Patients being taken to hospital in Elgin faced waits of up to seven hours in ambulances before being seen over the new year period.
Data from the Scottish Ambulance Service reveal Dr Gray’s had the highest turnaround times for emergency vehicles anywhere in Scotland.
In the week from December 30, the 141 patients taken to the Elgin hospital had a median wait of just under two hours.
But the figures show some patients waited beyond seven hours.
It marked a big increase in turnaround times for each of the three previous weeks.
Dr Gray’s is not the only hospital in the NHS Grampian region gripped by an ambulance crisis.
Statistics show some patients at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary had to wait for more than four hours in emergency vehicles.
The median waiting time was just over one hour.
In 2023, we reported a record 18-hour turnaround time at the city’s hospital.
Last May, we revealed how 12 ambulances queued outside the infirmary at one point as crews waited to hand over patients.
In November, the chief of the ambulance service said there had been “little meaningful progress” to fix the escalating crisis.
Highlands and Islands Tory MSP Douglas Ross said he is “deeply alarmed” by the high turnaround times at Dr Gray’s.
He said: “The thought of ambulances waiting for seven hours is utterly shocking and means lives are on the line as a result.
“SNP ministers have been missing in action while patients in Moray are facing deadly waits for ambulances to turn up. It is time they finally addressed this crisis and ensured patients requiring emergency treatment are seen as soon as possible.”
In October, we reported on how a surprise inspection at Dr Gray’s warned of the “extreme pressures” the hospital faces.
The Scottish Government was contacted for comment.
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