Ambulance failed to turn up

I suffered a fall in Gildredge Road and banged my head on the ground with the result that I had quite serious bleeding on my head and was forced to lie there for some time.

I would like to thank several passersby who came to my assistance (total strangers of course).

There were two elderly ladies and a nurse who assisted and comforted me. Then two young women from the Elite Patient Transport stopped to help as well.

They administered basic first aid and made me as comfortable as was possible.

They stayed there for the entire time I was lying on the ground, but unfortunately were not allowed to transport me to hospital.

I would also like to thank the staff of the DGH Emergency Department who realised the seriousness of the situation and treated me accordingly, I was seen as soon as possible by several nurses and a doctor and given the appropriate treatment.

I am seventy nine years of age and I have a pacemaker fitted and I am on warfarin which made it difficult to stop the bleeding.

What I cannot praise however is the ambulance service who despite being appraised of the circumstances failed to send an ambulance.

I am only happy that it wasn’t a heart attack as I would probably have been dead by the time they arrived.

I was left there for one and a half hours until finally the two young women from Elite called a taxi to take me to the emergency department.

I still have no idea if the ambulance actually turned up as by then we had left the scene.

I am now at home and thankful that the situation is not as serious as was first thought, although I have a lovely shiner on my eye.

I still have no idea what happened with the ambulance service; I can only comment on the appalling service I received at their hands.

I hope the strangers who assisted me read this and accept my thanks.