Responding to a poll commissioned by the Liberal Democrats showing a quarter of Britons avoided calling an ambulance over fears it would take too long to arrive Rory Deighton, acute director at the NHS Confederation, said:

“It is very worrying to hear that so many people who need emergency care are not calling ambulances because they fear they will take too long to arrive.

“Health leaders and their teams have been working incredibly hard to improve waiting times at A&E and ambulance response times. But the NHS is facing record demand especially as we head into winter, treating many more elderly patients or people with multiple or more complex conditions.

“The financial position is also incredibly tight, with many services left starved of the capital investment they need to replace outdated equipment or invest in new technologies.

“But systems are working to support patients out of hospital without the need for them to be rushed by ambulance to A&E departments. These include control hubs that can dispatch not just paramedics, but community nursing staff to patients, as well as the growth in “hear and treat” services that has allowed many callers to avoid an ambulance conveyance altogether.

“This latest survey also shows how concerned people are about the state of the NHS this winter. We have called on the Chancellor to use her budget to provide some immediate support to the NHS and social care ahead of winter or risk the service falling into yet another crisis. Health systems are already having to scale back staff and service levels to meet tight financial targets, so without support there is a real risk patients will be left facing even longer waits for ambulances or care.”