Ambulance UK August 2022

NEWSLINE
the patient, remaining calm and
reassuring throughout.”
Emergency ambulance crew
Rachel Spaulding held Alice’s
hand the entire time she was
caring for Alice – right up until
they took her into theatre at
King’s College Hospital in
Camberwell.
Alice said: “She sat with me,
reassuring me, and it was so
impressive because while caring
for me the crew were also
communicating with the hospital
so a team was ready for me
when we arrived.”
Together, NEAS is recruiting
volunteers to create a further 24
new CFR schemes to support
communities in most need, who
are not currently covered by
CFR schemes, increasing CFR
numbers by 23%.
The areas identified for the new
CFR schemes are:
• Bishop Auckland South
• Blackhall
• Blakelaw
• Blyth Cowpen
• Coundon North
• Felling South
• Ferryhill East & Cornforth
• Hendon & Docks
• Hetton-le-Hole South
• Horden
• Lakeside & Farringdon
• Murton North & Parkside
• Newbiggin
• North Ormseby & Brambles
• Pallion North
• Peterlee East
• Redcar Lakes south
• South Shields West
• Southwick
• Shotton & Haswell
• Thornley & Wheatley Hill
• Thorntree
• Walker North
• Walker south
Recruitment of the new CFRs is
due to start in the coming months,
with a view to the new CFRs
taking up their voluntary positions
by the end of the year.
Paul Brolly, first responder
co-ordinator in the community
resuscitation and development
team at NEAS, said: “There
are specific areas of the North
East that are currently underrepresented
by CFRs or that have
experienced additional pressures
due to Covid and therefore
we are looking to increase our
volunteers to match the areas
that need support. Of the 24
areas we’ve identified, 22 have
been identified in a list of 225
wards across England at risk of
being “left behind” in the All Party
Parliamentary Group’s recent
‘Connecting Communities’ report.
LAS
Baby Evie saved as
ambulance reaches
hospital just 16
minutes after 999 call
A pregnant doctor with a rare
and life-threatening condition
who went into premature
labour, has praised the London
Ambulance Service medics who
helped save her baby’s life.
Dr Alice Ashby, a psychiatrist,
admitted she had never been
as terrified as when she started
bleeding when she was just 30
weeks into her pregnancy.
She had already been diagnosed
with vasa praevia, a rare but
serious health condition. It causes
blood vessels to tear during birth
and has serious consequences
for the mother and her baby.
Alice said: “I called 999 and
described what was happening,
and told them about my
condition. As soon as the call
handler realised how dangerous
the situation was, everything
happened so quickly. An
ambulance car and an ambulance
arrived within minutes.
“I’ve never seen anything as
impressive as the response,
skill and compassion of the
ambulance crew.”
Thanks to the speed of the
ambulance crew, call handler
Chesie Piner, and ambulance
dispatcher Valerie Murphy, Alice
reached hospital just 16 minutes
after she made the emergency
999 call.
Paramedic Paddy Wright said:
“As we arrived we were met by
a clearly distressed and scared
mum-to-be.
“After listening to her, and learning
how serious her condition was,
we knew we had to act quickly
but safely.
“It was also important that we
provided emotional support to
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On 4 April, Alice gave birth to
daughter Evie, who, at more
than two months’ early, weighed
just 1.72kg, which is less than
4 lbs.
Evie was able to go home after
spending six weeks being cared
for on the Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit at King’s College
Hospital.
Rachel said: “I’m glad to hear
that it all went well and so
pleased that Evie and her mum
are doing well.
“I couldn’t have asked for a
better crew mate, we didn’t have
to second guess each other –
we just did everything we could
for this patient who was scared
and needed our help.”
Dr Fenella Wrigley, Chief Medical
Officer of London Ambulance
Service, said: “Getting feedback
from our patients is always lovely
and the recognition and thanks
is very well deserved.
“Everyone involved in Alice’s
care listened to her concerns
and while assessing and treating
her with care and compassion.
They recognised the urgency of
the situation, communicated well
and prioritised an extremely fast
transfer.
“We wish all the best to Alice,
Evie and their family.”
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