Suffolk dad died after ambulance delays for stroke treatment

Martin Hunt, 59, from Woodbridge, suffered a stroke behind the wheel of an HGV on October 27, 2022, in Northamptonshire.

He later passed away on October 31, 2022.

The Serious Incident (SI) report, seen by the East Anglian Daily Times, found that stroke protocol should have been initiated in the third 999 call, which detailed Mr Hunt’s semi-consciousness, slurred speech, and facial droop.

However, there were no ambulance resources available for dispatch at the time.

Mr Hunt has been described as a 'lovable giant'. (Image: Bethany Rose-Hunt)

Read more: Suffolk woman Gina Bywater died after 10-hour ambulance wait

The report found that a “prolonged wait” for an ambulance meant that the trust was not able to respond in a “timely manner”.

The ambulance service was therefore unable to provide treatment that “could have prevented (him) further harm”.

A total of four 999 calls were received by East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) between 11pm on October 27 and 1am on October 28, which were coded as requiring a Category 2 response.

Category 2 calls should be responded to in an average time of 18 minutes, but the service's response time was 2 hours and 22 minutes.

As well as customer service deviations in the call responses, the report also found a delay in Mr Hunt being taken to hospital, due to demand.

An ambulance finally arrived on the scene at 1.22am but was only able to leave more than an hour later, at 2.17am.

Mr Hunt arrived at Northampton General Hospital at 2.39am.

Bethany Rose-Hunt, the daughter of Mr Hunt, said: “It is very hard to come to terms with. The ambulance should have taken 45 minutes maximum.

Bethany Rose-Hunt with father Martin. (Image: Bethany Rose-Hunt)

“There’s too much room for improvement. It’s incredibly sad that the service that was meant to be there for my dad let him down so badly. I am disappointed with the lack of action that has been taken.

“My mum has lost her house due to the financial impact of my dad passing away, and we are very upset with the service.

“My dad was my joint biggest supporter, along with my mum. He got me through my degree during Covid, read all my essays, and was a lovable giant.

“He was very well-known, and I think the fact that we lost such a great person – and I lost such a great dad – is incredibly sad for everybody.

“A whole community has been impacted.”

Northampton General Hospital has apologised to Mr Hunt's family.

A spokesperson for Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust said: “We would like to offer our sincere condolences to Martin’s family and apologise for the delays he experienced.

“We have introduced improvements to ambulance handover processes which both improve patient care and support an ambulance to leave for a Category 1 or 2 call in a more timely manner.

“In addition, we work closely with the ambulance service, where necessary, to assess and initiate treatment while patients are in ambulances to ensure we are able to better care for the patient before they are able to enter the Emergency Department.”

Michael Jones, divisional director for Northamptonshire at East Midlands Ambulance Service, added: “The NHS and ambulance service continues to operate under tremendous pressure.

Read more: 230 East of England ambulances broke down in August 2023

“We’ve invested in new staff, vehicles and technology, but continue to experience handover delays at hospitals.

“We are working closely with partners at NHS Trusts, members of the wider health community and the government to identify what more can be done to alleviate pressures and support the system at times of increased demand.

“We need the public to use NHS services wisely too. 999 should only be used for medical emergencies. NHS 111 can be used if urgent medical advice is needed.”