Jackson Yeow, 16, was kept waiting more than nine hours for an ambulance in April 2022 despite being in agony and fell unconscious, and later died at the University Hospital of Wales
A teenager kept waiting more than nine hours for an ambulance died, despite his call being categorised as needing an urgent response, an inquest heard.
Jackson Yeow, 16, was unable to make it to a GP appointment on April 4, 2022, as his gastritis symptoms worsened. His mother dialled 999, but despite several follow-up calls, an ambulance did not arrive until after he fell unconscious – around nine and a half hours later.
He was eventually taken to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff , where he was diagnosed with diabetic ketoacidosis, pancreatitis, cerebral oedema, renal compromise and severe acidosis. His condition deteriorated and he died five days later, WalesOnline reported.
At an inquest last week, the ambulance service said its ability to respond to the call had been “substantially impaired” because a significant number of its ambulance crews were delayed at hospitals waiting to hand over patients. Coroner David Regan, who recorded a narrative conclusion, has issued Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board in South Wales with a prevention of future deaths report.
He wrote: “Care in corridors and other non clinical spaces has been normalised, which in the opinion of the consultant who gave evidence is unsafe. When conducted routinely, care in corridors and other non-clinical spaces reduces the capacity of the emergency department. In my opinion, action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe you and your organisation have the power to take such action.
The chief executive will have 56 days to respond to the report. Copies were also sent to the Welsh Government, the chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust and the chief executive of the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board.
In December, the Welsh Ambulance Service declared a critical incident because of significantly increased demand and extensive handover delays. The service, which covers three million-plus people across Wales, said more than 340 calls were waiting to be answered at the time.
Stephen Sheldon, Head of Service, said at the time: “It is very rare we declare a critical incident, but with significant demand on our service and more than 90 ambulances waiting to handover patients outside of hospital, our ability to help patients has been impacted. Regrettably, this means some patients will wait longer for an ambulance to arrive and for their calls to be answered.
“For that, we are very sorry because this is not the level of service we want to provide. We understand this is frustrating for patients, but can assure them we are doing everything we can to relieve the pressure on our service. The public can help by only calling 999 in the event of a life-threatening emergency – that’s a cardiac arrest, chest pain or breathing difficulties, loss of consciousness, choking, or catastrophic bleeding.”
