Liam McCarlie
24 Jun 2024 · Coroner Jonathan Dixey · Northamptonshire
The coroner's concerns
1. lack of mental health nurse in ambulance
“some Integrated Care Boards had introduced a scheme whereby a mental health nurse would accompany a paramedic in a car and in appropriate cases would be dispatched to a patient for the purposes of meeting both their physical and mental health needs”
2. delayed ambulance response
“the local ambulance service was experiencing a prolonged and significant increase in calls resulting in delays: a critical safety plan was in operation”
3. inability to access mental health records
“EMAS does not have access to mental health records”
Responses
2024-0337-Joint-Response-from-EMAS-and-Northamptonshire-ICB.pdf ↗· East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust
Stated action
“EMAS also continue to include mental health workers in their call centre, with a 24/7 service with 2 clinicians being on shift at any given time.”