Ambulance strikes show how NHS is at breaking point - The Yorkshire Post says

That is why it is disappointing that the Government refuses to sit down with the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) to come to a settlement over the pay dispute that has seen nurses take to the picket line. But it isn’t just nurses. Ambulance staff are also now launching industrial action.

Waiting times for ambulances have been growing for some time now, as the former Health Secretary herself experienced recently.

Paramedics and ambulance workers cannot be blamed for this. They have been working hard to the point where many of them can no longer take any more. Many ambulance workers face long waits outside hospitals for beds to become available. A sign of a failing system.

Dr John Martin, president at College of Paramedics, said that, over the last five years, demand had gone up 18 per cent in England, with a 50 per cent figure for category one calls.

“So we are seeing a sicker population who are calling us more often,” he added.

And Professor Julian Redhead, National clinical director for urgent and emergency care at NHS England, says “Demand on our emergency services is up to phenomenal degrees, especially at the moment”.

Lost in the dispute over pay and working conditions is the need for the population to be more responsible when it comes to doing all they can to look after their health.

We as a nation are good at using penalties to try and encourage people to live healthier lifestyles but more needs to be done to inspire people to look after themselves and avoid, as best possible, their need for emergency services. There will still be sick and vulnerable people who need assistance though and that is why a resolution needs to be found to deal with the systemic issues in our healthcare system.