ONE in eight ambulance patients waited more than an hour to be handed over to A and E at Barnsley Hospital last week.
The figures cover the week before nurses conduct their first nationwide strike in England, Wales and Northern Ireland this week - the largest action in NHS history, with the organisation saying it is doing all it can to minimise disruption.
NHS England figures show 64 patients waited in an ambulance for at least one hour when they arrived at Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust A and E in the week to Sunday (December 11) - though this was down from 71 the week before.
A further 98 patients were forced to wait between 30 minutes and one hour, meaning 33 per cent of the 488 total ambulance arrivals were delayed by half an hour or more, and at least 116 hours were lost.
NHS targets state trusts should complete 95 per cent of all ambulance handovers in 30 minutes, with all conducted in less than one hour.
