For residents of five safety regions in the eastern Netherlands, 112 emergency calls went to a different dispatch center on at least two recent nights because the regional ambulance command center in Apeldoorn lacked the staff to answer them.
In the night from September 30 to October 1, Control Room North Netherlands handled every 112 call after Control Room East Netherlands went “op zwart” — effectively dark — and the same happened again a few days later, NOS reported.
Apeldoorn Dispatch Center Goes Dark on Emergency Calls
Meldkamer Oost-Nederland, the largest dispatch center in the Netherlands, has been in a state of crisis for months due to chronic understaffing, Omroep Gelderland reported based on internal documents. The center in Apeldoorn coordinates ambulance, police, and fire services for five safety regions: Gelderland-Zuid, Gelderland-Midden, Noordoost-Nederland, IJsselland, and Twente.
Staff shortages are most acute at Gelderland-Midden and Gelderland-Zuid, leaving gaps in the roster that employees from the northern dispatch center must fill. On the night of September 30 to October 1, Meldkamer Noord-Nederland had to take over all 112 calls, and a few days later the eastern center again could not accept emergency calls.
“This is about life and death,” Patients Federation Netherlands said in response. “Anyone who calls 112 and needs immediate care must be able to get it on time.”
Five Safety Regions Share One Crisis-Hit Command Center
The cooperating ambulance regions acknowledge that staffing levels are under pressure. They cite a rising demand for care and an increase in 112 calls, a shortage of nurses, staff turnover and high absenteeism as causes. At a relatively small, specialized organization like a dispatch center, changes in staff availability are quickly felt, the regions said.
The regions dispute the characterization that the center goes completely dark. Centralists still maintain contact with ambulances and accept calls from professional care providers, they stated. Incoming 112 lines are only temporarily taken over by another dispatch center during those incidental moments.
National Backup in Driebergen Now Distributes East Netherlands Calls
To prevent the Apeldoorn center from going dark more often, a crisis team has implemented measures: employees have temporarily stopped training and side tasks, supervisors who are normally overstaffed have been scheduled, and the Health and Youth Care Inspectorate has been informed. To spread the load across the other nine regional dispatch centers, 112 calls are now routed through the national dispatch center in Driebergen, which distributes the reports.
The regions state that the national network functions as intended and that 112 is always answered. However, they could not say whether wait times actually increased due to the understaffing, or whether longer waits have consequences for patients. “Based on the available data, we have no indications that patient safety is at risk,” the regions said. “We understand that every second can feel long for someone calling 112, certainly in an emergency.”
New Hires Need Nine Months Before Handling Calls Alone
To tackle the understaffing in the long term, the ambulance regions are trying to train more people, but new employees only become fully deployable after nine months of training. They are also working toward closer cooperation, though each region currently has its own methods and organization. A legislative change is in the works that would make cooperation easier by placing employer status under a single regional ambulance provider, but it must still pass both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport has been informed and said it will remain in contact to see what is needed or can be improved at the national level. In mid-November, the national government will launch a campaign urging citizens to call 112 only for acute or life-threatening situations.
Questions About the East Netherlands 112 Outages
When the Apeldoorn center goes dark, another control room temporarily takes over the 112 calls. The national dispatch center in Driebergen receives the calls and distributes them to available centers, ensuring 112 is always answered, according to the cooperating ambulance regions.
The regions state that based on available data they have no indications that patient safety is at risk, though they acknowledge it is never possible to say with certainty whether a longer wait has consequences for an individual patient.
New employees require nine months of training before they are fully operational, and the proposed law change to improve cooperation must still pass both chambers of parliament, meaning a structural solution could take considerable time, the Ministry of Health said.
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