Disabled Bourne man left ‘traumatised’ after East Midlands Ambulance Service fails to collect him for 7 appointments in 9 months

A disabled man has missed seven appointments in nine months because an ambulance has not picked him up.

Failing to attend vital meetings with consultants has left 87-year-old Roger Ellis ‘traumatised’, his son Stephen said.

Mr Ellis, who lives in Bourne, suffers from a neurological condition and relies on the East Midlands Ambulance Service's patient transfer service to get to appointments at a number of hospitals and other sites.

“He’s been let down seven times in nine months, when they’ve failed to collect him or pick him up and take him to appointments,” Stephen said.

“He has to get ready two hours before the appointments.

“My mum (Mary) has to transfer him from his bed or reclining chair to his wheelchair which isn’t an easy process.

“He then has to sit there, quite uncomfortable, anxious about the appointment, with whoever it is he’s going to see, only to get closer to the appointment time and nobody come.

“There’s no communication, so he’s there helpless. It’s traumatic for him, it’s stressful for my mum and it lets the doctors and consultants down as well.”

Stephen and his wife have also attended meetings to support Roger, only to find themselves waiting with consultants for a patient which never arrives.

“It’s an inconvenience with that as well,” Stephen added.

Roger’s appointments can be at a number of sites, including Peterborough City Hospital, Stamford Hospital and Boston’s Pilgrim Hospital, as well as at Sleaford, here he needs to attend for work and adjustments to be carried out on his wheelchair.

Roger recently received a letter of apology from EMAS which cited a number of factors including traffic, technical problems with mechanical workings and staff availability.

The letter added that he would be made a priority patient.

“But a week after that letter he had two consecutive appointments on the Tuesday and Wednesday, and they failed to turn up,” Stephen said.

“When he does get an ambulance the crew are amazing. They’re great, dedicated and caring and empathetic with his needs.

“It’s not the fault of the technicians or the drivers, just the fact they can’t seem to commit to deliver the service they hope to.”

Joy Weldin, divisional director for non-emergency patient transport service at East Midlands Ambulance, said: “I would like to say how very sorry I am for the service provided to Mr Ellis.

“We continue to face an incredibly high level of demand for our service. Last year we provided over 390,000 patient journeys across the East Midlands and each one requires careful planning and coordination.

“Despite the best efforts of our hard-working staff, for Mr Ellis, we have not delivered the high standard of service we hold ourselves to.

”We’ve spoken with Mr Ellis and his family to listen to their concerns, apologise and explain how we are working hard to improve.”