THE number of ambulances waiting for over 30 minutes outside Colchester Hospital's emergency department has doubled since in the past year, it has been revealed.

Records for the East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) area  show the number of ambulances waiting more than 30 minutes doubled from 16 per cent in January 2023 to 32 per cent in the week to January 29 this year.

ESNEFT’s lastest figure was above England’s average of 31 per cent, which means that across the country nearly one in three people transported via ambulance wait more than half an hour before even being admitted for accident and emergency services.

The Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust went against national trends, lowering its ambulance waiting times from 31 per cent in January 2023 to 23 per cent in the latest period.

Gazette: Hubs - The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust have launched 'unscheduled care hubs' in Colchester for those who do not need 999 careHubs - The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust have launched 'unscheduled care hubs' in Colchester for those who do not need 999 care (Image: Newsquest)

Gazette reader Julie Farrow revealed that she went straight into A&E two weeks ago, after being helped by the paramedics and ambulance crew who were “efficient and kind”.

While Gazette reader Chanelle Marie Seex said she waited in an ambulance for over an hour, with a letter later from Colchester Hospital stating that blood evidence showed she should have been treated immediately.

Steve Joyce, from Colchester, added that the increased waiting times were a symptom of “Broken Britain”.

Gazette: Focused - Dr Angela Tillett from ESNEFT said they were as always, focused on providing timely emergency and urgent careFocused - Dr Angela Tillett from ESNEFT said they were as always, focused on providing timely emergency and urgent care (Image: ESNEFT)

Dr Angela Tillett, Chief Medical Officer at ESNEFT, said: “We are continuing to see more patients coming forward with complex and severe conditions this winter, with the number of emergency admissions from A&E up by 35.7 per cent on last year.

"This does, undoubtedly, put pressure on our services.

"However, we are committed to providing the best possible care across all our services and working with ambulance team colleagues to reduce our handover delays.”

A spokesperson from the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust, added: “We are working with our NHS colleagues to reduce handover delays as we know this effects how we respond to patients. 

“At the start of winter, we increased the number of frontline clinicians we have on the road and in our control centres.

"We are looking to increase those numbers further over the next few months. 

The spokesperson added that an "unscheduled care hub" had been launched in Colchester for those who do not need a 999 response.