Ambulance crews have been seen sitting outside an emergency department this week as pressures continue to hit the region’s NHS system.
An ambulance crew reportedly had to wait outside one hospital for more than 11 hours on Monday, December 13, according to one anonymous paramedic - though the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) says it does not have a record of such a wait at that location.
The paramedic says a day crew was unable to get their patient inside the hospital until 1.30pm, despite taking over at 6am from a night crew which had been outside since 2am.
Seven ambulance crews were pictured by the M.E.N lining up outside the Royal Oldham Hospital on Monday night, December 13.
The ambulances outside the Royal Oldham had reportedly requested to be diverted to North Manchester General, according to the anonymous paramedic, but were unable to be released due to limited capacity at North Manchester.
They were then sent to Tameside Hospital, the paramedic told the Manchester Evening News.
Earlier on Monday morning, one ambulance crew was held outside the Royal Oldham - with a patient - for 11-and-a-half hours, from 2am to 1.30pm according to the paramedic.
It is understood the hospital is down by as many as 'seven nurses'.
Speaking on Monday evening, the paramedic said: "A crew was held at the Royal Oldham from 2am this morning, a day crew was sent at 6am to take over from the night shift. They eventually got in the hospital at 1.30pm this afternoon - the patient was held outside for 11-and-a-half hours.
"There are currently eight crews sat outside at the moment. The hospital has requested a divert to North Manchester, but they can't get it due to the demand at North Manchester. Oldham diverted to Tameside Hospital instead.
"They are currently six to seven nurses down at the Royal Oldham."
A spokesperson for the Royal Oldham Hospital, which is part of the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The Royal Oldham Hospital, like other hospitals in Greater Manchester and across the country, continues to experience higher demand for our services.
“The wait to be seen by a health care professional, and admission into an inpatient bed, if required, varies throughout the course of the day and night dependent upon demand within the Emergency Department. Patients are prioritised based on their clinical urgency to ensure that the sickest patients are seen first.
“As always, we would ask patients who are considering using our Emergency Departments to consider alternatives if their condition is not serious or life threatening, and to use the other services which are available to them round the clock including 111 online, their local pharmacy and their GP practice."
The scenes come as the ambulance services faces unprecedented pressures - fielding high volumes of 999 calls from patients all needing emergency treatment.
Paramedics have told the Manchester Evening News that they are struggling to meet the demand, while they also find difficulties handing patients over to hospitals which have been '93 pc full' in recent weeks.
Elsewhere in the system, people who are medically fit to be discharged cannot be because of staff shortages is social care, meaning they cannot safely go home even if they are ready to.
As a result, yet more beds are filled, leaving little room inside for patients being looked after by paramedics desperately trying to do their best.
Queues outside emergency departments across Greater Manchester have been seen throughout the year as the demand on the NHS has built, amid rising winter sickness bugs, Covid, and urgent cases which people may have not have sought help with during the pandemic.
A North West Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “Hospital handovers are proving challenging while the NHS as a whole is under pressure.
"We are working closely with hospitals and the wider health systems to mitigate these as much as possible and have implemented a package of measures to review and minimise patient harm, including direct access to specific wards for some ambulance patients.
“Any patients waiting longer than we would like are monitored with the emergency department clinical team informed of any changes in their condition to prioritise them correctly.”
The service added that it does not have a record of a crew waiting more than 11 hours at the Royal Oldham on Monday.
