Delays can be prevented

The image of Royal Navy veteran Anthony Jose Mendez lying in agony as he waits for an ambulance will linger long in the memory.

Beside this 80-year-old service veteran is his son, holding him close to keep his father warm.

It’s both a tragic and comforting image. While the ambulance service could not help quickly in his time of need, his family were able to offer comfort and support when Mr Mendez needed it most.

A two-hour wait in the middle of winter for an ambulance is wholly unacceptable. Ambulance bosses have unreservedly apologised to the family, but perhaps the apologies should come from higher up.

Our emergency services have been stretched to near breaking point by a lack of funding for the NHS.

The Government’s obsession with austerity has seen the purse strings tightened to unprecedented levels in order the balance the books. But what price a life? This winter saw the NHS under even greater pressure than normal.

The ambulance service itself was under terrific strain, an issue which we well documented at the time. At Mr Mendez’s inquest, we were told the service had been dealing with 47,999 calls and no resources.

That is not the fault of the ambulance crews, it’s an issue for those who fund the service.

While there has been no suggestion the delay in reaching Mr Mendez contributed to his untimely death, it is an issue that understandably has caused the family huge frustration.

We welcome ambulance chiefs’ fulsome apologies, but maintain others much higher up are just as culpable and better placed to ensure this doesn’t happen again. But will they act?