Coach driver Lalit Gohil, of Buckingham Road, Edgware, “nearly died” in a catastrophic accident after his niece’s birthday dinner in Leicester last June.
As he got into his car, one foot became trapped between the accelerator and brake and the car “flew off”, hitting two cars and smashing through the wall of a school playground before he could free himself and jump out.
Suffering two broken legs, he was taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary where had a bar put in one leg and a plate in the other before being transferred to Northwick Park Hospital, where he remained for five months.
Mr Gohil, who is still in tremendous pain, is supposed to have physiotherapy appointments twice a week, but says he has only had three appointments since November due to “unreliable” transport.
In ten instances between September 15 and January 28, his appointments were cancelled four times due to “operational pressures” or because he was already in hospital. On one occasion the winch on the vehicle due to take him was broken.
On four of the five other occasions he made it to appointments but the transport was late. On three occasions his return home was also delayed.
Mr Gohil says transport often runs so late he misses his slots, which he blames on the operator being based in Essex. Citing his own experience driving school buses, he believes a more locally-based firm would be more reliable.
Mr Gohil says a doctor in Leicester said he would be back at work in seven months, but nine months on he still cannot get upstairs.
He said: “I don’t know how I am supposed to recover with the things that are happening.
“I have paid all my taxes since the age of 18. I cannot get the treatment I need.”
Unable to reliably get to NHS care, he is having to pay for physiotherapy out of his own pocket.
A spokesperson for London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs Northwick Park Hospital, said: “Although our transport provider is headquartered in Essex, the main service is run locally onsite at Northwick Park Hospital. A recently opened new base in Elstree is now providing additional locally based resources.
“Earlier this year the trust experienced a significant rise in demand for emergency care, and our transport provider was directed to prioritise patients accordingly.
“In some cases, this meant transferring patients to other hospitals which had more capacity. This placed additional pressure on patient transport services.
“While we must continue to prioritise patient transport for those most in need, we nonetheless apologise for the long waits or cancellations that occasionally arise due to operational pressures.”
