Lunch break medic 'ignored call'

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A paramedic has been criticised for not cutting short a break to help a woman who had suffered a heart attack.

Catherine Cowie, 50, died two days after collapsing in Fraserburgh.

An ambulance technician was on the scene within four minutes, but a paramedic did not attend with him because he was on a lunch break.

Some cardiac drugs can only be administered by a paramedic. The Scottish Ambulance Service said staff could not be disturbed during breaks.

However, it said staff could choose whether or not to attend calls during break periods.

Mother-of-three Mrs Cowie collapsed in her Fraserburgh home, which is about 300 yards from the ambulance station where the paramedic was based, on 17 September and died two days later in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.

Her relatives believe she may have been saved if the paramedic had attended alongside the ambulance technician, who is not authorised to decide whether a patient should be treated with some drugs, or to administer those drugs.

'Highly skilled'

A spokesman for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: "An ambulance technician was on scene administering treatment to the patient within four minutes, followed very quickly by a further two technicians.

"Ambulance technicians are highly skilled in the delivery of emergency medical care and save lives every day. In this case they stabilised the patient and transported her to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary."

He explained: "Under the rules of the UK Government's Agenda for Change NHS pay modernisation programme, ambulance crews are entitled to a break during their shift and cannot be disturbed during that period.

"All ambulance services in the UK must comply with these rules, unless staff choose individually to be interrupted during their break."

The Scottish Government said it expected the Scottish Ambulance Service to learn lessons from the incident.