Bruce hits out at ambulance service over cancelled appointments

Jul 1 2009 by Graham Miller, Wishaw Press

AN Allanton man who has endured the amputation of both his legs and fought a debilitating battle against the superbug MRSA has hit out at the ambulance service.

For twice they have cancelled appointments to take him to hospital for essential prosthetic limb fittings.

Bruce Hanley (62), tragically lost both his legs as a result of diabetes.

Now he is desperate to receive the artificial limbs which are so important to improving his mobility and his overall quality of life.

On two separate occasions, over the course of just one week, he was left bitterly disappointed when his scheduled sessions at the West of Scotland Mobility and Rehabilitation Centre (WESTMARC) at Glasgow’s Southern General Hospital were cancelled at short notice – because the ambulance service said they had no vehicles available to transport him.

The former panel-beater told the Wishaw Press this week: “To say I’m extremely frustrated would be a bit of an understatement.

“As if losing both my legs wasn’t enough to deal with, I’m now being told that I can’t get to the hospital to have my prosthetic limb fitted. It’s nothing short of a nightmare.”

Bruce – who also has to travel to Monklands Hospital in Airdrie twice a week for tiring four-hour dialysis sessions – suffered the loss of his left leg in 2003, then had to endure the removal of his right leg last year. In the aftermath of the initial amputation at Wishaw General Hospital, Bruce contracted MRSA and it took him five years to recover.

However, throughout his ordeal, he has tried to remain upbeat, but feels this latest fiasco is leaving him close to breaking point.

Bruce admitted: “It really is soul-destroying. I’ve always tried to put on a brave face but this is hard to take.”

The first cancellation occurred the evening before an early morning appointment on Wednesday, June 17.

Bruce recalled: “I was told that, unfortunately, there were no ambulances available to pick me up and take me into Glasgow, so I had to contact WESTMARC myself and make another appointment.”

The rescheduled meeting was set for last Wednesday, June 24, at 10.40am.

But Bruce received a call just after 9am informing him that, once again, there was no ambulance available for him.

He said: “My frustration and disappointment just got the better of me and I burst into tears. I feel so down about this, really low. Surely it’s not difficult for the ambulance service to liaise with the hospital and ensure I get through and am able to get my artificial leg fitted?

“I’ve even suggested that they send a taxi if there are no ambulances, but the powers- that-be insist that it has got to be an ambulance.”

Since his second let-down, Bruce has not received any communication from the ambulance service and doesn’t know when, or indeed if, his situation is going to improve.

A spokesperson for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “We do have some short-term local capacity issues and these are being addressed.”