Critically ill heart attack and stroke victims could be forced to wait 40 MINUTES for ambulances under ‘secret’ NHS scheme to downgrade emergency calls
Liberal Democrats leader blasts new proposals as 'frankly dangerous' as trial is carried out by Yorkshire Ambulance Service
SECRET NHS plans to downgrade emergency calls could see heart attack and stroke victims wait up to 40 MINUTES for an ambulance.
Under a trial covering five million patients, paramedics will no longer be sent immediately if patients are already with a GP or nurse.
The pilot is being carried out by Yorkshire Ambulance Service and also tells GPs to fill out a form before dialling 999 to ensure they have all the information they need to hand.
Normally, patients having a stroke, heart attack, or with meningitis or sepsis are dispatched an ambulance within eight minutes.
But NHS bosses believe patients can afford to wait longer if they are already with a doctor or nurse who can perform emergency CPR if required.
The ambulance service is part of a major NHS England pilot to reduce pressures on the ambulance service which is struggling with demand.
The issue is being made worse by a soaring volume of 999 calls fuelled by an ageing population and patients being unable to get hold of a GP.
Under the new proposals, patients who are with a GP or practice nurse may end up waiting up to 40 minutes.
Dr Dean Eggitt, a GP from near Doncaster, told the : "Now the only way you can get an eight-minute ambulance is if you’re dead, or dying.
"I’m worried as a doctor but also worried as a patient. With a heart attack, every minute is dead heart cells. It’s the same with a stroke, every minute is dead brain cells. There are constant campaigns saying every minute counts. Every minute you wait brain cells are going to die. Yet now they’re saying you can wait from eight minutes to potentially 40 minutes."
Set out in a document sent by Yorkshire Ambulance Service to GPs, the proposals state that an ambulance will only be dispatched within eight minutes if someone’s heart has stopped beating or they are unable to breathe.
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They instruct doctors and practice nurses to complete a form before dialling 999, to ensure they have the ‘required information’.
These include the patient’s name, age, why they need an ambulance and whether there is a defibrillator nearby.
But there are fears among GP's that these questions will use up precious time and distract doctors when they need to be caring for the critically-ill patient.
Tim Farron, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: "Plans like this are frankly dangerous. This will just put people’s lives at risk."
An NHS England spokesman added: ‘The letter from Yorkshire Ambulance Service does not relate to 999 calls made by the public, but is part of locally-determined arrangements to transport patients to hospital who have already been assessed by a GP or other health care professional."
A Yorkshire Ambulance Service spokesman said: "We confirm that updated guidance has been issued to GPs and healthcare professionals in the Yorkshire and Humber region which is specific to them making a request for an ambulance when a patient is in their care."
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