Discussion How long does it take an ambulance to arrive in your country?

[mini_weeny]

Once a long time ago I called an ambulance since I didn't feel well. It took it a full hour to come and they got lost in the way. And that was supposed to be a private ambulance service. In my country if you try to ctb you will die before it arrives if it arrives at all. How long does it take for an ambulance to arrive in your country??? Also no forced psych wards here, no one gives a shit if you want to die, the state doesn't care.

 

[Blue Rose]

There are so many hospital around my home. Around 10 mins.

 

[mini_weeny]

There are so many hospital around my home. Around 10 mins.

Ohhh wow you would be instantly saved if found.

 

[sacrificial lamb]

It actually depends a lot on how profitable the existence of a person is, lmao. If you are disabled or a senior citizen in Russia, it can take up to 8 hours. In my experience at least...
However, in the country that I live in now, it takes approximately 30 minutes, which, considering the fact that I live in a fairly remote location, is impressive.

 

[Blue Rose]

Ohhh wow you would be instantly saved if found.

My country is South Korea. There are good medical services, and so many hospital in the cities or suburbans. The government prevents people from CTB actively.

 

[Soulless Angel]

It depends, I am UK, if its a level one, they will get there fast, normally within 20 mins or less, if not urgent, you can be waiting hours literally, some old person had a tumble in the street, they waited over 8 hours for an ambulance.
Ive had a non breathing child in my arms and an ambulance was there within 5 mins, for a ctb attempt, (ODd,) I waited around an hour.

 

[WornOutLife]

When I failed to ctb, passed out and my dad found me, I was told the ambulance came to my apartment in 10 minutes! (the nurses were kinda rude, though! That's what my father said! I was in a 2-days comma lol)

 

[MindFog]

We don't actively use ambulances here..But I think it'll take an hour or more too. Most of the time people would ask someone with a vehicle nearby.. I guess we dont trust ambulances that much.

 

[whywere]

I am in the U.S. and I live in a metro area of more than 4 million, it takes under 5 minutes or even under that.

 

[wait.what]

I'm in the U.S. How fast an ambulance will get to you here really depends on how functional your local infrastructure is, and that depends largely on the wealth of the local tax base. I used to live in Detroit, across the street from a hospital. Detroit is very poor. One time a guy got hit by a car in front of my apartment building. I didn't see the accident, the dude was already lying in the street when I came home. I called 911, and the operator was like, "Yeah, we know already. Quit jamming our phone lines." So I went out again and did errands for maybe 45 minutes. When I came home, this poor sonofabitch was still lying in the street, LITERALLY 100 FEET FROM THE GODDAMN HOSPITAL. An ambulance had finally arrived and they were just putting an oxygen mask on this guy. His skin had turned gray. I was like, "WTF kind of dystopian satire is this?!"

I now live in a suburb in a pretty wealthy area, about 5 miles from the nearest hospital. I've never had to call an ambulance for a real life-or-death emergency, but the one time I injured myself badly enough to need transport to the hospital the ambulance was here within about 15 minutes. I'm sure if somebody's baby wasn't breathing or something, a first responder of some kind could be here in 5 minutes or less. (Normally when you call 911, every possible vehicle with a siren on it shows up: cops, ambulances, fire trucks.)

It's also worth pointing out that southeastern Michigan is ridiculously segregated—Detroit is about 80% black & its suburbs are about 80% white. The same social forces that caused this demographic contribute to Detroit's horrible infrastructure and general lack of services of any kind. Naturally, the poor bastard who (almost?) died in front of the hospital was black.

So just how fast an ambulance will get to you depends a lot on the city you're in, and the wealth and racial makeup of that city's residents. "All men are created equal," bald eagle with an American flag in its beak and a tear running down from one eye, etc., etc. <—(assorted U.S. symbols if you're not familiar.)

 

[Mentalmick]

Depends where you are in Scotland. I'm in Dumfries so they will probably arrive pretty quick.

 

[NorseHel]

Probably ten minutes or less, plenty hospitals close by and while the local infrastructure is a mess for civilian traffic, emergency vehicles are essentially unobstructed most of the way here. Only problem is finding a place to park

 

[Bedrock48]

Ambulances often take ages in my country unless the person is basically dead/dying. I've waited anywhere between 30mins and 12 hours for one before. During covid there was actually a couple times they told me just to get in an uber, one of those times I had no choice as there were no ambulances free in my area. I wasn't really in any fit state to be in a taxi but luckily they took me.

 

[Insomniac]

3 days