Bus company wins health service deal
8:50am Wednesday 3rd October 2012 in News
PATIENTS will be taken to hospital by a bus company after the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) failed to win a contract.
From April 1 next year non-emergency patients in Greater Manchester who need to attend hospital in an ambulance, will be taken in transport run by Arriva Bus Group.
Those who will be affected by the change to the Patient Transport Service (PTS) include the elderly who rely on the ambulances to get to hospital appointments and those undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
It will not affect 999 emergency call-outs.
Arriva, which run bus services throughout Greater Manchester, will replace NWAS which currently runs the service but was outbid by Arriva after the the service was put out to tender.
NWAS, which has its headquarters in Chorley New Road, Bolton, also bid for contracts in Cheshire, Mersyside, Cumbria and Lancashire.The proposed change in services has not yet been officially announced by the NHS, and both Arriva and the NWAS are unable to comment until midnight on October 8 as they are currently in a “standstill” period.
A spokesman for NHS Shared Business Services, which ran the contract bidding service, said they were also unable to comment until next Monday.
But a statement from NWAS Unison, said the preferred bidder to run Greater Manchester was Arriva and not NWAS.
The statement added: “It is our understanding this is on the basis of cost only.
“However, NWAS is the preferred bidder for Cheshire, Mersey, Cumbria and Lancashire.
“We understand the delay in formerly announcing this is due to the fact a challenge has been made by an unknown party and the commissioners have instructed the Trust to maintain the embrgo on information being put out.
“That is why the management are unable to inform the staff as originally planned.”
Darren Hurrell, NWAS chief executive, said: “The North West Ambulance Service can confirm a bid was submitted by the Trust, to continue to provide patient transport services for all of the five counties in the North West.”
Comments(6)
The curly one
says...
9:32am Wed 3 Oct 12
My brother in law who works for the ambulance service, a highly trained and compassionate man may well now lose his job, maybe he can get a job as a " bus driver"?.
catapostrophy
says...
12:22pm Wed 3 Oct 12
steveG
says...
4:08pm Wed 3 Oct 12
catapostrophy wrote:Thank goodness for that, I had visions of going into town on a bus full of invalids and having to wait at the bus stop with a broken limb !
OMIGOSH! Do you seriously think this will be Public Transport?? Hahaha!! When a company wins a contract such as this all that changes us the emblem on the side of the vehicle! The staff are all offered a chance to TUPE to the new company and the services remain the same. Basically Arriva can do it for 3.5 million less. They've done the same over in the E.Midlands and yes, they are proper ambulances and trained staff.
just getting on with it
says...
5:02pm Wed 3 Oct 12
catapostrophy wrote:yes and arriva have completely messed it up in east mids - typical of the commisioners to go for the cheapest and not necessarily the best. If you rely on PTS to get you to an appointment be very worried, and dont expect them to go the extra mile that NWAS will, the cost for additional non contracted transport that your local hospital may require, will be more than the 3.5 millions they will save on the contract - anything not included will be chargable so hope you dont need treatment out of Gtr Manchester because you wont get transport for it
OMIGOSH! Do you seriously think this will be Public Transport?? Hahaha!! When a company wins a contract such as this all that changes us the emblem on the side of the vehicle! The staff are all offered a chance to TUPE to the new company and the services remain the same. Basically Arriva can do it for 3.5 million less. They've done the same over in the E.Midlands and yes, they are proper ambulances and trained staff.
bigandy67
says...
9:04pm Wed 3 Oct 12
Please only be walking wounded as ramps don't
work and the bus wont kneel down far enough..
Please also remember on hearing 'dingding'
you must move to the back of the bus!
oftbewildered2 says...
9:26am Wed 3 Oct 12