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| Staff lied over ambulance times | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Records of how long crews took to answer emergency calls were falsified in 123 cases last year, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service has admitted. | Records of how long crews took to answer emergency calls were falsified in 123 cases last year, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service has admitted. |
| The two members of staff who doctored records were suspended during an inquiry. Both have returned to work. | The two members of staff who doctored records were suspended during an inquiry. Both have returned to work. |
| The service said pressure to meet targets and provide the fastest possible response times was given as motivation for falsifying records. | |
| It said that improved procedures are now in place. | It said that improved procedures are now in place. |
| Chairwoman of Stormont's Health committee Iris Robinson said the revelation would deal another blow to public confidence. | |
| "This is very worrying indeed," said the Democratic Unionist Assembly member. | |
| She added: "It's very concerning to me and I will be raising it with the health minister at the first opportunity." | |
| The Ambulance Service says that the dispatch centre - where all Northern Ireland's emergency ambulance calls are answered - is a highly pressurised working environment. | The Ambulance Service says that the dispatch centre - where all Northern Ireland's emergency ambulance calls are answered - is a highly pressurised working environment. |
| The service said that the 123 doctored records represent less than 1% of all the calls answered at the centre during that time. | The service said that the 123 doctored records represent less than 1% of all the calls answered at the centre during that time. |
| It pointed out that it does not condone the practice of falsifying records. | It pointed out that it does not condone the practice of falsifying records. |
| All the doctored records related to potentially life-threatening emergencies over a seven or eight month period between April and November last year, the service said. | All the doctored records related to potentially life-threatening emergencies over a seven or eight month period between April and November last year, the service said. |