Ambulance UK - April 2020

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NEWSLINE AMBULANCE UK - APRIL WAA Pioneering aircrew visit Wiltshire Air Ambulance FORMER crew members of Wiltshire Air Ambulance paid a special visit to see the charity’s airbase. The visit was arranged as part of Wiltshire Air Ambulance’s 30th birthday year and many of the pilots, police officers and paramedics who attended were part of the early, pioneering aircrew. Wiltshire Air Ambulance’s history is unique in the air ambulance industry because when it began it shared a helicopter with Wiltshire Police. The pilots, police officers and paramedics worked at the Air Support Unit (ASU), which operated the helicopter shared by Wiltshire Police and Wiltshire Air Ambulance from 15 March 1990 to 31 December 2014. The crew configuration was a pilot, a police observer and a paramedic. In January 2015 Wiltshire Air Ambulance became a standalone air ambulance using a Bell 429 helicopter and in May 2018 the charity moved into its purpose-built airbase at Semington, near Melksham. During the visit to the airbase earlier this year the former aircrew saw the advances that have taken place in both aviation and medical care. Among those who visited was pilot John Ball, who worked at the ASU for seven years from 1990. Now retired and living in Scotland he said: “It was great to be part of the ASU and to work there at the beginning. As we were the first joint police helicopter and air ambulance in this country we felt we were pioneers and other police forces and ambulance services visited us to see how we worked. “To be able to give patients a much better chance of survival because of the speed and flexibility of the aircraft was a great advantage.” Reflecting on the facilities at the airbase he added: “It’s amazing. What we see now is the progression of Wiltshire Air Ambulance and how technology has moved on.” Another visitor was paramedic Alan Morris, who first worked at the ASU from 1990 to 1993. He latterly became an operations manager for the ambulance service in Wiltshire and his responsibilities included air support. Alan, who is retired and lives in Warminster, Wiltshire, said: “There was a selection process for paramedics to work on Wiltshire Air Ambulance and from the beginning those of us who worked on it didn’t want to be seen as someone special. We wanted to be accepted by the rest of our ambulance colleagues in Wiltshire as paramedics, but we were using a different mode of transport. “We had a great rapport with the pilots and the police observers at the ASU – everyone did their bit. We saw it as an honour to work there and we were ambassadors for Wiltshire Air Ambulance and Wiltshire Police. “As time went on the paramedics on Wiltshire Air Ambulance developed additional skills and this improved the service to the public. The ambulance service gives a good grounding for paramedics before they work on Wiltshire Air Ambulance and long may it continue.” Police officer, Inspector Brian Murdoch, was involved in setting up the ASU and was in charge of it when it began operating fulltime from 1990 and worked there until 1993. Speaking during the visit he said: “It was wonderful working on the joint helicopter. Wiltshire Police’s motto was ‘first and best’ and we laid claim to that for the ASU because we were the first combined police helicopter and air ambulance in the country.” Brian, who is retired and lives near Salisbury, Wiltshire, added: “It’s wonderful to see how Wiltshire Air Ambulance has developed. While technology has moved on, what hasn’t changed among the team is the nucleus of professionalism, enthusiasm and commitment.” Kevin Reed, a former police officer who worked at the ASU and is now head of facilities and security at Wiltshire Air Ambulance, said: “It was a privilege to welcome former crew members to our airbase. Many of them had not seen each other since working together in the early 1990s so it was a great opportunity to catch up and reminisce on their experiences in those early and pioneering years. “We owe everyone who worked at the ASU our gratitude, as collectively they helped paved the way for the development of Wiltshire Air Ambulance to what it is today - a stand-alone air ambulance delivering critical care to people who are seriously injured or unwell.” KSS Air ambulance KSS rated outstanding in all 5 key lines of enquiry by CQC Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) has been rated outstanding by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) across all five of its inspection key lines of enquiry - a level only achieved by a very small proportion of the UK’s CQC-inspected healthcare organisations. It is the first Helicopter Emergency Medical Service to achieve this top rating in all categories/ key lines of enquiry. Inspectors rated KSS, a registered charity, as outstanding for being safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led – the five key areas which form the framework of the inspection. Whilst KSS has been registered since 2011 this is this first time the regulations have allowed the CQC to give a rating. The CQC report highlights a wide range of outstanding practices at KSS including the service’s ‘strong leadership’, ‘thoroughly patient focused team,’ ‘open culture to reporting all types of incidents,’ ‘highly motivated staff’ and ‘strong, comprehensive systems and processes.’ KSS’s collaboration with local, national and international partner organisations to help improve services to patients was also singled out. Inspectors praised KSS’s engagement with its partners such as local NHS trusts and the Ministry of Defence. They also noted that the continuing development of staff skills, competence and knowledge was ‘integral to ensuring high quality care’. All staff were ‘actively involved in activities to monitor and improve quality and outcomes’ and there was a focus on ‘openness, transparency and learning.’ The inspectors were impressed by KSS’s continual focus on the ‘safe use of innovative and pioneering approaches to care.’ This included the service’s 56 For more news visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com
