Medic accused of diverting ambulance 'to get lover home'

A PARAMEDIC deliberately diverted an ambulance carrying a sick patient to the wrong hospital allowing his girlfriend to get home early, a hearing has been told.

Scott Sloan, a paramedic with the Scottish Ambulance Service, sent the man who was suffering from suspected meningitis to a hospital not equipped to cope with his condition.

In doing so he saved the ambulance staff - which included his then partner - more than three hours on their round trip.

Yesterday he appeared before the Health Professions Council in Edinburgh, over whether his actions resulted in misconduct.

Paramedic Martin Wyllie, who was in the diverted ambulance, said: "The diversion to the Galloway Medical Centre in Stranraer saved us an average of three hours.

"I don't know what his intentions were, but I completely accepted his judgment and followed orders. I assumed he was from the control room.

"It meant that, rather than running into my overtime, I got home on time."

Mr Sloan was accused of diverting an ambulance containing a desperately ill man to another hospital, without authority.

He claimed there was a bed shortage at the Royal Infirmary of Dumfries and Galloway and told his colleagues to go to the Galloway Medical Centre in Stranraer instead.

They assumed that it was a call from the Emergency Medical Dispatch Centre, which deals with all call-outs, and followed the command. It meant that his colleagues, Martin Wyllie and Hilary Clark - his now former partner - managed to get home three and a half hours earlier than planned.

But questions were raised as to why Ms Clark failed to recognise her then partner's voice on the radio and question the call's validity.

The Health Professions Council panel was told that Mr Sloan had never received a call from the Royal Infirmary and that in fact staff were still waiting for the patient when he eventually arrived two hours later.

Mr Sloan initially lied when an investigation hearing was held in March 2009, saying that he did not know anything about the call.

The actions of his colleagues, Mr Wyllie and Ms Clark, were put under scrutiny and questions were raised about whether a call had even taken place.

He even put pressure on Mr Wyllie to change his statement, to prevent him being linked to the call, but later admitted to it at a second hearing.

Mr Wyllie said: "He didn't want anything said that would incriminate him, and put tremendous pressure on me.

"I was in total disbelief. He was my superior and even acted as my union rep at the first hearing. I couldn't believe he was hiding this information."

However, Mr Sloan denied having re-directed the ambulance and, instead claimed that he called to check that his colleagues were responding to the call.

The panel of the Health Professions Council will make its decision today.