"I therefore went to the hospital on my own."

I am in my 80s and have a disabled son with whom I live, my son is my carer, he accompanies me when I have hospital appointments as I need his support when I walk.

I had an appointment at the BRI at the heart clinic, I arranged for transport through the ambulance service as I have on previous occasions. However, the driver said he could only take me, he could not allow my son to come with me as he could only take 3 passengers in his taxi and he needed to pick up another two people. I therefore went to the hospital on my own.

At the clinic the first thing the nurses asked me was the whereabouts of my carer as they needed to give me treatment, a procedure that might leave me a bit weak.

If the ambulance service needs to work out how many vehicles are going to be needed so that both patients and carers can travel they need to ask when the booking is made. I was not asked whether I needed a carer with me, nor was I told that I could not take a carer with me.