The number of patients suffering delays after arriving at A&E by ambulance has risen by 64 per cent in two years Credit: Press Association
Soaring numbers of sick patients are being forced to wait in ambulances outside Accident & Emergency departments amid a deadly “epidemic” of delays, health officials have warned.
A Telegraph investigation reveals record waits in casualty units, with patients spending up to nine hours in parked ambulances or with paramedics in hospital corridors before being seen by a doctor or nurse.
Emails seen by this newspaper reveal that orders have been given to abandon patients in hospitals after 30 minutes, so that paramedics can return to their duties.
Last night one of Britain’s most senior A&E doctors warned that hospitals had reached a state of “gridlock” with safety at risk and patients “crammed in like sardines”.
For full Article see The Telegraph 23 October 2016