Ambulance waiting times ‘disgrace’, says man whose mum died waiting for ambulance

The latest NHS  emergency waiting time  figures for England are among the worst on record.

Behind every figure are real people. Patients waiting for treatment in often desperate situations – and for some that wait can be fatal.

56-year-old Bina Patel died last October from a suspected cardiac arrest. Her son Akshay says he called for an ambulance six times, and that it didn’t arrive until almost an hour after his first call. When I spoke to him earlier he told me he believes she may have survived if it had arrived sooner – a claim the ambulance trust denies.

The North West Ambulance service Trust said in a statement this evening: “The amount of time it took for help to arrive is unacceptable and not how we want to care for our patients. Since the tragic loss of Mrs Patel, we have met with her son Akshay to offer our condolences and discuss the circumstances surrounding the incident at length.”