Leicester ambulance patients wait over an hour for admission

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust has apologised to anyone who experienced delayed care

Almost a quarter of patients arriving at Leicester's emergency departments by ambulance had to wait more than an hour to be admitted in a week in November.

Out of 1,375 ambulances, 321 (23%) had a handover time of more than an hour in the week ending 26 November.

The national average during the same week was one in 12 (8.3%).

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (UHL), which runs the city's three hospitals, has apologised to anyone who experienced delayed care.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said a further 275 had to wait between 30 and 60 minutes at Leicester's hospitals that week.

Regular observations

The trust's chief operating officer, Jon Melbourne, said demand was currently "exceptionally high" - up 10% on this time last year according to UHL data.

He said: "We have made progress this year in reducing ambulance handover times, with an 80% reduction in the number of lost hours.

"However, we have started to see longer waits due to the onset of winter - demand for our emergency care services is currently exceptionally high."

Mr Melbourne added: "We ensure anyone who waits in an ambulance is cared for safely, with regular observations and clinical reviews.

"We will continue to do all we can to bring handover times down."

The trust said patients had observations taken within 15 minutes of arrival by ambulance and were assessed by a clinician within 30 minutes.

Tremendous pressure

NHS trusts have a nationally set target of admitting all patients within 30 minutes of their arrival.

In January, UHL hit that target for the first time in years, in part due to temporary measures put in place over the winter including a tent erected outside the city's A&E to hold patients.

The government announced in June that Leicester Royal Infirmary and Glenfield Hospital would benefit from a new ambulance hub and a discharge lounge to help get ambulances back on the road faster.

This followed two damning reports in 2022 by the Care Quality Commission into emergency care across the region.

Susannah Ashton, from East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), said: "The NHS and ambulance service is under tremendous pressure.

"We've invested in new vehicles, technology and recruited additional patient facing staff but continue to see handover delays outside hospitals."