Fresh pledge to solve Shropshire ambulance crisis amid 'extreme pressures'

NHS Shropshire Telford and Wrekin was updating Shropshire Council's Health and Wellbeing Board on Thursday about what is being done to tackle emergency care issues amid "extreme pressures" on the ambulance service.

This week West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) said dozens of people have been left waiting. At one stage, there were 18 ambulances waiting outside Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, with the longest wait being nearly seven-and-a-half hours.

Meanwhile, there were 43 cases of people waiting for ambulances at once, having phoned 999. WMAS stopped short of declaring a critical incident, though accepted it was under "extreme pressure".

The Shropshire Star has been told of several shocking examples of patients being left waiting for ambulances. Last November, Oswestry woman Sandra Francis, 66, died from a cardiac arrest after an ambulance took 40 minutes to reach her. In January this year, Darren Childs was left waiting for 37 minutes when his young daughter had a seizure scare.

Since then, the situation has continued to get worse, with WMAS nursing director Mark Doherty recently predicting August 17 as the "Titanic moment", when ambulances won't be available to pick up patients.

Setting out the current situation, NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care System (ICS) said: "Across March and April 2022 we have seen the highest level of Covid-19 patients in our hospitals, the highest numbers of care homes closed to admissions and the highest numbers of staff sickness absence than at any other time during the pandemic. This has exacerbated some of our underlying challenges."

The national framework for improving emergency care delivery, which was released in September last year, sets out a 10-point plan which includes improving hospital patient flow, reviewing staff Covid isolation rules and ensuring a sustainable workforce.

The ICS added: "There is a significant amount of work currently being undertaken to improve the delivery in both the shorter and longer term. This report provides a point in time position regarding the work in hand to address immediate issues and pressures as well as our aspirations for the future."

The council's Health and Wellbeing Board meeting will be held today at 9.30am. To watch, visit shropshire.gov.uk/committee-services/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=217&MId=4588 and find a link on the agenda front sheet.