"Delay in ambulance transport"

About: Scottish Ambulance Service / Patient Transport Service

(as a relative),

My husband had an appointment for an endoscopy at 1: 30 at the Ayr hospital. The ambulatory transport we had booked arrived at 1: 00 making him late for his appointment. However. The clinic squeezed him in so we avoided the need to make another appointment, I cannot thank the clinic staff enough for this.

However, it meant that he finished in the clinic too late for the ambulance to pick him up for the return journey. The clinic closed at 5: 00, nurses there took him to day surgery so that the ambulance could collect him from there. They called the ambulance service to let them know. At 8: 00pm when the day surgery closed my husband had still not been collected. Staff at this surgery took him to CDU where, at 9: 15, they offered him a bed for the night as they could see he was exhausted. My husband turned down this kind offer. All he wanted was to get back home.

An ambulance finally arrived after repeated calls from the nurses at the different clinics. The hospital staff were so nice to him, they made him drinks and gave him biscuits to keep him going. I have nothing but thanks for their kindness.

The ambulance service was shocking, there seems to have little thought given to the wellbeing of an elderly person in their 80s. My husband was thoroughly exhausted when he returned home.

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Responses

Response from Chris Conroy, Head of Patient Transport Service, Scottish Ambulance Service 7 years ago
Chris Conroy
Head of Patient Transport Service,
Scottish Ambulance Service
Submitted on 01/07/2017 at 10:27
Published on Care Opinion on 02/07/2017 at 19:53


Dear snownj96,

I am extremely disappointed to read your husband had such a negative experience of our Patient Transport Service (PTS). This is absolutely not the level of service we aim to deliver when supporting patients across Scotland. I am extremely sorry for any distress and anxiety this may have caused you and your husband.

Could I ask you to contact me so that I can look in to this for you? It will allow me to make sure all appropriate arrangements are in place for your future journeys with the Patient Transport Service and to allow me and my team to learn from this.

My contact number is 0141 810 6101 or please email me at scotamb.accadmin@nhs.net

Best Wishes,

Chris

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