The Scottish Ambulance Service has apologised after delays in getting patients to hospitals across Lanarkshire.
A doctor took to Twitter to highlight the ongoing problem in getting patients who require emergency care to hospital after an incident on Monday, October 5.
Posting on the social media site, Dr Jenni Coutts said: “This is an ongoing problem that requires urgent attention.
“We need to be able to get our patients into hospital if they are sick - some of them cannot go in cars.
“We have had to tell some of them to phone 999 after we were told an arranged ambulance was not possible.”
The Scottish Ambulance Service have issued an apology for delays after demand for ambulances was greater than normal.
A spokesperson from the service said: “We would like to apologise for any delays. We were experiencing a high demand for our services which led to some patients waiting longer than usual, however ambulances were available and we were prioritising those with life-threatening conditions.”
Central Scotland MSP and Labour’s spokesperson for health Monica Lennon has had a number of GPs in Lanarkshire contact her over the issue.
She said: “Concerns about the NHS being equipped to deal with the dual pressures of winter and Covid-19 have been raised by healthcare workers and trade unions for months.
“I was alarmed to be contacted by local GPs in Lanarkshire and to read the cry for help tweets about a shortage of ambulances in our area.
“This is a shocking state of affairs and SNP Ministers need to reassure patients and staff in Lanarkshire that we will get the resources we need.
“Our NHS needs more than warm words and the Scottish Government must urgently put measures in place to support our health service.”
