The disclosure has prompted fears that seriously unwell or badly injured patients may receive inadequate care from a less-qualified member of ambulance staff lacking a paramedic’s skills.
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, said: “When you call 999 in a life-or-death situation you expect a rapid response from a fully qualified paramedic, so many people will be shocked to learn that this isn’t always the case.
Louise Ansari, Healthwatch’s chief executive, said: “These figures are likely to be of concern for patients, especially as they show a ‘postcode lottery’ when it comes to the level of fully trained paramedics attending category 1 and 2 calls.”
“AACE has no particular patient safety concerns around this data and our committed, mixed crews attend thousands of incidents every day, saving many lives, with the support of paramedics and specialists always available,” he said.
An NHS spokesperson said: “This misleading story fails to account for the fact that while most ambulance call outs will be attended by a fully qualified paramedic, there will be occasions where other dedicated healthcare professionals such as a doctor will arrive instead, so a patient can be promptly treated at the scene – this happens in health systems around the world.
“Thanks to hardworking staff, waiting times for ambulances has reduced for three consecutive months and are now 10 minutes quicker than a year ago, even as the NHS faced record levels of demand over summer.”
The original article contains 1,109 words, the summary contains 238 words. Saved 79%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The disclosure has prompted fears that seriously unwell or badly injured patients may receive inadequate care from a less-qualified member of ambulance staff lacking a paramedic’s skills.
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, said: “When you call 999 in a life-or-death situation you expect a rapid response from a fully qualified paramedic, so many people will be shocked to learn that this isn’t always the case.
Louise Ansari, Healthwatch’s chief executive, said: “These figures are likely to be of concern for patients, especially as they show a ‘postcode lottery’ when it comes to the level of fully trained paramedics attending category 1 and 2 calls.”
“AACE has no particular patient safety concerns around this data and our committed, mixed crews attend thousands of incidents every day, saving many lives, with the support of paramedics and specialists always available,” he said.
An NHS spokesperson said: “This misleading story fails to account for the fact that while most ambulance call outs will be attended by a fully qualified paramedic, there will be occasions where other dedicated healthcare professionals such as a doctor will arrive instead, so a patient can be promptly treated at the scene – this happens in health systems around the world.
“Thanks to hardworking staff, waiting times for ambulances has reduced for three consecutive months and are now 10 minutes quicker than a year ago, even as the NHS faced record levels of demand over summer.”
The original article contains 1,109 words, the summary contains 238 words. Saved 79%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!