A&E pressures force ambulances to queue at Scarborough hospital

The GMB Union has said paramedics are waiting “for several hours” to drop patients off at an A&E department. A video filmed Deanne Ferguson of the union showed a line of ambulances outside Scarborough Hospital earlier this week.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service said there were handover delays at hospitals while the hospital rust said it was under “extreme pressure”.

At one point, 14 ambulances were queuing up outside the A&E department to drop patients off.

Targets for hospital trusts state handovers should take place within 60 minutes, with 95% taking place within 30 minutes and 65% taking place within 15 minutes.

Ms Ferguson said “We saw paramedics who had responded to 999 calls several hours ago still waiting to drop patients off inside the A&E.”

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said the “extreme pressure” at the hospitals was having an impact at A&E.

A spokesperson at the trust said “High numbers of patients waiting to be discharged who no longer need to be in hospital results in patients waiting longer for beds to become available.”

Nick Smith, Executive Director of Operations at Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said staff were working with partners to address the issue with slower-than-expected handovers at busy hospitals.

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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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