Statistics released today have revealed that patients living in Rhondda Cynon Taf are consistently experiencing the slowest ambulance response times in Wales.
The Welsh Government’s target is for 60% of category A (immediately life-threatening) ambulance response times to be arriving within 8 minutes. Only 54% of patients living in RCT experienced an ambulance arriving within the required target time.
Eluned Parrott, Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales Central, has called for the Welsh Government to do more to improve ambulance services in RCT, she said:
“In five of the last six months, performance in the Rhondda Cynon Taf area has been the lowest in the whole of Wales. This is clearly not good enough and my constituents deserve better. The standard of your treatment shouldn’t be dictated by where you live.
“It is worrying that ambulance response times in our area have failed to meet the Government’s targets for so long and yet it seems nothing has been done about it. The Labour Health Minister needs to get a grip on this problem as a matter of urgency.
“These figures must of course not detract from the brilliant work that the NHS staff do, but at the moment they are clearly not getting the support they need to provide an efficient service.
“It is of great concern than only just over half of category A response times are meeting the Welsh Labour Government’s target, especially when considering that the Government’s 60% target is not particularly ambitious in the first place.
“The Health Minister needs to address this issue immediately and ensure that we have an ambulance service which is fit for purpose whatever the area. I will be writing to the Minister asking what she intends to do to improve the patchy service that is currently on offer.”
