Ambulance UK December 2023

NEWSLINE
NEWSLINE
North Weald Airfield Accountable
Manager, Darren Goodey said:
“On May 19th Ken Waylett
travelled from his home in Wales
to the Airfield to attend a
“After an enjoyable morning
Ken, who is the chairman of the
Lotus Drivers Club, was suddenly
taken ill. “As part of the Airfield
Fire & Rescue team Mike and
I responded to the emergency
call and on arrival found Ken in
cardiac arrest. “They immediately
removed him from his vehicle and
proceeded to perform CPR. The
defibrillator was attached, and a
shock administered. Following
further CPR it became apparent
that Ken had started to breathe –
we had got him back!
“The air ambulance doctor and
critical care paramedic were on
scene within 10 minutes and Ken
was transferred into their care.
“Ken was stabilised on-scene
then transported to hospital
where after nine days and made a
full recovery.”
Ken later returned to the airfield
with his family to say thank you to
the teams that had saved his life.
He said: “I think it is worth
stressing that the time lapse from
arrest to receiving assistance was
only a couple of minutes.
“The close proximity of the
Emergency Services, and the
prompt action of the Driver
Training Owner, Andy Walsh,
resulted in an unbelievably short
time passing before I received
attention.
“Following discussion with other
patients that have suffered a
cardiac arrest I seem to be the
only one that ‘just bounced
back to life’ with no rehabilitation
programme.
“When the rehabilitation nurse
rang me to arrange my recovery
plan nine days after the arrest
she found that I was already
significantly better than most
patients after three months. I
put this down to the really quick
response from the Emergency
response team.
“Words alone cannot thank these
gents enough. Every day I now
have is down to them. Thank
you, Darren, Mike and of course
your trainers!”
TrainEEAST and CFR Training
Manager Mark Hayes said:
“This was such a proud moment
for the TrainEEAST team. The
Airfield crew remembered their
training and did exactly what was
needed to bring the patient back.
“Every year we train thousands of
people in emergency pre-hospital
care, and this is not the first time
a patient’s life has been saved by
someone we trained.”
To find out about life-saving
training for businesses contact:
traineeast@eastamb.nhs.uk
Photo Caption:
Ken Waylett; Cllr. Darshan
Sunger, Chairman of Epping
Forest District Council; Andrew
Walsh, AW Driver Training (This
is who Ken was training with at
the time of the incident).
Outstanding
contributions
from disabled
and neurodiverse
staff recognised at
awards ceremony
Staff at East of England
Ambulance Service NHS
Trust (EEAST) who identify as
disabled or neurodiverse have
been celebrated at an awards
ceremony for their outstanding
contributions.
The event was organised to
recognise and celebrate those
who have completed the Calibre
Leadership Programme, a unique
course for people working in the
NHS, Higher Education and the
wider public sector. The talent
development and leadership
programme is designed for those
who identify as neurodiverse
or disabled, or who have a
long-term physical or mental
health condition.
The programme has been
developed and is delivered by
Dr Ossie Stuart, an international
disability consultant and
“Compassion and support should
be the bedrock, encouraging us
to be mindful of the challenges
each of us faces and reminding
us to make sure that no one is
left behind.
Developing a more inclusive and
equitable leadership landscape
means we need to dismantle
existing barriers, whether they
are physical, systemic or founded
in attitude.
“We have to provide
accommodations, create
accessible environments, and
give everyone equal opportunities
to advance.”
The ceremony took place on 12
October at The Waterfront Hotel,
Wyboston Lakes Resort, which
was chosen with accessibility
in mind. There were hearing
loops, British Sign Language
interpreters and a quiet room for
people if they needed a break
during the event.
Graduates also included non-
EEAST Calibre programme
colleagues from other sectors,
with the Trust’s Equality, Diversity
and Inclusion Team acting as
hosts for the day.
Partner working
ensures fast
response when
seconds count.
When cardiac arrest strikes,
the seconds and minutes
before resuscitation starts are
vital to the long-term survival
and recovery of the patient.
In addition to its network of
over 1,000 civilian Community
First Responders, the East of
England Ambulance Service
NHS Trust works closely with
specially trained Fire and Rescue
colleagues and military coresponders
across the region
who will step up to emergency
calls for those minutes until our
crews arrive.
There are 14 fire stations in the
EEAST region where crews
respond to predominantly cardiac
arrest calls (in Bedfordshire crews
also attend other categories of
urgent calls).
There are also four military coresponse
teams based at RAF
Henlow, RAF Marham, RAF
Wyton and RAF Honington.
Since April this year, these
collaborative teams have
attended 912 calls including 54
cardiac arrests.
Chief Executive of EEAST Tom
Abell said: “Having specially
trained volunteers like our
Community First Responders, our
colleagues from the Fire Service
and from the military can make
a real difference when someone
has stopped breathing.
with EEAST colleagues as part
of our Emergency Medical
Response (EMR) programme.
Crews have received training
from EEAST enabling them to
assist ambulance colleagues
in responding to members of
the public over the age of eight
suffering cardiac arrests in the
community.
Other fire stations in Norfolk
which are part of the scheme are
Sheringham and North Walsham.
The stations agree to mobilise
within a 10-minute radius
of where EEAST crews are
responding and always
attend with an EEAST crew to
perform lifesaving interventions
including basic life support
and defibrillation.
Area Manager Paul Seaman said:
“We can already see our efforts in
this voluntary aspect of our work
making a real difference to our
communities by helping to save
lives, which is what our service is
all about.
“Our fire stations, especially in
more rural parts of the county, are
in a unique position to play a vital
role in improving the survivability
rate of cardiac arrests in our
community.”
The next co-responder station
due to join the programme this
autumn will be Dereham.
AMBULANCE UK – DECEMBER
academic. Its aim is to transform
how disabled staff think about
themselves and their disability,
and to show them how to take
control of the discussion in a
constructive way.
Caroline Nwadu, head of culture
and inclusivity at EEAST hosted
the ceremony. She said: “This
ceremony is testament to the
hard work and dedication of all
those who are working to create
a more inclusive society.
The RAF Wyton co-response team
“We value the contribution they
make in situations where seconds
count – especially in rural areas
where it is often more difficult
for us to get ambulance crews
on-scene as quickly as we
would wish.”
Cromer Fire and Rescue
becomes the latest coresponder
station
Cromer Fire Station is now the
third in Norfolk to take on coresponding
duties in partnership
Pioneering stroke
schemes see
significant reduction
in treatment times.
AMBULANCE UK – DECEMBER
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For further recruitment vacancies visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com
For further recruitment vacancies visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com