10 Things to Do When the Ambulance Is Taking Long in South Africa

Waiting for an ambulance can feel frightening, especially when someone is injured, very sick, struggling to breathe, unconscious, bleeding, or in severe pain. In those moments, people often feel helpless because they have already called for help, but help has not arrived yet.

In South Africa, ambulance delays can happen for many reasons. Sometimes there are many emergency calls at the same time. Sometimes the closest ambulance is already busy with another serious case. In rural areas, distance can also play a big role. In other situations, crews may be delayed by hospital handover delays, unsafe scenes, unclear addresses, locked gates, bad roads, or difficulty finding the patient.

This article does not replace emergency medical advice. It is a practical guide to help you stay calm, protect the patient, and make it easier for emergency services to find you while you wait. In South Africa, ambulance emergency numbers commonly listed include 10177, and 112 from a cellphone. The Western Cape Government also explains that South Africa does not have one single emergency number for every emergency, so it is important to know the correct number for the situation.

Official emergency numbers
For official emergency contact information, visit the Western Cape Government emergency numbers page.

1. Stay calm enough to think clearly

When an ambulance is taking long time, panic is a normal reaction. People may start shouting, calling many different people at once, moving the patient unnecessarily, or giving unclear information over the phone. The problem is that panic can make it harder to help the patient properly.

The first thing to do is to take a moment and focus on what needs to happen next. The patient needs someone who can observe them, speak clearly to emergency services, give accurate directions, and notice if their condition changes. Even if you are scared, try to slow your voice down when speaking on the phone. Give short, clear answers. Do not exaggerate, but also do not minimise what is happening.

If there are many people around, ask one person to take charge of communication with the ambulance service. Too many people calling at the same time can create confusion. One calm person who knows what is happening can make a big difference.

2. Call back if the patient’s condition gets worse

After calling for an ambulance, it is not always useful to call back every few minutes just to ask where the ambulance is. However, you should call back immediately if the patient’s condition becomes worse.

For example, call back if the person becomes unconscious, starts struggling to breathe, has severe chest pain, starts fitting, becomes confused, becomes very weak, or starts bleeding heavily. You should also call back if the situation around the patient becomes unsafe, such as violence, fire, traffic danger, or another risk at the scene.

When you call back, explain that you have already called and that the patient’s condition has changed. Give the location again and describe the change clearly. This helps the call taker update the emergency call with the latest information.

3. Keep your phone on and stay reachable

After making the emergency call, keep your phone close to you. Do not switch it off, do not put it on silent, and do not allow the battery to die if you can avoid it.

The ambulance crew or the emergency communication centre may need to phone you back. They may need clearer directions, more information about the patient, or help finding the exact location. If they call and nobody answers, it can delay the response even more.

This is especially important in areas where houses are not clearly numbered, street names are not visible, or the patient is in a flat, informal settlement, farm, school, workplace, or public space. In these situations, the caller often becomes the most important guide between the ambulance and the patient.

4. Give directions like you are guiding someone who has never been there before

One of the most common problems during an emergency is that people give a location that makes sense to them, but not to the ambulance crew. Saying “we are in Langelitsha” or “we are near the shops” may not be enough if the crew does not know the area well or if there are many shops nearby.

Give the clearest location possible. Mention the house number, street name, area, nearest main road, nearby school, clinic, church, petrol station, community hall, spaza shop, bridge, or any landmark that is easy to see. Also mention anything that helps identify the exact place, such as the colour of the gate, the type of building, or whether the patient is inside a yard, behind a house, upstairs, or next to the road.

A better example would be: “We are in Thembani, Langelitsha, close to the community hall. It is the blue gate, second house after the spaza shop. Someone will wait outside with a phone light.” That kind of direction is much more helpful than only giving the area name.

5. Send someone outside to look out for the ambulance

If it is safe, send someone outside to wait for the ambulance. This person should stand where the ambulance can see them and guide the crew to the patient.

This is helpful because the ambulance may arrive in the area but still struggle to find the exact house or building. A person waiting outside can wave the crew down, open the gate, control dogs, show the safest entrance, and take the crew directly to the patient. At night, they can use a cellphone torch or another light, but only if it is safe to stand outside.

