THE ambulance service has revealed it is currently facing ‘the highest ever level of sustained demand’, after queues of first responders were seen outside Poole Hospital this weekend.
On Sunday, there were reports of more than 16 ambulances queueing on the street outside the accident and emergency department at Poole Hospital.
A spokesperson from South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWAST) said:
“We continue to experience the highest-ever level of sustained demand on our service.
“Our response times are directly affected by the time it takes us to handover patients into busy hospital emergency departments which is longer than we have ever seen before.
READ MORE: NHS pressure as ambulances queue outside Poole Hospital
“We are losing many more hours compared with recent years which causes our ambulances to queue outside hospitals and unable to respond to other patients and has an inevitable impact on the service we can provide.
“We are sorry that this means people are waiting longer than we would expect.”
As emergency health services across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole experience a building bottleneck of pressure, the ambulance service is calling for a ‘system wide solution’.
The spokesperson for SWAST said: “This is something which requires a health system wide solution and it is an absolute priority for us and our NHS partners to reduce these delays, so we can be there for our patients, while prioritising those who are most seriously injured and ill.
'Commitment, focus and compassion'
“We would also like to take this opportunity to thank our colleagues for their commitment, focus and compassion during what is a very difficult time.
“Patients who need urgent medical help or advice are encouraged to visit or to call 111, which is free and available 24/7. This will ensure they get the right care, and the ambulance service can focus on those most in need.
“For on-going or non-urgent medical concerns or if they need medicines, people should contact their local GP surgery or a local pharmacy.”
As reported, Professor Alyson O'Donnell, chief medical officer at University Hospitals Dorset (UHD), told the Daily Echo yesterday that the past few weeks has seen "some of the most significant and sustained pressures on our hospitals faced in recent years".
“During this time our first priority has to be providing the most urgent and lifesaving care. This means that many patients in less urgent need of care may have to wait longer than we would like, including in ambulances at our emergency departments,” she said.
“We apologise to those patients and ask for their understanding during this time of exceptional pressures.”
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The public is being urged to only use A&E departments when absolutely necessary and use NHS 111, GPs, pharmacies and walk-in centres for less urgent health information and advice.
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