Angry relatives of a 93-year-old Gwynedd woman have expressed alarm after she was left lying on the floor waiting for an ambulance for 25 hours. Elizabeth Davies suffered a suspected hip fracture in a fall and was left “screaming in pain” for more than a day.
After finally being taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd, Bangor, she endured another 12-hour wait before being admitted to a ward. Yesterday (Monday) Mrs Davies underwent surgery to determine the extent of her injuries after a hip fracture was confirmed.
Her son, Ian Davies, and daughter-in-law Susan, from Pwllheli, have been left beside themselves with worry. “It was very upsetting to have to see her lying on the floor screaming in pain for over 24 hours,” said Ian.
The Welsh Ambulance Service has apologised for what happened. It blamed winter pressures, high demand and staff sickness levels.
Elizabeth has been a resident in a care home in Llanbedrog, Llŷn Peninsula, for more than 17 years. Still relatively fit, she uses a walking frame to get around the care home, which asked not to be named.
But around 11.45am on Saturday, staff heard a bump and found her sprawled in the living room. “They called for an ambulance but were advised an ambulance wouldn’t be available for six to eight hours as they were so busy,” said Ian.
“They said my mother would be a priority because of her age. The care home then called us and we came immediately.”
Care home staff did their best to keep Elizabeth warm during her ordeal
Care home staff did their best to keep Elizabeth warm during her ordeal
Staff propped a pillow under Elizabeth’s head and did their best to make her comfortable on the wooden floor. “They were excellent,” said Ian, who like Susan is himself a community carer. “They put a small heater next to her to keep her warm in case she went into shock.”
As Elizabeth was unable to go to the toilet, an absorbant pad was applied so she could urinate. A mother of three, originally from Mynytho, Gwynedd, she moved to Pentreuchaf after marrying husband Hughie, the local church organist.
Staff began redialling ambulance control staff once it became clear there would be further delays. It’s understood the care home made a total of nine calls: a tenth was made by Ian and Susan.
“We had to leave at midnight as we had to be up at 5.30am to go to work,” said Susan. “My mother-in-law usually goes to bed at 6.30pm-7pm but she couldn’t and she was getting extremely tired.”
Care home staff stayed with her through the night. “Each time they called for an update, they were told my mother was a priority and an ambulance would come as soon as possible,” said Ian.
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An ambulance finally arrived at around 1.15pm on Sunday, some 25 hours and 30 minutes after Elizabeth fell. She was taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd and is now on the hospital’s Enlli ward.
Ian and Susan have yet to discover her prognosis. The incident has left the couple bitterly disappointed.
“I don’t blame the ambulance staff because they are told what jobs to do and my mother wasn’t on the list,” said Ian. “But I was very upset by what happened, it was unacceptable.
“The whole of the NHS is struggling at the moment and one of the biggest problems is the shortage of carers. They aren’t paid enough and no one wants to do the job.”
Stephen Sheldon, service manager for the Welsh Ambulance Service (WAS) in North Wales, extended his apologies to Mrs Davies for her long wait. He invited the family to contact the service directly to raise their concerns.
He said: “Winter pressures coupled with a surge in demand, staff sickness levels and the wider system pressures across NHS Wales has inhibited our ability to respond. Extensive hospital handover delays are well documented and has led to some very long waits for patients.
“On the 17 and 18 December, we spent over 1,600 hours outside hospitals across Wales, waiting to hand patients over to our hospital colleagues. 563 of those hours were lost outside hospitals in North Wales.
“We are working with partners across Wales to mitigate the pressures as best we can. The public can help us by only calling 999 in a serious or life-threatening emergency so that our resources are available for those who need us most.”
Find out what’s going on near you
The WAS is urging the public to plan ahead as industrial action hits the service in the coming days. Paramedics and other WAS employees are walking out on December 20, 21 and 28. You can read more about the strike, and how it will affect you, here.
The walk-out will put additional pressure on the ambulance service, said Mr Sheldon. Patients should ensure they have the medication they need, and explore “other means of transport” if they need urgent medical care or have to visit hospital. Health advice and information is also available on the NHS 111 Wales website..
