Ambulance chief's wife dies after a student is sent out on 999 call

Staffing problems leave first responder to cope with emergency without help

- VIVIENNE AITKEN

THE wife of a Scottish Ambulance Service boss died after a student was sent as the first responder during a 999 emergency.

SAS chairman Tom Steele's wife Gillian collapsed in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, and an ambulance was called for.

But she died of a suspected cardiac arrest after a student technician was sent to the call-out without a fully trained paramedic.

The student had earlier been part of a crew with a qualified paramedic but when they left for a meeting, the student was left alone as the first responder.

A back-up crew was sent from Livingston to assist but Gillian, from Lanark, died after the medical emergency on February 7.

The student is believed to be a VQ4 technician, which means they can carry out the work of a qualified technician but only under supervision of another technician or paramedic.

An ambulance insider said: "The woman needed a fully qualified paramedic but she didn't get one.