It has been claimed lives could be “needlessly lost” due to ambulance waiting times outside the Highlands’ main hospital.
It comes after a patient recently spent almost 13 hours outside Raigmore in Inverness.
NHS Highland says it is committed to providing the correct care, but one woman, whose mother died before she could be admitted, says the situation cannot be allowed to continue.
Christina Chisholm from Nairn was 91 when she died before she could be admitted to Raigmore last December. She had breathing problems and a viral infection.
Relatives have just received the findings of an internal review.
STV NewsChristina’s daughter Elizabeth McDonald said: “In that, it says there’s no action to be taken and we feel that if clinicians who know what they’re talking about can’t change things where are we?
“So, it’s no surprise really that they’re saying nothing – it’s getting worse. Our hope was that, it was so tragic what happened to our mum, that lessons would be learned from that.”
The family want to ensure others do not suffer what they experienced.
The answers to a Highlands and Islands MSP’s freedom of information request have not eased the situation.
STV NewsTim Eagle discovered the average ambulance turnaround time so far this year at Raigmore had been 61 minutes.
That was almost treble the average turnaround in 2020, during the pandemic.
This year, one patient waited almost 13 hours before admission.
Eagle said: “That’s an incredibly long time for an ambulance to be waiting.
“Remember, these are really seriously sick people that need to get into the hospital and get treated. So, that’s not acceptable for me. There’s a real risk to lives here and that’s not acceptable.”
STV NewsNHS Highland said it is always looking to improve its patient experience and ensure safe care.
It has introduced two ambulance liaison officers to strengthen safe transfers and said in a statement that it remains committed to doing everything it can to ensure people receive the care that is right for them.
The Scottish Ambulance Service offered its sincere condolences to Christina’s family and, in a statement, said it continued to experience significant pressure due to turnaround times at a number of hospitals, including Raigmore.
It said the delays prevent crews from treating other patients, and it is working closely with NHS Highland to improve the situation.
The health secretary Angela Constance has also offered her condolences to Christina’s family.
Constance said: “There are clearly failures in what happened with Ms Chisholm, and I express my condolences to her family. I will be engaging with NHS Highland and the Scottish Ambulance Service to understand what steps they are taking to ensure delays at Raigmore Hospital are addressed.
“Long waits like this are completely unacceptable and, while I recognise there are pressures across the health system, we must be able to respond as quickly as possible to emergencies.”
She said she was working with NHS Highland and the ambulance service to understand what action is being taken to tackle delays.
Amid concerns about proposed health board reform, she said it is imperative that change focuses directly on improving services.
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