Heart attack victim “waited 18 hours to be seen” by doctors

A retired teacher from Cornwall has told how he waited 18 hours to be treated in hospital for a heart attack. Glynn Evans, 76, started having indigestion-like chest pain while on holiday with his family in Bodmin in 2022.

He said he wasn’t worried at first, but around 8pm that evening, he and his wife Lyn knew something was wrong. He called 999.

Mr Evans, who now runs a British Heart Foundation campaign, said: “My son-in-law was going to take me to hospital but he said the last thing he wanted was for me to be thrown into the back of his car. So I waited for the ambulance. He finally showed up the next morning.”

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Mr Evans said that when he finally arrived at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, there were 24 ambulances queuing ahead of him. The grandfather-of-six added: “I stayed in the ambulance and a doctor had to come out and do a blood test. He came back later and told me it wasn’t good news – I’d had a heart attack.”

Mr Evans was finally seen in hospital at around 2pm, around 18 hours after his wife first called 999.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has launched a new campaign – Hearts Need More – to tackle what it says is “the worst heart care crisis in living memory”.

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Mr Evans, from Bourne in Lincolnshire, who is now living with heart failure, said: “The doctor who treated me was furious that I had to wait so long. I’m not sure the heart failure would be as bad if it hadn’t taken so long to get treatment.

“There is nothing anyone can do about my long wait now. But I don’t want anyone else to have to wait that long and miss out on the best treatment available. That’s why I’m supporting the BHF Hearts Need More campaign.”

All ambulance trusts should respond to Category 2 calls – including heart attacks – within 18 minutes on average. In January 2023, an additional target was added to answer Category 2 calls within 30 minutes on average for 2023/24. In 2023/24, the average response time for Category 2 calls was above this at 36 minutes 15 seconds.

As part of its campaign, the British Heart Foundation has launched an online pledge calling on the government to create an action plan for heart disease. More than 40,000 people have signed so far and the charity is hoping for 50,000 signatures.

Dr Charmaine Griffiths, chief executive, said: “Glynn’s story is clear: we are in the grip of the worst heart care crisis the country has ever faced. What happened to Glynn was unacceptable and it wasn’t just a one time thing.

“At BHF, we receive calls almost every day from people who have gone through stressful and often dangerous waits for heart tests, treatment or even emergency care.

“Long waits for heart care put lives at risk. For the first time on record, we are seeing a sustained increase in early deaths from heart and circulatory disease. That means thousands more families have been torn apart.

“Our new government has the power to stop this ongoing tragedy once and for all, but it will need everyone’s help. Please sign your name to show our new Prime Minister that heart patients can no longer wait for a future without pain and heartbreak.”

The latest figures for 2022 show that an average of 750 people a week aged 75 or under died from cardiovascular disease in England – the highest annual total since 2008.

The Royal Cornwall Hospital has been contacted for comment.