Ambulance delay caused Manchester doctor's death, claims son

Dr Aseem Malhotra (right) said it took more than 30 minutes for an ambulance to arrive for Prof Kailash Chand

A celebrated doctor would have "almost certainly survived" if an ambulance was not delayed, his son has claimed.

Prof Kailash Chand OBE, 73, a former leader of the British Medical Association, died after suffering a cardiac arrest in July.

His son Dr Aseem Malhotra said it took more than 30 minutes for an ambulance to arrive, more than four times the NHS's target.

North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) said it was investigating the incident.

Former Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham were among those who paid tribute to Prof Chand, who lived in Didsbury, after his death.

NHS England's national target for responding to 999 calls about people with life-threatening injuries and illnesses is seven minutes.

"The ambulance did not turn up for over 30 minutes [and] by the time they did and they [paramedics] attached the cardiac monitor to dad I could see it was a flat line," cardiologist Dr Malhotra said.

He said he later discovered there was a "widespread problem" across the country with emergency response times at the time of his father's death.

"The government were aware ambulances were not able to meet targets because of staff shortages and increasing demand but they chose not to tell the public about it," he said.

Dr Malhotra says he believes his father would have "almost certainly survived" if the ambulance was not delayed

Dr Malhotra said the decision to withhold the information was "appalling" and "shows a complete lack of accountability and transparency".

He told BBC North West Tonight had he known about ambulance delays he would have asked a neighbour to take his father to hospital "straight away without waiting for an ambulance".

"I'm almost certain he would have survived," he said.

"I am personally holding the government directly responsible for the death of my father and I am already considering taking legal action against the government for this."

A NWAS spokesperson said: "We offer our sincere condolences to Dr Malhotra and his family and can confirm that we have received a formal complaint from him.

"We are investigating the incident and will liaise with the family to discuss the matter further."

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