In a thank you letter sent to the HCM City Department of Health, the tourist expressed her gratitude for the calm attitude and professional communication of the 115 emergency hotline that helped rescue her two weeks ago.

At 9 am on September 13, the HCM City 115 Center received a distress call from a foreign female. Hoang Thi Tho, who was on duty that day, said that when she picked up the phone, she heard the panicked voice of a woman speaking in English.

Hearing the voice echoing in a small space, the coordinator asked for more information and realized that she was stuck in a bathroom at an unknown hotel, with no one around.

Tho tried to calm the tourist and continued to raise questions. Tho believed that there was no sign of emergency, and the tourist was not suffering from any physical problem. She had just panicked because she had been stuck a long time.

After getting basic information from the tourist, Tho reported the case to Dr Dong Ngoc Hien, who was the chief of the team on duty. Hien then gave support to the tourist from afar, raising questions to know if the tourist was in a dangerous situation. With patience and calm, Hien was sure that there was no sign of trauma or illness, and that the most important thing was finding the place of the caller.

As the tourist spoke with the 115 service, she calmed down and her memory came back. She provided the name of the motel where she was staying. The coordinator found the place on the map and immediately called the hotline of the motel, and informed them about the situation of the guest. As the hotel had three branches, the officer of the hotel then promptly informed the hotel’s network to find the tourist.

The coordinator kept contact with the tourist to reassure her. Thanks to the cooperation between the coordinator and the hotel, the tourist was found after 15 minutes.

The coordinator and doctor’s quick response, clear communication, and calm demeanor made a difference. The tourist said she was extremely grateful and believed they deserved recognition for their excellent service.

Under the project to develop a professional foreign emergency system by 2030, the 115 switchboard will be gradually upgraded to a 115 emergency reception and coordination portal with a team of professional dispatchers, using many technological applications such as automatic positioning of callers' phone numbers and software to improve communication in English.

Bach Duong