MORE people than ever called 999 and asked for paramedics across the two counties in December.

But not all the calls were strictly necessary - in fact, one was from a man who cut himself shaving.

Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service NHS Trust sent ambulances to 5,092 calls - 3,861 of them in Worcestershire, 1,214 in Herefordshire and 17 in other counties.

It was the highest number of calls the service had ever received in one month, and 7.2 per cent more than the 4,725 who rang for an ambulance in December 2004.

The Trust is now reminding people in Worcestershire and Herefordshire when they should - and should not - call an ambulance.

Director of operations Frances Martin said: "Ambulances are for critical or life-threatening emergencies such as loss of consciousness, heavy blood loss, suspected broken bones, persistent chest pain, difficulty breathing, an overdose, ingestion or poisoning."

"We do get calls to all sorts of other less serious cases, where patients could quite easily see their GP.

"For example, we had a call last week to someone who had cut himself shaving.

"This is not a good use of emergency resources."

She added that the rise in calls to the service was in line with national increases in 999 demand.

"Increases in the numbers of people with heart conditions and diabetes will have a big effect on our service," she said.

"There is also a steady increase in the number of cases related to alcohol, although this wasn't a big problem over Christmas.

"Help us to give you the best treatment by calling an ambulance only when it is a genuine emergency, and referring other conditions to pharmacists, GPs or inor minor injuries units."