Abuse of ambulances as 'blue-light taxis' to A&E costs taxpayer £2m a year

MORE than £2 million is being wasted every year by people demanding an ambulance take them to hospital, only for them to leave without having needed medical help, new figures have revealed.

Scottish Accident & Emergency departments say that last year more than 9,000 patients, often drunk or with minor medical complaints, arrived at A&E in an ambulance without any need to be there. Most simply walked away, having decided they didn't require treatment after all.

A further 18,000 patients arrived in their own transport, and similarly left before getting treatment, either because they didn't want to wait or because their injuries and medical problems did not require treatment.

Doctors in A&E units say ambulances are now being used as "blue-light taxis" by patients, and have warned the practice is putting the lives of genuinely sick patients at risk, as ambulances are diverted away needlessly.

The extent of the problem was revealed in a new paper by Audit Scotland on the country's emergency departments.

It found pressure on A&E departments is increasing, with the number of people turning up for treatment at an all-time high. The report said efforts to reduce these numbers had not been properly undertaken.

Medical staff say there are thousands of people they encounter who believe they have a right to summon an ambulance, even when there is nothing wrong with them. Dr Jason Long, A&E consultant at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, said: "There are a lot of people who think 999 is there just as their transport to hospital. The vast majority of call-outs are appropriate but there are a significant minority that aren't.

"It could be anything from toothache to a sore toe. They turn up at A&E with that. Then at the other end of the extreme, we find elderly people with serious illnesses who come by bus when it would be totally appropriate for them to come by ambulance.

"It is a significant workload for the ambulance service because in a lot of cases they may only have a few ambulances available. That puts other people's care at risk."

Dr David Chung, A&E consultant at Crosshouse Hospital in Kilmarnock, said: "If a quango spent 2m on expenses it would be on the front page. Enough of the population are doing this to cost the NHS 2m, but that's considered okay. I'd send them a bill."

The figures showed marked variation across the country in the percentage of patients who left A&E without receiving treatment.

At Glasgow Royal Infirmary, five per cent of patients were recorded as having left without getting any treatment.Other departments badly affected included Glasgow's Western Infirmary (4.4 per cent), Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (4.2 per cent), Dr Gray's Hospital, Elgin (3.8 per cent), Glasgow's Southern General (3.6 per cent), Stirling Royal Infirmary (3.4 per cent) and Glasgow's Victoria Hospital (3.2 per cent).

A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: "Last year our emergency crews responded to more than 600,000 incidents. Over 50,000 patients avoided a trip to A&E thanks to our 'See and Treat' initiative that allows paramedics to treat patients with certain conditions at home, rather than take them to hospital."