A 74-year-old woman with Parkinson's disease waited 10 hours for an ambulance after falling at her home and breaking her shoulder. Irene Lowry fell on Tuesday at about 15:00 BST. Her daughter Julie Mayo called for an ambulance at 15:25 BST.

Mayo described her mother in extreme agony on the floor with screaming from broken bones. She called the service again but received no estimated arrival time. Mayo contacted her local GP for pain relief but was told to wait for the ambulance.

Further calls at 18:00 and nearly 22:10 led to an upgrade but still no time estimate. Lowry moved herself to the sofa due to pain but could not stay still because of her condition. The ambulance arrived just after 01:00 the next day.

Mayo noted her mother's fractured shoulder caused crunching sounds from rotating shoulders due to Parkinson's. Lowry is now at Antrim Area Hospital awaiting transfer to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.

The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service apologised to Lowry for the lengthy wait. A spokesperson stated the service could not provide a quicker response due to circumstances beyond its control including high pressure from delayed hospital handovers and reduced ambulance availability.

NIAS prioritises the most seriously ill patients for fastest responses. The service called the delays unacceptable and below its standards. It is working with partners to improve patient flow. NIAS also asked the public to avoid duplicate 999 calls unless a patient's condition worsens.