Professor Robert Winston has given a tragic account of his wife’s final moments when a 999 crew tried to save her – and how grief has left him wondering ‘if life is worth continuing’.
In a new episode of the podcast Crisis What Crisis? with host Andy Coulson, Lord Winston, 81, detailed how his wife Lira, 72, died in his arms while he battled to convince an operator on the phone to send an ambulance.
Scientist, author and broadcaster Lord Winston is one of Britain’s leading experts on IVF, and has published around 300 articles on human reproduction and early pregnancy. He is Emeritus Professor of Fertility Studies at Imperial College London.
Lira Winston suffered a cardiac arrest in December 2021 as Lord Winston waited desperately for an ambulance to arrive.
Professor Robert Winston (left) has given a tragic account of his wife Lira’s (right) final moments when a 999 crew tried to save her
In a new episode of the podcast Crisis What Crisis? with host Andy Coulson (pictured), Mr Winston detailed how his other half, Lira, died in his arms
Recent data shows that ambulance wait times in England have worsened in recent months, with 999 crews taking longer to attend heart attack and stroke victims.
Paramedics took over 90 minutes on average to arrive to category two calls, although the target is 18 mins.
Lord Winston said on the podcast: ‘When the ambulance arrived of course it was too late, but it probably would have been anyway.
‘There was a lot of COVID going around and it took I think about 18 minutes which was just a bit too long, really. So when the paramedics came, they were over-anxious and they actually kept going for far too long.
‘They were really not prepared to give up, they didn’t want to give up. Eventually I had to tell them, ”Look, you’ve done all you could possibly do. You’ve put up a drip, you’ve cardioverted her, it’s not working, and I totally accept that she’s dead.”’
Following the tragic incident, he explained how he has struggled with grief ever since.
Lord Winston, who is also known for BBC series Child Of Our Time said: ‘You start wondering if your own life is worth continuing. It’s obvious that you think about that.
‘But what do you learn? I don’t know. I think people learn different things and people react to grief very differently.’
A poll shows Brits faith that ambulances and the NHS will be able to treat them is low but it also revealed that over half of those surveyed blamed the Government for NHS staff strikes
Recent ambulance data shows that 999 callers classed as category two — which includes heart attacks, strokes, burns and epilepsy — waited 1 hour, 32 minutes and 54 seconds, on average, for paramedics to arrive.
This is five times longer than the NHS’s 18-minute target.
It is also the longest response time since records began in 2017 by more than 30 minutes.
The previous record was 1 hour, 1 minute and 19 seconds, recorded in October.
A Daily Mail investigation last year also found that in some areas callers to 999 are having to wait more than nine minutes for someone to answer the phone.
New ambulance strikes have been announced for February and March, which will see them walking out four times.
The next strike is happening next Monday, on January 23.
During the podcast, Mr Winston also discussed the NHS, saying ‘most people in the NHS know it could be so much better’.
He added: ‘We didn’t invent the health service … but it’s there and we’ve got to find some way of making it work.
‘The thing is to say, look, this is GDP and this is how much we can afford to spend on health.
‘There’s going to be a gap. How do we fund that gap and what do we do about it?’
