Chest pain, difficulty breathing, signs of stroke, heavy bleeding, a rash that does not fade under a glass, seizures that do not stop, and anyone who cannot be woken.
Call 999 for:
- Chest pain or pain spreading to the arm, neck or jaw.
- Difficulty breathing, or breathing that is noisy, fast or laboured.
- Signs of stroke. Face drooped, arm weak, speech slurred: act fast, call immediately.
- Heavy bleeding that will not stop with pressure.
- A rash that does not fade when a glass is pressed against it.
- A seizure that lasts more than five minutes or repeats.
- Anyone unconscious or who cannot be roused.
- Severe allergic reaction: swelling of the face or throat, wheeze, collapse.
Call 111 when you need medical help but it is not an emergency, and it will direct you.
Never drive someone having a suspected heart attack or stroke to hospital yourself if an ambulance is available. Treatment starts in the ambulance and the timing genuinely changes outcomes.
The thing these have in common is that the damage accumulates by the minute. Stroke and heart attack outcomes depend heavily on time to treatment, and meningitis can progress in hours.
This is general information, not medical advice, and it does not replace a GP, a pharmacist or NHS 111. Call 999 in an emergency. Full disclaimer.