Son Expresses Anger Over 14-Hour Ambulance Wait for 89-Year-Old Mother

The son of an 89-year-old woman has conveyed his strong displeasure, stating he was left “fuming,” after his mother experienced a 14-hour delay for an ambulance to arrive. Vera Lake sustained a fall at her residence in Poole, Dorset, around 23:00 GMT on Monday, and her 91-year-old husband discovered her on the floor. Her son, Paul Lake, indicated that an ambulance was summoned almost immediately, but it did not reach their home until approximately 13:00 the following day. The South Western Ambulance Service acknowledged the delay as “unacceptable” and extended an apology for the prolonged wait. Mrs. Lake suffered only bruises and was released from the hospital on Wednesday night. “My dad is hard of hearing and was in bed when he looked over and obviously mum wasn’t there, so he’s got up and looked down the corridor and there she is on the floor,” Mr. Lake informed BBC Radio Solent. His father, whom Mr. Lake described as “panicking,” activated the emergency button in their property, which led to the ambulance call. Mr. Lake, who resides in Jersey, mentioned feeling powerless when he received a call from his distressed father. “Then, just after 7am, my dad called me in bits, he’s in tears because [the ambulance] still hadn’t arrived,” he stated. He added, “I was fuming so I phoned the emergency people up and asked what was going on.” Approximately two hours later, a carer for the couple entered the property and made Mrs. Lake “comfortable.” The ambulance finally arrived at 13:00, roughly 14 hours after the initial contact. Mr. Lake commented, “Being that age, you would feel she was a priority [for the ambulance service].” He commended the “fantastic” care she received from paramedics and staff at Poole Hospital. However, Mr. Lake concluded, “But it was just that waiting time where you just don’t know what’s actually wrong – it just made me so upset.” A spokesperson for the ambulance service expressed that they were “sorry” for being “unable to provide a timely response.” They further stated, “Any occasion where the care we provide falls below the high standards our patients deserve and rightly expect is unacceptable.” The spokesperson identified handover delays at A&E departments as one of the trust’s “biggest challenges.” The spokesperson added, “We are working with our partners in the NHS and social care to do all we can to improve the service that patients receive.”