Farron proposes solution to A&E ambulance queue crisis
Figures obtained by local MP Tim Farron reveal that ambulances are being forced to wait up to four hours to drop patients off at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary. Tim has repeated his call for an Urgent Care Centre at Westmorland General to relieve the pressure in Lancaster and provide a better service to South Lakes residents.
The figures show that over the last 4 weeks, over 100 ambulances have had to wait an hour or more to turnaround at the RLI. On the 3rd January, this amounted to one in four of all ambulances that were dropping patients off.
The longest turnaround time of any ambulance was on the 12th December, when one ambulance had to wait for 3 hours 46 minutes, while that same day a further 3 ambulances took between 2-3 hours and another 9 took between 1-2 hours.
Tim said: "These shocking figures show the amount of time that is being wasted because the Royal Lancaster Infirmary is under such pressure. This is bad for those who need to use these services, and means dedicated ambulance staff are wasting time sitting in queues.
"The simplest solution to this growing crisis is for an Urgent Care Centre to be set up at Westmorland General Hospital, which could deal with minor emergencies. This would relieve the pressure on Lancaster, meaning ambulances could drop patients in Kendal and get back out far more quickly. An Urgent Care Centre in Kendal makes sense for patients and makes sense for the NHS."
Residents wishing to sign Tim's petition for an Urgent Care Centre at Westmorland General Hospital can go to:
www.timfarron.co.uk/urgentcarecentre