The chief inspector of UK forces has warned that up to a third of time is spent on non-police work, hampering efforts to tackle crime. Armed police have even been called to heart attack patients due to a lack of available paramedics. Andy Cooke, Chief Inspector of HM Constabulary, told the Independent that this was a result of the NHS crisis and cuts to mental health and social services. He warned it was taking the police away from tackling crime at a time when recorded crime is at an all-time high in England and Wales. Mr Cook, a former chief constable of Merseyside Police, said: “Recently, officers in armed response vehicles (ARVs) have been sent to reports of people suffering cardiac arrests because the ambulance service could not cope with the demand because they are trained in first aid and in the use of defibrillators. “The ambulance service contacted the police to say ‘we’ve got this heart patient and we’ve got nobody to send.’ “As a first, last and only resort, the police will go. It’s right that they went, but that hides the problems we have in the rest of the system.” An officer who spoke to The Independent on condition of anonymity said armed police were regularly sent to ambulance calls in his force area. “I see logs every day saying ‘cardiac arrest – can you send antiretroviral therapy?’ he added. “One even involved a terminally ill patient and I’m wondering if I’m going to call for an ambulance and the police with guns.” Andy Cooke: Police can’t go back to basics (HMICFRS) NHS leaders have warned that ambulance services are facing a “state of chronic crisis” as response times worsen and 999 calls reach record highs. All 10 of the country’s ambulance services were on “black alert”, the highest level possible, last month, with patients needing urgent responses for conditions such as suspected stroke left on hold for up to two hours. A parliamentary report warned last week that the NHS and social care sector were facing the “biggest workforce crisis” in their history and said “persistent understaffing” was putting patients’ lives at risk. Long waits for ambulances and A&E services have been exacerbated by record absenteeism fueled by Covid. The National Council of Police Chiefs said officers had to take patients to hospital because of a lack of ambulances, which sometimes meant waiting for hours in A&E with mentally ill and vulnerable people who had not committed a crime. National lead for local policing, Chief Constable Olivia Pinkney, said: “It reduces the ability of the police to fight crime and protect people in all the wider ways they should. “It can also put officers in situations where they have to make decisions that they are not in a position to make better, despite their best efforts.” Ms Pinkney said the police rely on functions that should be carried out by other emergency services or public bodies, adding: “Preserving life will always be our first priority when helping someone in need. “We are working closely with our partners in the emergency services, local authorities and government to ensure this problem can be solved, but we should not be the first resort in these situations.” Mr Cook said it was legitimate for the police to assist health professionals in violent incidents or when crimes are being committed, but added: “Police officers are still playing roles they shouldn’t. “Once a situation calms down, that should be the end of the response – not six to eight hours sitting with people in hospitals.” Police officers are regularly dispatched to ambulance calls to cover delays (PA) Demand for emergency ambulances hit a record high for June this year, with the NHS responding to 900,000 emergency calls. The average response time for category two patients, which includes those who have suffered strokes and heart attacks, was 51 minutes – well above the target of 18 minutes. The Association of Ambulance Chief Executives said police taking patients to hospital was “not a desirable situation”. Chief executive Martin Flaherty added: “It is clearly not in the best interests of patients, puts officers in an incredibly difficult position and takes up valuable police resources.” Police leaders have also raised concerns about an increase in referrals to mental health crises that are not criminal incidents, with a watchdog report previously warning that officers were being forced to “pick up the pieces” of a “broken” mental health system. Mr Cooke warned that the extra demands on the police would have an impact on officers’ ability to tackle crime, saying: “When we look at how policing can be improved, we can’t just look at policing – we have to look at these factors which is influencing policing away from what the public would like to do. “The rest of the system needs to stand up and be counted – mental health, the NHS, the ambulance service, other professionals. “I accept the challenges they have. Because they’ve been through long periods of austerity, we’ve got far fewer social workers and youth workers, we’ve got far fewer people working in mental health, but it can’t keep going back to policing to deal with these issues.” His comments come after recorded crime hit a new high in England and Wales, with the proportion of offenses leading to charges plummeting to a record low of 5.6%. The rate for rape is just 1.3 percent. Mr Cook said the figures partly reflected improved recording practices rather than a “massive spike in crime”, but warned that charge rates were “simply not good enough”. He called on the police to ‘get back to basics’ by responding properly to victims and making the most of investigative tools and crime prevention opportunities’, but added: ‘The police must have enough time and resources to go and do what they will the audience was waiting. to do”.
