Ambulance UK August 2022

NEWSLINE
GWAAC is known for being one of
the best Pre-hospital Emergency
Medicine (PHEM) training centres
in the country. Teaching other
medical professionals how to deal
with the most serious of trauma
injuries is one of its skillsets. The
group of volunteers provided
gold standard medical training to
people in Ukraine who otherwise
wouldn’t have received it.
An important aspect of the
mission was security. The trip was
only ever going to be possible
with some form of protection
for the group of volunteers. This
came from a private security
firm and a High-Risk Advisor
called Joel Bennet who is an
experienced medic specialising in
austere environments. Joel stayed
with the group throughout the
trip, keeping them updated on
the developments in the conflict
in Ukraine.
The impact of the trip
The intention of the trip was to
have as big an impact as possible
within a relatively short space of
time. The volunteers achieved this
in three ways:
• They provided the best
possible medical training to a
group of people who would
really benefit. In this case,
government employees with
little medical experience and
more likely to be in a targeted
building, e.g. a Foreign Office,
than the general population.
The training would give them
the know-how and confidence
to administer lifesaving first aid
• They gave the trainees
the skills, confidence and
equipment to pass down to
others in their community; to
help make them self-sufficient
• They equipped the trainees with
lifesaving equipment such as
tourniquets and dressings. And
they donated medical supplies
to hospitals
SPCC, Pete said: “60 people
received high-quality medical
training they otherwise wouldn’t
have got. One attendee came
both days and told us how
overnight she had been teaching
her family what she had learned
during the day. It’s a very sobering
thought; that for them, the
missiles, the bombing, the loss of
loved ones… is a very real threat.
We encouraged them to pass on
their new skills to as many people
as possible. We gave them the
knowledge, the confidence and
the medical supplies to deal with
things. And they were just so very
grateful.”
GWAAC, proud of the
volunteers
Great Western Air Ambulance
Charity’s Critical Care Team is
a select group of highly skilled
individuals who can make a huge
difference to people in urgent need
of lifesaving pre-hospital care.
GWAAC Critical Care Doctors and
Specialist Paramedics in Critical
Care (SPCC) are professionals in
every sense of the word, and it’s in
their nature to want to help people
whenever and wherever they can.
“I’m very proud of the group of
volunteers who helped in Ukraine.
They were willing to travel to a
country in conflict to use their
skills to help people in need.
We are very lucky to have such
passionate, selfless and caring
individuals in the Critical Care
Team and serving their local
communities.”
Anna Perry, CEO, Great Western
Air Ambulance Charity.
LAS
New greener London
Ambulance vehicles
officially ‘hit the road’
As part of a £16.6 million
investment into a greener fleet
of ambulances and emergency
response cars, the first of
London Ambulance Service’s
(LAS) new electric vehicles
were officially ‘rolled out’ at a
special launch event held at the
Olympic Park.
The new vehicles – which are the
first of the 225 brand new greener
vehicles to have been manufactured,
have passed all of the relevant tests
and checks and are now in use,
playing a vital role in the life-saving
service of the LAS teams.
Speaking at the launch event
– which was held to coincide
with the NHS Sustainability
Day of Action, Chief Executive
Daniel Elkeles, said: “This is a
really proud moment for us – as
the busiest ambulance service
in the world, we cover a lot of
miles in providing urgent and
emergency care to the people
of London. Thanks to our new
greener fleet, we can continue
to provide great care while
minimising our impact on the
environment, and better protect
the health and wellbeing of the
people living and working in the
capital.”
Richard Webb-Stevens, a
long-serving member of the
Motorcycle Response Unit and
recent recipient of the prestigious
Queen’s Ambulance Medal for
Distinguished Service, has been
riding one of the new all-electric
motorbikes. He said: “I absolutely
love the new electric motorbike
– it does everything you need
as a paramedic responding to
incidents and emergency calls.
It’s responsive, it’s quick (when
you need it to be) and feels very
safe. I think some keen motorbike
riders might be a bit sceptical
about losing the traditional petrol
engine, but I can tell you, this
bike is fantastic!”
The new vehicles include
new greener transit vans and
all-electric fast response cars
and motorbikes, as well as
new electric vehicles for our
resuscitation training teams,
and new lighter emergency
ambulances which use less fuel
and create less emissions.
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