Probe into A&E delay deaths

Women treated in ambulances
AN investigation is under way after two patients died within days of being left waiting in ambulances outside the Royal Oldham Hospital.

The two women, in their mid to late eighties, couldn’t get into the over-stretched hospital for seven and 20 minutes respectively. They were assessed by ambulance crews as very sick after suspected heart attacks but all five resuscitation beds were full and the accident and emergency department was so busy that all but the most urgent cases were being sent to other hospitals.

The two patients were treated by a casualty doctor and senior nurse in the ambulances, and it was later ascertained that neither had actually had a heart attack, but both died on wards — one the following day and the other three days later.

The incidents happened last Monday night and was reported to the regional health authority, NHS North West, by ambulance chiefs.

Dr Nick Gili, A&E consultant and clinical director of unscheduled care at the Royal Oldham Hospital, said the hospital had been “particularly busy” that night.

He said: “We are sorry that there was a delay in transferring patients from waiting ambulances to inside the A&E department. However, our A&E team were put on standby by the ambulance service to receive these patients and the ambulances were met on arrival by both medical and nursing staff.

“They were able to commence appropriate treatment in the ambulance prior to transferring the patients in question to the department. We have been in touch with the patients’ families to discuss the care provided.

“We are working with North West Ambulance Service and NHS Oldham as a priority to look into how we can make sure that patients are admitted to A&E quickly on the small number of occasions when A&E departments experience very high levels of demand and if any improvements can be made to avoid delays and prevent this happening again.”

The hospital has not received any complaints from the families of the patients.

The incident comes two months after bosses at the Pennine Acute Trust, which runs the hospital, closed the A&E at neighbouring Rochdale Infirmary.

Unison officials say it is completely unacceptable to leave critically ill patients in ambulances outside A&E departments.

The Patients Council said they had reports of significant overcrowding at the hospital.

An NHS North West spokesman said: “We are working closely with Pennine Acute Hospitals Trust, North West Ambulance Service and NHS Oldham to understand the pressures that the Royal Oldham Hospital A&E was under on the night of May 16 and to see if there are any improvements to be made or actions to be taken.”