Local Lib Dem Councillor Sue McGuire met with ambulance chiefs after tragedy was narrowly avoided when a Southport boy almost died whilst being taken to Ormskirk Hospital for treatment.
Long time health campaigner, Sue met with Ambulance bosses in an attempt to ensure the incident is never repeated, and asked them to clarify whether Ambulance crews were taking critically ill children to Southport for treatment when needed. Whilst Hospital bosses claimed they had no influence over the kind of incident that saw Aaron Bishop, of Fylde Road, taken to Ormskirk despite being in a serious condition, CEO Jonathan Parry told Cllr. McGuire that the decision to do so would have been the ambulance crews - something the Lib Dems are now attempting to clarify.
Sue commented this morning, "This is as serious issue as it's possible to imagine, It's all very well having a policy which says the crews can make the decision, but if this isn't happening, then children's lives are at risk."
"That's why I've asked Ambulance bosses for assurances that all of their crews realise the responsibility for deciding which hospital to take children to is theirs - and theirs alone. Southport hospital can't refuse to treat anyone who an ambulance crew have decided needs to be taken there. This is a crucial link in emergency care for our children, which is why we need these assurances that this policy is working."
This is also an issue in and around Skelmersdale. We are told that ambulance crews take the critical decision whether to take an emergency patient to Southport or to Wigan (a 6-9 mile shorter journey).
ReplyDeleteClearly we would like to ascertain if that is true, and what directives or consequences colour that decision.
Anecdotally I have heard about stroke victims in particular drawing the short straw, and being driven to Southport. Those 8 miles make a huge difference while part of their brain is being starved of oxygen.r