Ambulance crew unable to find place for suicidal girl
Matt Precey
Thursday, 3 December 2009
A mentally ill, suicidal teenager was ferried around for hours by an ambulance crew because no NHS unit would accept her, the BBC has learnt .
The girl eventually had to be taken to a police cell, documents revealed under the Freedom of Information Act show.
The case is revealed in a memo sent by one of the paramedics who dealt with the incident, which he described as a "clear system failure on the part of mental health services for children in Ipswich which caused distress and harm to the patient".
The memo, written on 5 March 2009, described how an ambulance was called to help a 15-year-old girl who had gone into a local newspaper office.
The girl was described as suicidal and suffering acutely paranoid delusions.
The paramedic described how the crew and police officers spent hours transporting the girl from location to location in an attempt to find a safe and secure place where she could be cared for, but without success.
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Ambulance drivers told to forget sat nav and use maps instead
Ambulance drivers are being told to use maps and local knowledge because their satellite navigation devices are delaying response times.
By Chris Irvine
Last Updated: 8:00PM BST 29 Apr 2009
A memo from Paul Liversidge, director of ambulance operations in the North-east, read: "I have previously communicated generally on a number of occasions about the problems we have experienced with staff relaying solely on their sat nav systems and not checking locations with the A to Z map books when unsure of locations. "It seems we continue to experience similar issues, which can delay the response to patients. Can I again emphasise the sat nav system should only be used as a guide?"
The advice has already been seized upon by campaigners who are arguing against the centralisation of the emergency call system for the ambulance service.
An NEAS spokesman said local knowledge had always been valued by the service in enabling drivers to get to emergency scenes as quickly as possible.
"It has always been the view of NEAS that the knowledge acquired by our staff operating out of local ambulance stations and health centres is useful, and therefore the reference to local knowledge in this instance is appropriate," the spokesman said.
"As with any satellite navigation system, there are times when one's knowledge of the local roads and congestion areas will determine a faster route than the one advised by the system."
