Mr Patsy McGlone (Mid Ulster): To ask the Minister of Health to detail any steps that are being taken to reduce ambulance handover delays at hospitals.
Minister of Health: Reducing ambulance handover delays at hospitals remains a key priority for my Department, given the direct impact that such delays have on patient safety, patient experience and the ability of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) to respond to emergency calls.
A range of actions are being taken to address these delays. Central to this is the regional implementation of the “Release to Rescue” model across all Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts from 27 April 2026. Under this approach, where a patient has not been handed over within two hours of arrival at an emergency department (ED), clinical responsibility transfers to the receiving Trust. This allows ambulance crews to return promptly to service while ensuring continuity and safety of care for patients.
This model also supports improved patient flow within hospitals by enabling earlier transfer of patients from ambulances into appropriate clinical settings, including designated ED areas or, where clinically appropriate, onward movement to ward-based care.
Early data following the introduction of this model indicates a marked improvement in performance. Average handover times have reduced significantly, the proportion of patients experiencing long waits over two hours has fallen substantially, and there have been corresponding improvements in ambulance availability and response times.
Alongside this, my Department continues to work with NIAS and HSC Trusts to address the underlying causes of handover delays, particularly pressures within EDs and delays in patient flow through hospitals. This includes system-wide actions to improve unscheduled care performance and ensure that patients can be admitted, treated and discharged in a timelier way.
While these early results are encouraging, I recognise that performance is not yet consistently meeting all expected standards. My Department will therefore continue to monitor the impact of these measures closely, working in partnership with NIAS and Trusts to sustain progress, improve consistency across all sites, and ensure that patient safety and quality of care remain paramount.
Reducing ambulance handover delays will remain a central focus as part of wider efforts to strengthen the resilience and responsiveness of our urgent and emergency care system.
ENDS
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