Firefighters have been called to pick up obese people who have fallen out of bed and help undertakers move bodies too heavy to lift
Firefighters have been forced to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds rescuing severely obese people - including those stuck in the bath – in the past five years. UK fire and rescue services have responded to more than 2,700 calls, with a single incident costing as much as £11,000. As well as rescuing people wedged in baths, firefighters have been called to pick up obese people who have fallen out of bed, help undertakers move bodies too heavy to lift and assist those needing medical treatment that are who large to leave their homes.
A Freedom of Information request, to which 53 out of 58 UK fire and
rescue services responded, revealed that South Wales Fire and Rescue attended
the most calls – a total of 189 since 2007. London and Essex were placed second
and third, with 170 and 159 respectively. Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue
Service had incurred the highest costs, spending £313,000 on assisting obese
people with one single three-and-a-half hour rescue costing £11,000.
The most expensive single incident in England was a £5,000 rescue
carried out by Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service. London, South
Yorkshire and West Midlands services all incurred costs of more than £50,000
over five years. It is likely that the total number of calls is even higher
than 2,700, as some services have not kept records of this type of
incident. At the request of firefighters, a new category of rescuing a
‘bariatric’ (severely obese) person was added to the Incident Reporting System
used by services in England in April this year.
Three firefighters at County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue
Service have suffered muscle strain while trying to move an obese person, area
manager Alan Kernohan told BBC 5 Live Investigates, which submitted the FOI
request. It is one of several services which has changed its policy to respond
instantly only when people need urgent medical attention. It will carry out a
risk assessment before acting in non-emergency cases. Other services are
already charging the obese person or, more usually, local ambulance services
for their help.
At the request of firefighters, a new category of rescuing a 'bariatric' (severely obese) person was added to the Incident Reporting System used by services in England in April this year
Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service charges £630 per hour and
London Fire Brigade charges £312. Paul
Mason, who weighed 70 stone, was involved in an eight-hour rescue when he
needed to get to hospital for a hernia operation. He had not left home in two
years and the front wall of his flat had to be knocked down and a forklift truck
used to get him out. He told the programme that he was ‘embarrassed’ about what
had happened. He said: ‘I thought “why are they doing it for me?” My esteem,
the way I thought about myself, was non-existent. ‘My eating disorder was way
out of control, my depression was severe, and I just didn’t want to get to
grips with my life or sort myself out in those days. ‘In this country we have a
policy where we treat people whatever problems they’ve got. It took a situation
like that for me to realise how bad I got myself.’
Mr Mason has since lost 40 stone. Peter Dartford, speaking on behalf of
the Chief Fire Officers Association, told the Today programme that the figures
should make people think about their lifestyles. He said: ‘Fire and rescue
service are here to help and people find themselves in need of help for a
number of reasons. They may be medical conditions, they may indeed be lifestyle
choices but we don’t judge we just get on and help people. ‘While we do respond
to people in need we are actively seeking to reduce demand for this kind of
service by encouraging people to act differently. Prevention is not only better
than cure it is very much cheaper than cure. In these restricted times
financially it is important we drive down demand as much as we can.’
Source: Daily Mail UK
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