Ambulance cover 21st century scandal, says chairman McGrady

Ambulance cover 21st century scandal, says chairman McGrady

5 August 2020

HEALTH campaigners have criticised the lack of emergency ambulance cover in the area.

At a meeting of the Down Community Health Committee in Killough last Wednesday evening, it was claimed that on that night, only 11 of 16 ambulances in the eastern division — which covers Down District — were available.

Also at the meeting, it was claimed that there were 96 patients at the Ulster Hospital’s emergency department that night, 35 of whom required to be admitted but there were no beds available. 

It was also alleged that last Wednesday evening non-surgical patients were being diverted from the Royal Victoria Hospital to the Mater in Belfast as due to a bed shortage.

The figures emerged during a discussion on emergency ambulance cover with last week’s meeting coming after senior ambulance chiefs had warned that response times in the Newry, Mourne and Down Council area and across the province could be delayed as coronavirus lockdown restrictions continue to ease.

Three weeks ago, Ambulance Service officials revealed that as as normality resumes, the organisation was facing “increased challenges” in maintaining planned levels of cover and that the focus would be on the most serious cases.

The anticipated in cover or delayed response times is being blamed on several factors, including increased activity levels without a rise in staff numbers, with the Ambulance Service confirming that almost one fifth of its frontline staff were absent from work due to ordinary sickness or reasons related to Covid-19.

The organisation said longer term trends had seen demand for services rise in recent years without an accompanying increase in staff numbers, with a recent independent capacity review identifying the need for 300 extra staff.

Community health committee chairman, Eamonn McGrady, said the Ambulance Service has been heavily reliant on the voluntary sector and private contractors.

And he issued a reminder that over the past few years in its annual report, the organisation has expressed concerns about investment, under resourcing and staffing issues.

“We know the issues that affect ambulances in our particular areas and you cannot change local emergency departments, stroke or urgent care services unless you have ambulance cover sorted first. This has just never been done,” said the health group chairman.

“We don’t have enough ambulances in our area and we never have had. With the speed with which hospitals could be built in response to Covid-19 and other aspects of the pandemic response, it is obvious that there is a need for a lot more ambulances.”

Describing some of the emergency ambulance response times in the Down area as “awful,” the health group chairman said the criticism was not a reflection on those who deliver the service on the ground.

“There are suggestions about changing the categories for calls to the Ambulance Service and how they are recorded, but we we know that there aren’t enough vehicles or trained crews,” said Mr McGrady.

“Ambulance responses must be provided by properly trained, qualified paramedics and maybe it would be a good start to paying these staff properly for what they are doing and look after them.”

In relation to the number of ambulances available to provide cover in the Down area last week, campaigners such a scenario is not uncommon.

They say it’s been happening repeatedly for years and is simply not good enough, serving only to place “appalling pressure” on frontline staff, controllers, managers and emergency department staff.

Mr McGrady said that based on the figures outlined at last week’s meeting, the safety of local people had been jeopardised by a shortage of ambulances. He said that for that to happen in the 21st century was nothing short of a “scandal”.