By Matthew Weaver
Guardian Unlimited
Copyright 2007 Guardian Unlimited
LONDON — The government is putting lives at risk by encouraging the use of one-person ambulance cars to meet crude targets, ambulance drivers warned today.
From next April, ambulance trusts must ensure that 75% of serious emergencies are reached by paramedics within eight minutes.
The target has forced trusts to increase the number of so-called “solo responders” at the expense of traditional ambulances crewed by two paramedics.
Sam Oestreicher, from the amulance drivers’ union Unison, said the plan could “potentially put patients at risk”.
Tom Reynolds, a London ambulance driver who blogs about his experiences, said of the new target: “I can turn up after eight minutes and save someone’s life and the job will be counted as a failure. If I turn up before eight minutes and someone dies, it’s a success.”
Speaking to Guardian Unlimited, he said: “Getting people there within eight minutes is not a bad idea, but the problem is that it encourages ambulance trusts to rely more on solo responders at the expense of proper double-crewed ambulances.”
Reynolds, a former solo responder, said that single crew cars could not offer the same level of care as a traditional ambulance.
He claimed they could be “stuck on a scene” waiting too long for vital back-up because the emergency dropped down in priority once a solo responder arrived.
“People who are seriously sick need to be in hospital, not have a solo responder holding their hand while praying in desperation for an ambulance,” he wrote on his blog, Random Acts of Reality.
Jonathan Fox, from the Association of Professional Ambulance Personnel, agreed. He said: “Solo responders have their place, but the emphasis now is on hitting the eight-minute target rather than what is happening once you are there.”
The BBC reported today that 10 ambulance trusts in England have submitted plans for greater use of solo responders instead of traditional ambulances.
It claimed that trusts have ordered new fleets of cars with a view to splitting up many of their ambulance crews to ensure they have enough resources to meet the target.
Ken Wenman, chief executive of the South Western Ambulance Service and a spokesman for the Ambulance Service Association, admitted that the greater use of solo responders was partly driven by targets.
But speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he added: “It’s also driven by clinical need. Patients need to be responded to more quickly and you get better outcomes using cars.”
The government also defended the plans. The health minister Ben Bradshaw said: “Fast-response vehicles can often get to the scene faster than traditional ambulances, and can provide assessment and care until a further response arrives.”
“This will not only save lives and improve patient experience, it will also ensure that trust resources are being used efficiently, that necessary investment in technology takes place, and that the workforce is developed both out in the field and in control rooms - all vital to ensure that we have a service that evolves to continue to deliver the highest service possible to patients.”