AMBULANCE service bosses have defended their emergency response times after GPs were given the go-ahead to call on a private ambulance firm to transport sick patients to hospital.

Yorkshire Ambulance Service chief executive David Whiting said the service had seen a 24 per cent hike in the last 12 months of people calling 999 across Richmondshire and Hambleton – but said his crews had improved response time record by two per cent.

After facing strong criticism for its response times in the Yorkshire Dales in recent years, Yorkshire Ambulance Service has worked with Hambleton, Richmondshire and Whitby Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to review the availability of ambulances in the area and make patient-focussed improvements in efficiency.

At a CCG governing body meeting in Colburn today (Thursday) Mr Whiting said he was impressed with the improvements made so far.

He said: “North Yorkshire is actually slightly better than West and South Yorkshire, and we get to 70 per cent of our calls within the eight minute target - and we are improving.

“In North Yorkshire we are getting 24 per cent more calls this year with a real increase of high priority calls, but we are now hitting eight minute response times 66 per cent of the time – a two per cent increase on last year.”

But the CCG has taken steps to relieve pressure on YAS by commissioning Medical Services (North East) Limited, based in Bowburn, Durham, as a private ambulance contractor to answer GP calls to transport frail patients to hospital.

CCG chief clinical officer Vicky Pleydell said GPs would now be able to make the decision to call the private firm for patients who required hospital treatment, instead of waiting hours for ambulance crews to become available.

She said the expected wait of four hours to be taken to hospital would sometimes over-run if crews were dealing with emergencies, causing patients distress if they were to deteriorate.

Mr Whiting said he would reserve judgement on whether the pilot scheme, to run November to March, would be a success.

He said: “The logic suggests that it should have a positive impact.

“It is about efficiency and productivity so we will have to see if it is the best practise.”

Dr Pleydell said: “We are using a variety of methods to help YAS improve response times and this is one of them.

“I do want to see the response to call-outs being within eight minutes 75 per cent of the time but it is challenging in such a rural area.

“We have to work together to achieve that but I think this pilot scheme will certainly take the pressure off our ambulances.”