Call for MP to speak on 'unacceptable' ambulance delays
A father whose daughter had to wait 37 minutes for an ambulance when she had a seizure scare has called for his MP to raise the issues of "dangerously crowded" A&Es and unacceptable ambulance waiting times.
Ludlow councillor Darren Childs has asked Philip Dunne MP to speak up in the Westminster Hall debate on waiting times for ambulance and emergency care this morning.WEDS
In a letter to Mr Dunne, Councillor Childs wrote: "As your constituent, I am very concerned about the current level of pressure and strain on both the NHS and the entire urgent and emergency care pathway. Ambulance handover delays are unacceptable and emergency departments are dangerously crowded. Almost every day I see patients, often frail and vulnerable, endure agonisingly long waits in ambulances and on trolleys.
"I am writing to ask if you could raise this important matter during the debate in Parliament. It is important to raise awareness of the pressures facing the NHS now. Long waits harm patients family and friends and we would like to see greater transparency about the true scale of handover delays and crowding in our emergency departments."
Councillor Childs began campaigning after his one-year-old daughter Myla suffered a seizure. Her fever wouldn't come down. It took more than 36 minutes for the ambulance to arrive despite the target from NHS England being that half of Category 1 calls should be attended within seven minutes and 90 per cent in 15 minutes.
West Midlands Ambulance Service recently said handover delays had rocketed six-fold in 12 months, comparing April this year to April last year. And WMAS's nursing director Mark Doherty pinpointed August 17 as the service's "Titanic moment" - when ambulances won't be able to pick up patients.
