Charity 'deeply concerned' about hospital's stroke advice

A charity said it was "deeply concerned" after a hospital advised patients presenting with a suspected stroke not to attend its emergency department.

Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust said its Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital was "not the most appropriate place" for those experiencing symptoms because it did not have a specialist stroke unit. The trust advised patients to call 999 for an ambulance to take them to Scunthorpe General Hospital instead.

However, concerns have been raised by patients on ambulance waiting times.

A spokesperson for the Stroke Association said any lengthy wait for an ambulance was "unacceptable" as every minute could shorten the chance of survival.

In a social media post on Thursday, the trust said it had seen "a lot of instances recently" of patients arriving at the hospital.

The trust said: "This is not the most appropriate place to be seen, as we don't have a hyper-acute stroke unit at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital.

"You should instead ring 999 if you've got symptoms and you'll be taken via ambulance to Scunthorpe General Hospital, which has the necessary facilities.

"If you do attend at Grimsby ED, you'll be sent to Scunthorpe via ambulance."

The post received criticism from some social media s with a number of individuals questioning what could happen to them if they were taken ill.

One person wrote: "Why as a member of the public in a state of emergency should we have to ensure we are heading to the right place":[]}