AMBULANCE workers are ‘struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel’ as they contend with the effects of government cuts and plummeting morale, according to the GMB union.

Last week, Darlington woman Tracey Satterthwaite lodged a complaint with the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) following a “traumatic” two and a half hour wait for an ambulance after she fell down a flight of stairs and injured her back.

NEAS launched an inquiry into the case after issuing an apology to the 46-year-old and her family for any distress caused.

A spokeswoman for NEAS said: “Our records show that her call was classed as non-life threatening, which meant that more serious incidents will have taken priority and potentially led to a delay in our response.”

During Ms Satterthwaite’s agonising wait, the service received more than 100 calls, with over half classed as potentially life-threatening, five of those in the Darlington area.

The case is the latest in a series of incidents in which patients have faced significant delays while waiting for an ambulance.

As reported earlier this week, 68-year-old Frank Ridley - a diabetic amputee from Bishop Auckland - recently faced an eight and a half hour wait for an ambulance following a series of mishaps by medical bosses.

In February, Willington AFC player Gareth Ayers waited five hours after breaking his leg during a game.

Today, the GMB union’s regional organiser Maxine Bartholomew attributed delays to a combination of factors, including the effect of government cuts to social care, a paramedic shortage and significant delays in hand-overs at A&E departments.

She said hard-working ambulance staff were facing a worsening situation and rapidly losing morale.

Ms Bartholomew added: “The situation needs some joined up thinking as it’s due to a combination of issues that have a massive impact on the service.

“There are a whole host of things that are wrong and the situation is definitely getting worse.

“We can’t see any light at the end of the tunnel.

“I can’t see how it would improve without taking a really good look at how social care is being delivered.

“It is depressing to hear these cases, knowing how hard our members work to keep people safe.

“Morale is low but we want people to know how hard those in the health service are working and how seriously they take their jobs.”