Family of grandad from Yorkshire who died after waiting hours for ambulance demand improvements

Shaun Parks, 52, was diagnosed with the life-threatening condition when he visited the A&E Department at Doncaster Royal Infirmary (DRI) with his wife Karen, 48.

Medics then called for an ambulance to take him to the Northern General Hospital’s primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI), in Sheffield, for treatment.

But the emergency vehicle, which was meant to take just 40 minutes to arrive, finally turned up at the unit three hours and 18 minutes later.

Shaun did make it to the specialist department but passed away on the morning of December 12, 2022, meaning he never got to see the birth of his seventh grandchild.

An inquest into his death, held last month, concluded a “significant delay” in Shaun receiving treatment “may have affected the outcome” and contributed to his death.

Karen has now called on the Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS), who operated the vehicle, to improve their performance so that other families don’t suffer.

She said: “When Shaun was in hospital, I was constantly watching the clock and praying for the ambulance to turn up.

“He died not long after he arrived at Northern General Hospital, and our children didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to him. That’s what hurts the most.

“Shaun was a wonderful husband, dad, and grandad, and the impact his death has had on the family has been significant.

"There’s not a day goes by where we don’t miss him.

“He was idolised by his grandchildren and it’s devastating that he’ll never meet our other grandchild on the way.

“It’s now more than a year since we lost Shaun but it feels like time has stood still, particularly because we had so many questions over what happened that day.

“While we would love Shaun back in our lives, we know that’s not possible.

“All we can hope for now is that the ambulance service makes the improvements needed to help prevent other families from suffering like we have.”

Shaun had attended the DRI at around midnight on December 12, 2022, where an ambulance was booked at 3.06am to transfer him to Northern General Hospital.

The inquest was told that the ambulance should have taken 40 minutes at the latest to arrive.

However, it arrived at DRI at 6.29am, a delay of three hours and 18 minutes. It later made it to the Northern General Hospital at 7.15am.

During this time, Shaun’s condition had deteriorated, and he died during a medical procedure at 10.17am.

At his inquest, assistant coroner Katy Dickinson issued a Prevention of Future Deaths report after expressing concerns over the ambulance response time.

In her report, she also outlined how there were “insufficient” emergency medical dispatchers available.

She also said that the Ambulance Service’s staffing levels were below the requirement to meet the expected demand.

There was also a delay in offloading patients at hospitals, which tied up resources and prevented them from being able to respond to emergency calls, the coroner said.

The coroner has now requested that the YAS set out what measures it will take to prevent future deaths.

Shaun’s loved ones, including his widow Karen, instructed expert medical negligence lawyers Irwin Mitchell to support them through the inquest and secure answers.

Tania Harrison, the specialist medical negligence lawyer from the firm representing his family, said: “Shaun’s loved ones remain devastated by his death and the circumstances surrounding it.

“Understandably, they also had a number of questions and concerns in the lead up to the inquest.

"Not knowing all the facts about what happened to Shaun just added to their grief.

“While nothing will ever make up for the pain the family has been through, the inquest has been a major milestone in being able to provide them with vital answers they deserve.

“Sadly, the inquest identified worrying issues in the care provided to Shaun regarding a delay in his ambulance transfer.

“It’s now vital, following the coroner’s concerns, that all lessons possible are learned to improve patient safety.”