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| Brian Dash talking to Terry Scriven outside Hythe hospital |
Liberal Democrat Campaigners have expressed alarm that the Ambulance Service in Hampshire has again failed to meet important targets.
The government has set targets relating to the time an emergency 999 call is made and the time taken for an ambulance to arrive. Despite a major re-organisation, with Hampshire Ambulance Service merging into a larger South Central service and undertakings that the service would improve, recent figures show that the service is still badly under-performing.
The bad news was relayed to the Hampshire County Council’s Health Overview Scrutiny Committee today. The figures highlighted significant failures to meet targets on both the most serious Category “A” calls (8 minute response time) and for Category “B” calls, whereby an Ambulance crew is expected to respond within a 14 – 19 minute time.
Prospective Member of Parliament for New Forest East, Terry Scriven, says “I’m sure that the failure to meet these targets is not the fault of the hard working Ambulance staff who endure daily risk and stress in responding as quickly as they can to emergency calls. However, there is a need to look at the resources to make sure there are enough staff and vehicles to provide an effective service”.
County Councillor Brian Dash says “Traffic congestion and a large number of unnecessary calls are making things more difficult for these hard pressed staff. It is really important that the targets are met. Even a few minutes can make all the difference to somebody who has suffered a serious accident or a heart attack”.
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