Commenting on figures released this morning showing the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust has the highest sickness rate of any part of the Welsh NHS, Darren Millar AM, Shadow Minister for Health, said:
“These figures suggest that morale and staffing pressures remain problematic in the Welsh Ambulance Service and are undoubtedly having a negative impact on response times.
“Sickness rates in the service are running at almost double those in other parts of the NHS, raising concerns about whether the service is effectively funded, resourced and staffed.
“Ambulance response times in Wales compare unfavourably with other parts of the UK, where targets and ambitions for fast and efficient responses to emergency callouts are much higher.
“We now look forward to the new Health Minister setting out her proposals to improve working conditions for paramedics and other Welsh Ambulance Service staff to help them improve the efficiency of their lifesaving work.”
