John Penrose

Conservative Party | Weston-super-Mare

Ambulance Response Rates Drop After Merger

Figures from the Great Western Ambulance Service (GWAS) appear to show that local ambulance response times for the most serious emergencies (8 minute “Category A” emergency incidents) have fallen over the last year.

The headline figures, confirmed to John Penrose, MP for Weston-super-Mare, reveal that the critical ambulance response rates in the area have dropped from 76.8% in 2005-6 to 72.8% in 2006-7.  The fall has occurred since the merger of Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Ambulance services into the GWAS.
 
The information was contained in a response to Mr Penrose from Tim Lynch, Chief Executive of GWAS.  Mr Penrose had written to the Chief Executive questioning whether, one year from on the merger, the promised cash savings and improvements in performance had been delivered.

The merger is supposed to deliver financial savings of £1.6 million over five years, which would be ploughed back into the service. So far, according to Mr Lynch, £700,000 has been identified. It is unclear when this money will actually be released as savings.

Mr Penrose said:

"Before the merger people were very concerned that combining three ambulance services into one could be disastrous. Now it looks like they were right. Rapid response rates for the most serious emergencies in North Somerset and the former Avon area seem to have got worse.

“I have written back to GWAS asking for a detailed explanation of the figures.  We need to know how they plan to restore and then improve on their previous response times. I have also asked them to confirm when the financial savings will be released to shore up a creaking frontline.

“Unless these problems are solved quickly they will seriously undermine the entire case for the merger.”