What do people experience when they need an ambulance?
Last month, Healthwatch England presented evidence to the House of Lords Public Services Committee as part of its investigation into how ambulance services and A&E departments can work together more effectively. The inquiry is exploring how to ease pressure on hospitals and make better use of paramedics’ skills.
To support this work, Healthwatch England analysed the stories people have shared with local Healthwatch across the country, highlighting the challenges people face and the opportunities for improving urgent and emergency care.
What did people tell Healthwatch
Four key themes in people’s feedback:
1. Delays in ambulance arrival
Many people report long waits for an ambulance, often far beyond expected response times.
2. Difficult decisions about getting to hospital
People describe feeling forced to choose between waiting for an ambulance or attempting to get to hospital themselves, even when it may not feel safe.
3. A&E departments often feel under pressure
On arrival, people frequently find emergency departments overcrowded, under pressure, and can lack clear communication.
4. Strong praise for dedication of paramedics and A&E staff
Despite the challenges, people consistently value ambulance services and commend the dedication and professionalism of frontline staff
Delays in ambulance arrival
As of spring 2026, there are signs of progress on ambulance delays. Response times for Category 1 calls, the most life threatening emergencies, have stabilised and moved closer to the seven minute target. Overall, urgent and emergency care performance almost reached national improvement goals in March.
But for many people with less urgent, yet still serious needs, waits remain far longer than they should be. It has now been five years since most ambulance performance standards were consistently met, and where you live still has a major influence on how long you wait.
People also tell us that delays do not only happen while waiting for an ambulance to arrive. They can happen at every stage of the journey: waiting for a call handler, waiting for a dispatch decision, queuing outside A&E, and then waiting again inside the department for assessment or a bed.
These delays have real and sometimes profound impacts on people’s health, wellbeing and confidence in NHS care.
One person shared with Healthwatch:
“I spent 15 hours in the waiting area following a heart attack. I cannot fault my care once admitted, nor the hard working staff in A&E, but the wait was intolerable. There needs to be a concerted effort to improve waiting times. It took two hours before ambulance staff could book me in and go to where other patients were waiting. Many other ambulances and their staff were also stuck in the department.”
These experiences help explain why Healthwatch England’s recent State of Health and Social Care report found that public confidence in getting timely ambulance care remains low, even though respect for staff remains high.
Difficult decisions about getting to hospital
Alongside long waits, people often describe being left to make difficult decisions with very little information. Call handlers may explain that NHS teams are extremely busy, but they cannot always give realistic timings. This uncertainty adds to the fear of an already stressful situation.
As a result, families sometimes feel forced to choose between waiting for help or attempting to get to hospital themselves, even when they believe the situation is serious.
One person told Healthwatch:
“I had a nightmare journey to hospital in rush hour believing my father was having a heart attack. I had to watch for him losing consciousness as I’d been told he might need CPR.”
When communication in emergency situations is limited, people can feel abandoned at the point they need reassurance most.
A&E departments often feel under pressure
Pressures in A&E are closely tied to many of the issues people raise with us about ambulance services. When no beds are available, ambulances queue outside hospitals, unable to hand over patients, leaving crews stuck and unable to respond to new emergencies.
Inside A&E, people often face long waits in crowded and uncomfortable spaces.
As Healthwatch England highlighted in its blog on corridor care, patients describe a lack of privacy, difficulty accessing food, water or pain relief, and anxiety about missing their name being called if they step away. These conditions can leave people feeling vulnerable at a time when they most need calm and reassurance.
Another person shared with Healthwatch:
“The ambulance staff were wonderful, very warm and reassuring. But the distance we need to travel to reach an A&E department is a real concern, because vital time can be lost in an emergency. In cases such as heart attack or stroke, quicker treatment often leads to better outcomes. In this area, it can take up to an hour in an ambulance just to get to hospital, followed by further waits on arrival.”
These conditions can be particularly distressing for people experiencing a mental health crisis, where noise, lack of privacy and poor communication may make symptoms worse. People tell us these environments can intensify distress, agitation and feelings of being unsafe.
Strong praise for dedication of paramedics and A&E staff
A consistent thread runs through the feedback Healthwatch receives on urgent and emergency care: the commitment and professionalism of NHS staff.
It does not go unnoticed. While we hear about many challenges, much of the feedback shared with Healthwatch is positive, and even critical stories often highlight the extraordinary efforts of staff working under immense pressure. This reflects the deep trust people place in paramedics and frontline teams.
One person shared with Healthwatch:
“I had a fabulous experience with 111. The person I spoke to was experienced, listened well, and an ambulance arrived within the expected time. The paramedics were great. They were very thorough, caring and got me into the ambulance quickly and comfortably. When I arrived at A&E they were again professional, kind, caring and kept me up to date with what they were doing.”
Another person said:
“My partner had a cardiac arrest. Within 10 minutes of calling 999 we had paramedics at the front door, followed five minutes later by a second ambulance.”
People are clear that the problem is not a lack of care or effort from staff, but pressures across the wider NHS that too often place both patients and professionals in extremely difficult situations.
Key actions to improve ambulance services
Improving ambulance services is not just about response times. It is about ensuring people feel supported, informed and treated in the right place first time.
To achieve this, we are calling for:
1. Better use of paramedics’ skills and public trust
The NHS 10‑year workforce plan should set out a clear pathway for expanding paramedic roles, including independent prescribing and greater use of “see and treat” approaches. This would help more people get safe care at home and reduce unnecessary pressure on hospitals.
2. Improved communication during long waits
Real‑time information can make long waits more manageable. People should receive clearer, more regular updates while waiting for an ambulance, including through digital tools, such as the NHS App as well as tailored advice about what to do while they wait.
3. Better handovers and hospital flow
Ambulance delays cannot be solved without tackling congestion inside hospitals. Ending corridor care and long waits for beds is essential for improving patient experience across the whole urgent and emergency pathway.
Ambulance services are often the first point of contact in a medical emergency, and people place immense trust in the staff who care for them. Listening to these experiences, and acting on what people tell us, is essential to rebuilding confidence and delivering safer, more person centred care when it matters most.
