Several extra hours spent in ambulances at King's Mill Hospital A&E

NHS England figures show one patient waited in an ambulance for at least an hour when they arrived at A&E at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust sites – the trust operates a casualty department at Sutton’s King’s Mill Hospital and an urgent care centre at Newark Hospital – in the week to December 18, down from 15, 2 per cent, the week before.

A further 67 patients were forced to wait between 30 minutes and one hour, meaning 11 per cent of the 620 total ambulance arrivals were delayed by half an hour or more, and at least nine hours were lost.

Maggie McManus, SFH deputy chief operating officer, said: “We’re doing all we can to release ambulances from our A&E as quickly as possible, so they are back on the road and available for the most seriously ill people in our communities.

“SFH is one of the top performing trusts in the Midlands for ambulance turnaround times, which is testament to the work our staff do with ambulance colleagues to prioritise our patients’ needs.

“It’s vital patients choose the NHS service right for their needs before they attend our hospitals, or call an ambulance.

“If you need urgent medical attention, but it’s not an emergency, please think ‘111 first’. You can visit 111.nhs.uk or call 111 for advice on where to go to access the treatment you need. Your local pharmacist can also help by suggesting over-the-counter treatments for many less serious conditions.

“If you do need to attend our hospitals, you may need to wait longer than any of us would like. Please be kind to our hardworking staff who are working to help you get the treatment you need as quickly as possible.”

The figures cover the week before a 24-hour strike by ambulance staff over complaints of poor working conditions and pay.

NHS targets state trusts should complete 95 per cent of all ambulance handovers in 30 minutes, with all conducted in less than one hour.

More than 16,300 handover delays an hour or longer were recorded across all trusts in the week, up 31 per cent from 12,500 the week before.

It meant 46,000 hours were lost to delays in handing patients over, up from 29,000 hours a week prior.

Urging the Government to address pay and vacancies for nurses to improve care, Patricia Marquis, Royal College of Nursing director for England, said: “There is absolutely no slack in the system.”

Saffron Cordery, NHS Providers interim chief executive, said: “With ambulance handover delays having increased by a third in the last week, trust leaders are extremely worried as strike action threatens to aggravate an already challenging situation.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “Our number one priority this winter is to keep patients safe and ensure they can access care when and where they need it, which is why we are taking action to reduce ambulance handover delays and boost urgent and emergency care performance.”

He said the Government is spending £500 million to speed up discharge from hospital to social care, and £150m for the ambulance service to meet winter pressures.

East Midlands Ambulance Service has been approached for comment.