Police officers in Scotland are routinely filling in for ambulance crews by transporting patients to hospital, it has been claimed.
The latest edition of justice and social affairs magazine 1919 details reports showing how police have been asked to help out as paramedics remain under severe strain.
Force representatives have told the magazine how officers are receiving requests to attend medical emergencies and take patients to hospital by car.
The Scottish Police Federation claims it has recorded about 30 examples of this in recent months.
Last month the health secretary apologised to families facing “unacceptable waits” for ambulances across the country.
Gordon Forsyth, the SPF’s assistant to the general secretary (health and safety), said: “Cops out there are taking people to hospital in the back of police cars simply because the ambulance is going to be hours, or there isn’t anybody suitable to leave the person with and stand down.
“I’ve got a list of 30-odd examples, various things where the cops have been sent to calls because an ambulance hasn’t been available, or having to wait for a significant period of time for an ambulance to get there.
“It all goes back to the question of where does the policing responsibility stop and start?”
Examples of police taking patients to hospital
According to 1919 Magazine, extracts from reports detail the following examples of police helping at medical incidents.
“A member of the public observed an older male lying on the pavement with an injury to his leg and foot and in a state of extreme confusion.
“An ambulance was called at 1600 hours by the member of the public who remained with the IP (injured person) until 1900 hours when he then contacted police as ambulance still hadn’t attended.
“I attended and was unable to move the male due to his injuries. At 2140 hours there was still no ambulance available (5 hours and 40 mins after the first ambulance was called) and due to his state of confusion and his foot now black in colour we had no option but to take him ourselves to the hospital.
“The male was not fit to be put into a police van and (it) was extremely uncomfortable for him.”
“1614 hours a young male called NHS 24 reporting he had taken an overdose (this would have come through from NHS 24/ambulance as a concern for person call and I assume the male had indicated that he wasn’t at his home address given he was located an hour later).
“The male was located by officers at 1720 hours and confirmed that he had taken over-the-counter painkillers and a quantity of alcohol.
“Ambulance requested at 1726 hours. At 1757 hours male complaining of stomach and shortness of breath.
“Ambulance updated. 1822 hours males condition worsening, now complaining of chest pains, ambulance updated again.
“1835 hours male lost consciousness, still no ambulance available. Male was conveyed by police to hospital.”
“Female sitting in driveway in rural area on a motorcycle. She drops the bike and it falls over she has an open compound fracture to tibia.
“A local off-duty nurse is with her but as the ambulance will not be able to attend for two hours the SAS (Scottish Ambulance Service) let us know, despite it being a medical matter and their lack of resources doesn’t change what it is.
“They ask if we can attend (not sure what for) however the duty sergeant has no units and not sure what assistance they could be if he did.”
What do the police and ambulance services say?
Speaking at the most recent Scottish Police Authority meeting, Chief Constable Iain Livingstone described policing as “the service of first and last resort” and said police “would never step away from those who are in crisis”.
He said: “This applies across substance addiction, mental health, medical care, and many other vulnerabilities and concerns that our citizens and communities have, in addition to criminality.
“It is the challenge of all in public service to ensure people get the right help at the right time and all necessary support is available on a sustainable, continued basis.
“I recognise the pressures which exist across many other services, agencies and sectors.
“We know that when the health service, local authorities and other key partners come under significant strain, demand is diverted to policing.
“Additionally, delays in service provision by other agencies also mean officers and staff can spend longer dealing with an incident than would otherwise be the case.”
But he has warned there could be “further disruption” to police response times if pressures on the health service continue, particularly as the country prepares for COP26.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “Police officers are only requested to attend cardiac arrest calls as a first response in the north of Scotland and they are immediately backed up by an ambulance resource.
“This is line with pre-pandemic co-responding agreements. In no other situation would police officers attend ambulance 999 calls or be asked to transport patients to hospital.”
Police ‘not asked to attend instead of ambulances’ – govt
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scotland is well served by its police service, and its hardworking, dedicated and professional officers and staff who have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic.
“As the Scottish Ambulance Service have previously set out, they do not ask police officers to attend emergency situations instead of an ambulance crew or transport patients to hospital.
“For all 999 calls, the ambulance service will always dispatch the nearest, most appropriate response.”