PATIENTS are being put at risk because of problems with an ambulance response system, a union has warned.

The GMB says South East Coast Ambulance Trust’s computer aided despatch (CAD) system regularly crashes, experiences loading errors and runs slowly at times.

It says this can leave dispatchers unable to answer calls or contact ambulances and despatch resources within the required times, putting patient safety at risk.

The trust said the critical incidents with the system were very rare and the impact on patients was minimal.

It also said the system was regularly maintained and upgraded to address issues identified by staff.

The trust, which has come under intense scrutiny over its NHS 111 non emergency call handling system and has struggled to meet response targets, was this week issued with a warning notice by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

It was given until September to urgently improve its performance in six areas, including its systems and processes.

GMB regional organiser Gary Palmer said: “Ongoing issues with the computerised display system are serious and yet, although data on failures is recorded for executives, nothing has been done to correct, repair or replace the system altogether.

“Emergency operation centre staff have been forced to revert to pen and paper after a full systems failure and are then forced to call ambulance staff to allocate calls and to communicate triage and patient location information in person.”

An ambulance trust spokesman said: “Efforts to address the issues highlighted by the CQC are already under way with an action plan which is being tracked by the trust’s executive team and board.

“We do recognise that system issues can cause frustration for staff but these matters are subject to review by a project group which is looking to further improve the performance of the CAD.

“Fortunately critical issues with the system are rare and the impact on patients is minimal.

“However, the trust is keen to improve the CAD’s reliability and is working hard to address this.”

“The demand faced by the service continues to be unprecedented.

“In the first half of this year we responded to approximately 30,000 more calls than the same period last year.”

The CQC is expected to publish its full report following its recent inspection of the trust later this year.