Mum ‘disgusted’ by refusal to send ambulance for son

Thomas Potter, five, was playing at his home in Chapel Road, Worthing, last month, when he fell and hit his arm against the sofa.

With Thomas in agony, and “white with shock”, his mum, Samantha Harris, frantically called for an ambulance.

But she was shocked when the operator told her they wouldn’t come out to Thomas’s aid, as the injury was not life-threatening.

Samantha, 28, said: “I thought the sofa had snapped but when he couldn’t get up, I saw his arm was all out of place.

“I rang for an ambulance and they said that as it wasn’t a life or death situation they wouldn’t send one out.”

She added: “I didn’t know what to do and don’t understand why they wouldn’t come and help. He was four years old at the time and clearly in a lot of pain.”

Samantha did not have a car to take Thomas to hospital and with her partner at work, she was forced to take him in her daughter’s pushchair.

When they arrived at Worthing Hospital A&E, an X-ray revealed he had suffered a fractured arm, and he required surgery the following day.

For the full story, see the Worthing Herald, out Thursday, April 18.