A COUNCILLOR whose father waited an hour for an ambulance after suffering a heart attack has welcomed a campaign to save and improve ambulance services in Powys.

Conservative Cllr Diane Jones-Poston, who represents Llanbrynmair, told Thursday's (July 15) Powys County Council meeting how her father died last year from a sudden and unexpected heart attack.

She said it took the ambulance more than hour to reach him.

Her comments came as members discussed a motion put forward by Plaid Cymru Councillors Elwyn Vaughan and Bryn Davies asking the council to back a call for all ambulance stations in Powys to be manned 24 hours.

Conservative Cllr Diane Jones-Poston who represents Llanbrynmair, said: “I recognise that councillors and councils don’t have direct control, or responsibilities for the management or running of the ambulance service.

“I support the motion and the concerns. Not only for the residents of the Dyfi Valley but for the whole of Powys and also from a personal position as well.

“Some members would be aware that my father sadly died last year from a sudden and unexpected heart attack. It took the ambulance over and hour to get to the scene.”

Cllr Jones-Poston said the ambulance was on its way back from  Aberystwyth on the A44 road which goes through Llangurig when the emergency call came through.

When the ambulance reached Llanbrynmair, more than an hour had elapsed since the emergency call had been made.

Cllr Jones-Poston said: “We will not know if the outcome could have been different, but it may have been if another ambulance had been in the vicinity at the time or even at one of the stations, of Machynlleth, Newtown or Llanidloes.

“In any emergency, speed of response is absolutely critical, often referred to as the golden hour.

“Any cut to the service will have dire and tragic consequences to response times and to saving lives.”

She believed that any influence of support the council could give added weight to other voices looking to discuss properly resourcing and funding the ambulance service with the Welsh Government.

“So that no other family has to go through this experience, said Cllr Jones-Poston.

Cllrs Vaughan and Davies unveiled their campaign at the start of the month when the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust confirmed that they were reviewing their resources in Powys.

As part of their proposal Llanidloes and Llanfyllin ambulance stations would be extended to be 24 hours, while they also want to safeguard Machynlleth Ambulance Station and provide extra ambulances for Newtown and Welshpool.

Cllr Davies, who seconded the proposal had said that in recent weeks it had taken ambulances four hours to arrive on scene to treat two of his elderly neighbours who had been injured in falls.

The motion was approved with 40 votes for, three against and six abstentions.

Sonia Thompson, interim assistant director of operations ambulance response at the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: “We’re aware of concerns in mid Wales about ambulance availability, which we believe to be borne out a Trust-wide piece of work we’ve begun to reconfigure our rosters.

“Recently we undertook a ‘demand and capacity’ review to identify the resources we need to meet predicted and future demand, and as a result, a roster review is now underway to ensure that our resources are best placed to meet that demand.

“This means that ambulance rosters in Wales, including in Powys, will be subject to a review so we can be confident we have the right resources in the right place, at the right time.

“Roster reviews are complex and sensitive and we’re working closely with colleagues, Trade Union partners and Powys Teaching Health Board to navigate this work and reach an agreement which we believe is the most appropriate.

“We’ll also be engaging directly with Powys County Council members to allay any concerns they have.

“In the meantime, recruitment to our frontline is continuing in earnest; our efforts from this year and last have meant an uplift of 260 people into the service so far.

“We were very sorry to hear of Cllr Diane Jones-Poston’s bereavement last year, and our Putting Things Right team will be reaching out directly to Cllr Jones-Poston to learn more about her father’s experience.”