line of 999 responsibly.
Hospital director Dr Jack Wong said although the hospital is reachable through its general line, it is highly recommended for the callers to dial 999 for effective response.
“A Medical Emergency Coordinating Centre (MECC) has been operating at the hospital’s Emergency and Trauma Department since 2013.
“It runs 24 hours and is handled by 14 Emergency Medical Dispatchers (EMD) specially trained to manage emergency calls from the public,” he told reporters at the hospital’s administration office yesterday.
Dr Wong also said the EMDs, while attending to the emergency calls, would also be assisting the callers on the proper way to respond to any emergency that they are facing before the arrival of ambulance.
Based on survey conducted from January to June this year, he said the percentage of people using the general number of 085-420033 versus the 999 in the city was 50/50.
“There is a need for us to enhance this campaign because we want the people to fully utilise the emergency line services.”
Dr Wong also hoped that members of public would not make prank calls using the 999 line.