Ambulance queues at hospitals

Ambulances are taking, on average, over half an hour to drop off patients at hospital and get back on the road, according to new statistics.

The average turnaround time has gone up by nearly 12 minutes since 2014. Thirteen patients had to wait more than five hours to get from an ambulance into hospital this year, and 37 waited over four hours. The figures were released by Scottish Labour, which described the situation as “a crisis”.

The Scottish Government said the ambulance service is reviewing demand and capacity, and is working to improve turnaround times.