Brian Mills · Prevention of Future Deaths report

On the 26th January 2016 Brian Mills fell on the stairs at home sustaining multiple injuries including a number of broken ribs. An ambulance was called at 11:16 hours but a rapid response vehicle arrived at 13:23 hours. An ambulance arrived at 13:38 hours and conveyed Brian Mills to the Lister Hospital. He was deemed unsuitable for surgical intervention and treated conservatively with intravenous antibiotics and fluids. Brian Mills died at 11:15 hours on the 13th April 2016.

I heard evidence from the treating doctor and the pathologist that the delay in the ambulance arriving did not, in this case, cause or contribute to the death.

Brian Mills was an 88yr old man on warfarin who had fallen and had a bleeding head wound who had to wait over two hours for an ambulance.

On that day, the East of England Ambulance Service log revealed that the Bedford Emergency Operation Centre had a number of calls unassigned prior to and during the time the call for Mr Mills had been received:

10:44hrs: eight outstanding emergency calls, longest waiting time of 1hr 52 minutes.
10:48hrs: thirteen outstanding emergency calls, longest waiting time of 3hr 7 minutes.
12:47hrs: twenty four outstanding emergency calls, longest waiting time 3hr 53 minutes.

(1) Consistently high levels of outstanding emergency calls and waiting times that far exceed the service's own target response times are likely to put lives at risk.