Ambulance waits: Mum drives daughter to hospital during seizure

A mum was forced to unreserved her kid to infirmary by car during a seizure due to the fact that of uncertainty astir erstwhile an ambulance mightiness arrive.

Niamh Andrews, five, had a seizure portion practicing gymnastics.

But erstwhile her mother, Victoria Andrews, phoned 999 the relation was incapable to accidental erstwhile an ambulance unit would beryllium disposable to help.

The Welsh Government said they were implementing strategy changes to amended hold times.

Victoria and her girl Niamh Andrews, who unrecorded successful Cardiff, were astatine a free-play league astatine their section gymnastics nine erstwhile the incidental happened.

Niamh was playing connected gymnastic bars erstwhile her lips turned bluish and she began staring into the region earlier slipping disconnected the apparatus.

"I managed to drawback clasp of her and arsenic she went to the crushed I could spot that her jaw had started to lock, she started to convulse and to person a seizure," Ms Andrews said.

She feared autistic Niamh was choking.

"She went into a full-on convulsion," Ms Andrews said.

On calling 999 the mum-of-one asked erstwhile an ambulance mightiness arrive. The relation did not know.

Ms Andrews enactment Niamh successful the betterment presumption and stayed connected the enactment until Niamh stopped convulsing.

Ms Andrews said: "I asked if it would beryllium quicker if we drove ourselves. At this clip Niamh was inactive lying connected the floor, inactive wholly retired of it."

She and a person rushed her to hospital, with Ms Andrews dubbing the acquisition "debilitating".

The 37-year-old said: "When your kid is unwell, and thing is happening to them that is wholly retired of your control, and that you cognize would usually request aesculapian assistance, it's got to beryllium the worst happening successful the world.

"I've ne'er felt stomach-churning similar that. You're truthful retired of your depth."

Ms Andrews knew erstwhile she dialled 999 they could beryllium waiting for a agelong time.

But not getting an estimated clip of accomplishment made it adjacent much difficult.

"It's hard knowing erstwhile you marque that telephone telephone there's a accidental that they won't beryllium capable to respond to you," she said.

It made beingness "that small spot much scary".

Ms Andrews said: "I debar definite activities knowing there's a bully accidental thing mightiness hap and you whitethorn person to bundle your kid into the car, oregon instrumentality them successful [to hospital] yourself successful a concern you never, ever privation to beryllium in."

The average effect time was 10 minutes successful December - the slowest connected record. The figures were released connected a time successful which 1000 ambulances workers were striking across Wales.

The Welsh authorities spokesperson said: "Whilst we admit exigency attraction show is not wherever we expect it to be, we are driving strategy improvements, including extending same-day exigency attraction services to unfastened 7 days a week, improving absorption of 999 patients connected the phone, and recruiting much staff.

"Without each this the unit connected the strategy would beryllium adjacent greater."