New CEO for trust where ‘bullying and harassment were normalised’
An ambulance trust grappling with major cultural problems has appointed a substantive chief executive, who most recently has been on extended leave from his role leading two acute providers.
Thousands of English NHS 999 calls answered in Wales
Thousands of 999 calls are being transferred to the Welsh Ambulance Service because they are taking more than five minutes to answer in England, HSJ can reveal.
Strike restrictions could make disruption worse, admits government
Introducing minimum levels of service during ambulance strikes could have a ‘significant negative impact’ if staff instead opted for other forms of industrial action, such as overtime bans, the government’s own impact assessment of the proposals has warned.
Staff at final ambulance trust vote to join strikes
Staff at the East of England ambulance trust – the only one to escape strike action so far – have voted to join the industrial action.
Only three trusts hit new A&E target
Average ambulance waits for stroke and heart attack patients topped two hours in three regions last month, amid another sharp drop in emergency care performance.
Exclusive: Ambulance crews urged to conserve oxygen
Ambulance staff are being urged to conserve oxygen supplies because of a national shortage of small cylinders used both on ambulances and in some A&E departments.
‘Constructive’ first ambulance strike agreement revealed
Elderly people who fall may only be sent an ambulance after they have spent four hours on the floor, and some category 2 calls may not be responded to under one of the first agreements with ambulance unions about next week’s strikes.
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‘Inadequate’ trust gets new chief executive
An experienced acute hospital executive has been appointed to lead South Central Ambulance Service Foundation Trust.
Ambulance strike dates and trusts revealed
Thousands of ambulance staff across England will go on strike during the festive period this month in a dispute over pay, three unions have announced.
Revealed: Ambulance waits quadruple in handover hotspots
Ambulance waiting times for stroke and suspected heart attacks have quadrupled in four parts of England since before covid-19 – whereas others have only grown by half – underlining the severe impact of long accident and emergency handovers.
Female CEOs say ambulance service culture ‘deeply wrong’
The only two female ambulance chief executives in the country have said there is something ‘deeply wrong’ with the culture in ambulance services.
Emergency care in ‘dire’ situation as performance plummets over weekend
Several ambulance trusts have moved to the highest level of alert in the wake of severe pressure on emergency services in recent days.
24 hour ambulance handover on ‘worst night ever’
All ambulance services are now understood to be on the highest level of alert due to ‘extreme pressures’ caused by the hot weather and covid absences among staff.
Bullying and harassment ‘normalised’ at trust put back in special measures
An ambulance trust has been placed in special measures after the Care Quality Commission rated its leadership ‘inadequate’ and said staff felt unable to raise concerns without fear of reprisal
Trust rows back on ‘too tall or too short’ dismissal threat
Staff risk being sacked because they are too short or too tall to drive a van-conversion ambulance, union officials have warned.
Interim CEO drafted in to calm trust’s leadership woes
An ambulance trust which is expected to be heavily criticised in an imminent Care Quality Commission report has appointed a new interim chief executive.
Trust chief resigns after period of ill health
The chief executive of an ambulance trust has resigned after a period of sick leave.
Ambulance waits hit two hours for heart attacks and strokes
Average waits for an ambulance for stroke and heart attack patients have reached as long as two hours in one region, after a further fall in performance in recent weeks, HSJ can reveal.
Female ambulance staff subjected to ‘macho and sexualised’ culture
A ‘macho’ culture within ambulance trusts is leading to widespread abuse of female staff.
Another ambulance service declares critical incident after IT outage
An ambulance provider has declared a critical incident after suffering significant IT issues – the second ambulance trust to have done so in as many weeks.