What happens if I get stuck at A&E in the back of an ambulance?
As we all know, ambulances are now being treated as ‘extra wards’ as patients are stuck outside jammed A&Es. We at MyHSN really apologise for this situation. It is not good enough.
If there is not enough space in the A&E, you may be left waiting in the back of the ambulance outside the hospital. The ambulance crew remain responsible for your care until there has been a clinical handover with hospital staff.
Until then, patients are kept inside the ambulance, watched over by the crew, while doctors and nurses inside try to make space.
Ambulance crews are trained to stay with you until you are safely inside the hospital. .
But even when you are inside, ambulance patients are competing with people already in A&E (and those already filling beds). That means paramedics may be unable to hand you over to nurses – and will remain with you in a queue in corridors (or chairs), sometime for hours.
The target is for patients arriving by ambulance to be officially handed over into the care of A&E staff within 15 minutes. Any delay beyond, this is a handover delay.
All the time the crew and patient are held up, they are unable to go to more 999 calls, and pick up more patients that need A&E.
In the end, you will be assessed by a doctor inside A&E, and get admitted if necessary.
Summary
We have described what happens if I get stuck at A&E in the back of an ambulance. We hope it has been helpful.
