An investigation has been launched after two patients died from heart attacks while waiting to be seen in A&E. The patients were in a queue to be assessed at the Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) Accident & Emergency department.
The deaths occurred despite protocols in place for all arrivals to be triaged - a medical term for establishing the seriousness of a case – within 15 minutes. Health board officials are now looking into ‘pressures’ in patient care during the incidents at the QEUH, Scotland’s flagship £842million hospital which opened in 2015.
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has warned that long waits for treatment have contributed to hundreds of avoidable deaths. Last week, Alex Cole-Hamilton, leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, demanded an inquiry into the number of patients who have died due to the ongoing crisis.
The SNP and Green Party allies rejected his proposal. Cole-Hamilton said: “The Scottish Liberal Democrats have called for an urgent inquiry into avoidable deaths caused by the crisis in emergency care.
“These tragic cases highlight exactly why that inquiry is needed. For every extra hour people wait for an ambulance or wait in A&E, there is a demonstrable risk of further fatalities like this will happen.”
Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labour’s health spokeswoman, added: “This is obviously a tragic set of incidents that requires investigation. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine have warned the SNP government time and time again that long waiting times will lead to people losing their lives. Action must be taken by Humza Yousaf as a matter of urgency.”
A spokesman for Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board, which runs the QEUH, said: “Our staff are working extremely hard at a time of considerable pressure and they are doing their very best to prioritise care to patients most in need.
"While we cannot comment on individual patients, we have clear and robust processes for reviewing the care we provide and where issues are identified we work closely with the relevant services to implement required changes.
“We work extremely hard to find solutions to staffing challenges and we work closely with services to mitigate issues that arise and ensure as much as possible that the impact on patient care is minimised. We would like to extend our sympathy to families who have lost a loved one.
“These tragic cases show why an inquiry is needed.”
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