If the area is unsafe, do not put another person at risk. Rather explain the safety concern clearly when you phone back. Emergency crews also need to know if there is violence, weapons, aggressive crowds, dangerous animals, fire, or any other risk on the scene.

6. Keep the patient safe and do not move them unnecessarily

While waiting, focus on keeping the patient as safe as possible. If the patient is lying in the road, near fire, near violence, in water, or in another dangerous place, you may need to move them away from immediate danger if it is safe to do so.

However, if there is no immediate danger, avoid moving the patient unnecessarily. This is especially important after a motor vehicle crash, fall, assault, or any situation where the person may have a head, neck, back, or spinal injury. Moving someone without proper support can sometimes make the injury worse.

Rather make the area around the patient safe. Keep crowds away, give the patient space, and protect their dignity. If the person is conscious, speak to them calmly. Tell them help has been called and that someone is watching them. A calm voice can help reduce fear while you wait.

7. Watch the patient carefully and notice changes

While waiting for the ambulance, someone should stay with the patient and watch them closely. Do not leave them alone unless you have no choice.

Notice whether the patient is awake, breathing normally, speaking clearly, becoming more confused, becoming pale, sweating, vomiting, bleeding, fitting, or becoming weaker. If the patient is conscious, ask simple questions such as their name, where they are, what happened, and whether the pain is getting worse.

If something changes, call back and update emergency services. The person answering the call cannot see the patient, so your observations matter. You are the eyes on the scene until the ambulance arrives.

8. Prepare important information without delaying care

While waiting, gather information that may help the ambulance crew. This may include the patient’s name, age, medical conditions, medication, allergies, clinic card, hospital folder, ID document, and medical aid information if available.

You do not need to delay emergency care because you are searching for documents. The patient comes first. But if there is another person who can collect the documents while someone else stays with the patient, it can help the crew and hospital later.

It is also useful to know what happened and when it started. For example, when did the chest pain begin? When was the person last seen well? When did the accident happen? When did the seizure start? These details can help healthcare workers understand the urgency and history of the case.

9. Do not give food, alcohol, or unnecessary medication

When people are scared, they often want to “do something” while waiting. Sometimes they give water, food, pain tablets, alcohol, home remedies, or medication that was not prescribed for the patient. This can be risky.

If the patient may need an operation, is vomiting, is very drowsy, is unconscious, has difficulty swallowing, or is badly injured, giving food or drink can be dangerous. Giving medication without medical advice can also create problems, especially if the person is allergic, already on medication, pregnant, elderly, or has a serious condition.

The safest approach is to keep the patient comfortable, monitor them, and follow advice from emergency services or a healthcare professional. Do not force the patient to eat or drink.

10. Understand your rights, but also document what happened properly

South Africa’s Constitution says that no one may be refused emergency medical treatment. This is an important right, especially when someone needs urgent care.

However, this right does not always mean that an ambulance will arrive immediately. Emergency medical services still have to deal with available resources, distance, call priority, safety risks, and the number of emergencies happening at the same time. This does not make the waiting easier, but it explains why it is important to communicate clearly and keep updating the emergency service if the patient gets worse.

If you want to complain or follow up later, write down the facts. Record the time you called, the number you called, the location, the patient’s condition, whether you received a reference number, the time the ambulance arrived, and what happened while waiting. A clear, factual complaint is stronger than one written only from anger.

What If You Cannot Afford Medical Aid in South Africa?

Final thoughts

When an ambulance is taking long, it can feel like nothing is happening. But there are still important things you can do. Stay reachable. Give clear directions. Send someone outside if it is safe. Keep the patient calm and protected. Watch for changes. Call back if the patient becomes worse. Prepare useful information for the crew.

Most importantly, do not let panic take over the whole situation. The goal is to help the ambulance crew find the patient as quickly as possible and to keep the patient as safe as possible while waiting.

Emergency situations are stressful, and families often remember them for a long time. A delay can feel painful and unfair, especially when someone you love is suffering. But in that moment, clear communication, safety, and calm action can make a real difference.

You may also want to read our related guide on patient rights in South African public hospitals.