A woman, Susan Harding, has been left with permanent disabilities after an ambulance took nearly two hours to reach her following a haemorrhagic stroke. This led to a significant bleed on the brain and left her unable to use the left side of her body.
Her partner, Rob Christensen, emphasized that her condition deteriorated during the lengthy wait for medical assistance, which arrived one hour and 59 minutes after the initial 999 call was made. The average response time for ‘category 2’ emergencies is stated as being within 30 minutes, a significant increase from the previous target of 18 minutes.
Her residence was merely 14-and-a-half miles from the hospital in Bath, where she was eventually transported. Rob recounts that each time he called for an update, he was asked to repeat all the details from the start, exacerbating the delay.
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He believes this prolonged wait resulted in additional bleeding and pressure on Susan’s brain, which could have been prevented. After being placed in an induced coma in December last year, doctors informed Rob that it was likely Susan would never regain the use of the left side of her body and would require care for the rest of her life.
Rob is now urging for real-time reporting of ambulance response times, an overhaul of call-handling and triage systems to avoid repeated delays, and a clear, time-bound plan for improvements that the public can track.
Susan’s stroke occurred on December 12, 2024, at home, and she has been in hospital ever since.
Rob said: “It’s like a bereavement because she’s not all there. It’s horrible, and it makes me angry - it’s changed our lives.”
Keen to seek answers, Rob wrote to his local MP and eventually received a letter from the Minister of Health.
A spokesperson for the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) said: “We would like to offer our sincere apologies to Ms Harding for the delay in our response. The delay was unacceptable and falls below the high standards of care we aim to provide.
“Delays in our care is not something we want any of our patients to experience, and when a delay does occur, it’s taken very seriously.
“We continue to work incredibly hard with our partners in the NHS and social care, to do all we can to improve the service that patients receive.”
Support Rob’s petition here.