15 ambulances forced to queue outside hospital A&E in 'worst scenes since Covid'
A paramedic has described the 'total chaos' at an over-stretched hospital's A&E department on Boxing Day, with images showing up to 15 ambulances lined up outside.
The scenes at Royal Bolton Hospital were said to be the worst 'since Covid', with wards rammed with waiting times of up to four hours. One mum who took her son to the emergency department was advised to call a taxi instead of an ambulance after phoning the 111 service.
The paramedic, who wished to remain anonymous, arrived at the hospital with a patient yesterday lunchtime and described the troubling situation. "It was chaos. It has not been like this for years, since Covid. It was absolutely total chaos and I don't use the term lightly. The staff at A&E are doing everything that they can, but it is bad. There are ambulances everywhere.
A paramedic said it is the worst they have seen it since Covid (Manchester Evening News)"We arrived at the hospital with a patient and had to wait nearly three-and-a-half hours. That was just before lunch, but it is even worse now," the medic told the Manchester Evening News. On it's website, bosses said A&E was 'very busy' with waiting times of up to four hours.
A message said: "There is no room for ambulance patients. We take them in through a separate door, but there is no capacity in A&E to accept ambulance patients. We were all just sat there and that means we cannot go to other jobs. It has not been like it since Covid."
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The paramedic suggested the situation appeared to be happening just at the Royal Bolton - ambulances, they said, weren't waiting at other hospital A&E units. They said it might have been caused because it's a Bank Holiday and GP surgeries haven't been open - or because more people are dialling 999. "People do not know where to go," said the paramedic. "So the default position is call for an ambulance. Obviously we are there for people who really need us.
"It seems to be a lack of capacity at the Royal Bolton. The system is broken. If we finish late that means we have to start late tomorrow, so it is going to have a knock-on impact. We went to Salford earlier and that was quiet. It just seems to be the Royal Bolton."
At around 3pm today, 12 ambulances were parked up outside A&E. Inside the waiting area was busy with around two thirds of the seats taken. One woman, who had accompanied her son to A&E, said: "We called 111 and they got us a taxi rather than an ambulance and told us to come straight here. My heart sank a bit when I saw how busy it was, but within about 15 minutes he'd been seen and in another 15 minutes he was in a cubicle, so he got through pretty fast."
The hospital in Farnworth, Bolton, has been reached out to for a statement by the Manchester Evening News. On their website, the hospital staff have posted that A&E is 'very busy' and people might wait up to four hours. They've put up a notice saying: "Our Emergency Department is currently experiencing very high levels of activity. Waiting time is approximately two to four hours.
"No matter how busy our Emergency Department is, the most seriously ill and injured patients will always be seen immediately. If you choose to visit us and do not need urgent or emergency treatment, you will be safely supported to access an alternative service.
"Choosing the most appropriate place for care allows our ambulance and emergency department staff to concentrate on people whose lives are at risk, and can potentially save you a long wait. Our Emergency Department is not an alternative to a GP appointment. If your GP is closed you can go to 111. nhs.uk or call 111, which will direct you to the best local service."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]
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