Bradford bereaved husband talks of wife's stroke and death

Abbass Koolaji, 63, of Tabbs Lane, in Scholes, Cleckheaton feels his wife – Heather Koolaji – was failed by Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) in the early hours of July 8 last year.

His 62-year-old wife – who he described as his “best friend and soulmate” – died just over a month later, on August 16, after suffering a type of stroke/brain haemorrhage, according to Mr Koolaji.

Abbass Koolaji with a picture of him and his wife, Heather Koolaji, on their wedding day (Image: Telegraph & Argus)

The traumatic ordeal began at around 2am on July 8, 2023 when Mr Koolaji rushed to ring 999 after his wife suffered a stroke.

She had been discharged just two days earlier from Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI), recovering from a transient ischaemic attack (TIA).

Mr Koolaji said: “I explained my wife’s condition, stressing the urgency of the situation.

“I was told, very casually, that it was a very busy night, and it might take up to four hours for the ambulance to attend.

“The call itself lacked any real sense of caring or empathy.”

He added: “It was sheer fear for my wife's life, totally helpless, nobody there to help us.

“I was just left on my own, absolutely horrendous.

“I hope it doesn’t happen to anybody, I wouldn’t wish it on my worse enemy.

“It’s the reason I’m complaining, I don’t want anybody else to experience this sort of thing we went through.”

The wedding picture of Abbass Koolaji and Heather Koolaji, who were married for 43 years before her tragic death (Image: Telegraph & Argus)

The NHS runs a well-known “F.A.S.T” campaign when it comes to dealing with strokes – “the faster you act the more of the person you save”.

Mr Koolaji said this eased his mind that an ambulance would come well within the quoted four-hour time period and made efforts to reassure his wife.

He described the wait as the “most stressful and the longest hours of my entire life” and could not understand why a First Responder was not deployed, or why there was no follow-up call.

But Mrs Koolaji’s condition deteriorated and an ambulance was yet to arrive, even after four hours.

Mr Koolaji said: “The visions of my wife’s fearful eyes looking into mine and the sheer and utter sense of helplessness during those four hours are still haunting me.”

He added: “I was horrified, the thing is, you see all the advertisements, you know with a stroke it’s important to get medical attention as soon as possible.”

A second 999 call was made at around 6am and a nearby ambulance was dispatched, with Mrs Koolaji eventually being transferred to BRI.

Mr Koolaji said: “To my amazement, just after 7am, whilst waiting in the A&E department, I received a call from a paramedic outside my house asking me to open the door.

“I could not believe how badly this service was operated that precious time was lost and wasted simply due to the lack of communications within its own entire entity.”

He made a complaint to YAS following Mrs Koolaji’s death, relating to the way his wife’s emergency situation was handled.

A spokesperson for Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust said: “First and foremost, we would like to express our sincere condolences to Heather Koolaji’s family following her death in August 2023, and to say again how sorry we are that operational pressures delayed our response to her on 8 July 2023.

“In order to address the issues raised about this emergency response, the Trust has carried out a thorough review and has shared its findings with the family.

“The findings confirm that high demand and operational pressures were responsible for the ambulance delay.

“Our thoughts remain with Heather Koolaji’s family.”

Abbass Koolaji feels Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) failed his wife after she suffered a major stroke (Image: Telegraph & Argus)

Mr Koolaji said he was told a review would take place and handed contact details but claims he has never been sent any correspondence following the completion of this.

He also rejects the findings.

Mr Koolaji said the service being busy was an “excuse” and that there were no “major incidents that night” like “bombs going off” or a “fire”, in his view.

He added: “It’s about life and death and they failed it and they failed my wife.”

The couple were together for four and a half decades and married for all but two of those years.

Abbass Koolaji said: I feel that I have lost my soul. (Image: Telegraph & Argus)

Mr Koolaji, who is semi-retired and works as a supervisor for Greggs, has struggled to come to terms with the death of his loved one.

He said: “There are no words to describe how I feel.

“I feel that I have lost my soul.

“My life has totally changed and the pain of losing my wife is almost unbearable.”