UP to 15 ambulances at a time have been left queuing at York Hospital as A&E struggles to cope with a surge in patient numbers.

A paramedic has told how 15 ambulances were left queuing outside on Thursday, with 16 or 17 patients on trolleys waiting to be seen inside.

Another has told how ambulances are regularly left waiting for many hours at a time because the hospital is so inundated with patients.

The ambulance service concerns have come as an NHS report detailed how one patient was left waiting on a trolley in York Hospital for almost 15 hours, even though the decision to admit him was made soon after he arrived.

A spokesperson for York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said it was working hard to cope with sharply rising patient numbers.

They said: “We had a very busy period in our Emergency Department [on Thursday] with a continuous arrival of ambulances throughout the afternoon and evening bringing very poorly people to hospital. Staff in the department worked extremely hard in partnership with Yorkshire Ambulance Service to prioritise and admit patients.

York Press:

“The volume of patients to the Emergency Department has increased year on year and over Christmas and New Year this year we have seen an increase of 23 per cent in footfall to A&E with a rise of almost 30 per cent in self-referrals during that period. There was also a 14 per cent rise in ambulance arrivals compared with the previous year."

Pressures on A&E departments have been seen across the UK at a traditionally busy time, with many departments struggling to cope with demand over the Christmas period.

A paramedic, who asked not to be named, said ambulance coverage for York and North Yorkshire is alarmingly stretched, with York crews left waiting at hospitals for hours due to a lack of beds, and expected to help cover the entire county.

York Press:

They said: "My record is waiting over five hours at York. We are run ragged and we can't cope...it's crisis management."

They believe a lack of investment in the NHS had led to a situation where managers are left "robbing Peter to pay Paul."

Figures for 2016 show 15 minute target handover times for Yorkshire Ambulance Service have been repeatedly missed at York Hospital.

Ambulance handover times completed in 15 minutes fell to 54.4 per cent in the most recent figures for October across York trust sites.

Figures for October, show 222 people waited in A&E in York for more than eight hours to be treated or admitted.

A report to the governing body of Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group shows that one patient was recently left waiting on a trolley in A&E in York for 14 hours and 40 minutes, even though the decision was made to admit them about two hours after arrival.

Elsewhere in the country, a patient from York, attending A&E elsewhere in the country was kept waiting for over 12 hours for a mental health bed.

The 12 hour trolley waits have been the subject of investigations and discussions, the report notes.

Concerns have been raised by GPs across York about the amount of time it takes for ambulances to get to surgeries, the CCG report details.

Dr David Macklin, executive director of operations at Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said: “Many hospital emergency departments across the country are currently experiencing very high demand which, understandably, has resulted in delayed handovers.

"Yorkshire Ambulance Service continues to work closely with hospitals and other NHS partners in Yorkshire and the Humber to try to resolve any issues and minimise the impact on patients.

“We continue to urge the public to use our 999 service wisely so we are able to prioritise resources for those with life-threatening illnesses and injuries. We ask that people with less serious illnesses or injuries consider alternative healthcare services, such as their GP, a pharmacist or NHS 111.”