NEWSLINE research into new methods of treatments and innovative ways to make patient information more easily available to all staff providing care in order to deliver more efficient and cohesive treatment and care of patients. Commenting, David Welch, Chief Executive of KSS, said: “Receiving an outstanding rating from the CQC across the board is testament to the dedication and commitment of our exceptional team, who work tirelessly to ensure the right treatments and best possible outcomes for our patients. My sincere thanks go to every single member of Team KSS - staff, volunteers, partners and stakeholders - all of whom have contributed to this amazing achievement.” “I am incredibly proud and privileged to lead our outstanding team who show an exceptional commitment to our patients and to supporting one another ‘the KSS Way’ with people at the heart of everything we do. Our health service is currently faced with an unprecedented challenge and we are exploring new ways that we can best deploy our experience, expertise and resources to support the NHS and the wider community at such a critical time.” Dr Helen Bowcock, Chair of the Board of Trustees, added: “As a Board we congratulate our teams for receiving so many commendations including on our open and collaborative culture, our holistic approach to care and the cohesion throughout our organisation. We were honoured to receive a visit from HRH The Princess Royal in February to mark our 30th anniversary and now have the honour of being rated Outstanding by the CQC.” Dr Nigel Acheson, Deputy Chief Inspector of Hospitals (London and South), said: “The service has a vision for what it wanted to achieve and a strategy to turn it into an action, developed with all relevant stakeholders. Feedback from people who use the service was continually positive about the way staff treat people; they thought that staff went the extra mile and the care they received exceeded their expectations.” Philip Astle, CEO of South East Coast Ambulance Foundation Trust, said: “I am incredibly proud to be a partner of KSS and the fact that the CQC have rated them so highly is absolutely no surprise to those of us who work closely with them. They are a team full of people who strive for excellence, are innovative, enthusiastic and tireless in their search to improve patient care. They are fantastic partners who always seek to maximise the effect of that partnership rather than seek organisational gain.” Operating out of Redhill Aerodrome and headquartered in Rochester, KSS provides world-leading pre-hospital emergency care whenever and wherever required to save lives and to enable the best possible patient outcomes. Covering Kent, Surrey and Sussex, KSS serves a population of 4.8 million plus those who travel through the area – one of the busiest in the UK. Its crews of pilots, doctors and paramedics fly over 2,500 missions a year, and it was the first, and only, UK Air Ambulance to operate its helicopters 24/7. Of the more than £14m needed to sustain the service each year, 89% is raised by public donation and fundraising. The CQC is the independent regulator of all health and social services in England. The inspection was carried out at KSS’s Redhill Aerodrome premises in January 2020. A copy of the CQC report is available at www.cqc.org.uk For further information about Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex: www.aaks.org.uk @airambulancekss St John Ambulance Joins the Independent Ambulance Association The IAA is pleased to welcome newest addition St John Ambulance has joined the Independent Ambulance Association, having passed all vetting and background checks required for membership, including the requirements of the Care Quality Commission. St John Ambulance is assessed against the same criteria as UK Ambulance Trusts by the Care Quality Commission, including the additional checks required for those organisations providing a 999-emergency service. Alan Howson, Executive Chairman of the IAA comments: “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome St John Ambulance as Members of the Association. St John Ambulance enjoys an excellent and deserved reputation for providing ambulance and community-based services. Having participated in one of their National Operation Meetings I was struck by the dedication and passion of the staff to their work and their commitment to ensuring high standards of care and service delivery. As the largest independent ambulance provider in England, St John Ambulance brings a wealth of experience of ambulance provision and training standards, and we look forward to them playing a full role in the work of the Association going forward.” Craig Harman, National Ambulance & Community Response Director, St John Ambulance adds: “As a national ambulance service, we understand the challenges of delivering ambulance care right across the country. Joining the Independent Ambulance Association enables us to share our experience and to work in partnership to drive continuous improvement in the services and care provided by ambulance clinicians. Working together will help us deliver on our strategic intent to drive standards in the independent ambulance sector and within event medicine.” “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome St John Ambulance as Members of the Association. St John Ambulance enjoys an excellent and deserved reputation for providing ambulance and communitybased services.” AMBULANCE UK - APRIL For the latest Ambulance Service News visit: www.ambulancenewsdesk.com 57
Page 1 and 2: Volume 35 No. 2 April 2020 The best
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS CONTENTS Ambulance UK 45 E
Page 5 and 6: EDITOR’S COMMENT EDITOR’S COMME
Page 7 and 8: FEATURE Standard ventilator can ven
Page 9 and 10: NEWSLINE Ambulance service supports
Page 11 and 12: FEATURE Turbine Driven Ventilation
Page 13 and 14: NEWSLINE maximum benefit from their
Page 15: NEWSLINE A heart attack is caused b
Page 19 and 20: NEWSLINE person’s chance of survi
Page 21 and 22: NEWSLINE SECAMB SECAmb work with Ju
Page 23 and 24: NEWSLINE Trust launches ‘Where Be
Page 25 and 26: NEWSLINE In addition, mobile networ
Page 27 and 28: NEWSLINE SECAMB Long service and ac
Page 29 and 30: NEWSLINE Call for healthcare worker
Page 31 and 32: IN PERSON LAS News London Ambulance

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