Flintshire woman died after 23-hour ambulance wait - coroner

Angela  Frances Darlow, aged 73, suffered a stroke at her home in Mold on January 6, 2025.

An ambulance was immediately called - but arrived 23 hours and 20 minutes later.

She was later taken to the Countess of Chester Hospital, arriving over an hour later.

Angela was diagnosed with an extensive left middle cerebral artery infarct. Given the passage of time she was not suitable for investigations and thrombectomy. She instead received antiplatelets and was admitted to the stroke ward.

Angela remained stable and was transferred to Mold Community Hospital on March 7 with a poor prognosis. She died from the effects of the stroke at hospital on June 7 last year.

An inquest was held in relation to Angela's death on February 5 - where assistant coroner Kate Robertson recorded a narrative conclusion.

It stated "that death was due to natural causes, contributed to by opportunities for medical investigations and potential treatment lost due to the time it took for the ambulance to arrive and convey her to hospital where such investigations may have afforded her treatment for the condition from which she died ".

Following the inquest, the coroner has issued a prevention of future deaths report to the Welsh Government's Department for Health and Social Care.

It states: "Angela Darlow was suffering from symptoms of a stroke at home during the  afternoon of 6 January 2025. Her husband immediately contacted the Welsh  Ambulance Service via 999. Given the significant demand at this time, it took 23 hours and 20 minutes for an emergency ambulance to attend. The calls made to the Trust were correctly categorised.

"By the time Angela arrived at the nearest  hospital, The Countess of Chester, she was outside the time for investigations for thrombectomy.

"At the time in question demand was unprecedented. This is reflected by the 23 hour and 20 minute delay in ambulance arriving.

"There were significant hospital handover delays at the time which added to the demand on the Trust.

"The facts in Angela’s death speak for themselves. I continue to remain concerned  about the time is it taking for ambulances to arrive in the context of the multifactorial reasons for this which include patient flow in hospitals and limited social care provision. People are dying due to these issues and yet we are no closer to improvement."

The Welsh Government is duty bound to respond within 56 days of the report - which was issued on March 5.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: "Our thoughts are with Angela Darlow's family at this incredibly difficult time.

"We have received the Assistant Coroner's report and are carefully reviewing its findings."