Ambulance UK December 2023

NEWSLINE
NEWSLINE
AMBULANCE UK – DECEMBER
Steven Hawkes, 45, visited
Brighton Make Ready Centre
with his wife, Tracy and daughter,
Sophie, on the eve of the
anniversary of his collapse.
Steven, also father to Yasmine,
Howard and Olivia, met and
thanked some of the team
who came to his aid when he
collapsed at the wheel of his
vehicle in Eaton Place, close to
Royal Sussex County Hospital on
14 October 2022.
Paramedic, Amy Brooker and
Student Paramedic, Alex Carter,
were in the same road close to
coming clear from another patient
when they heard a crash, as
Steven, who was driving home
from working away in Bath fitting
hospital medical equipment,
crashed into parked cars.
Alex’s GoodSam app and
Emergency Operations Centre
colleagues alerted the pair that
the RTC involved a cardiac arrest
and they were quickly on scene,
along with a nearby Patient
Transport Service crew.
Support arrived from paramedic
colleagues Emily Payne and
Paul Ellis, Operational Team
Leader, Tom Graves, Paramedic
Practitioner, Sarah Gilby
and Critical Care Paramedic
Andy Hitt.
Together the team were able to
resuscitate Steven delivering four
shocks with a defibrillator. He was
amazingly already attempting to
speak before his arrival at the
nearby hospital.
Steven spent two weeks at Royal
Sussex County Hospital and
was fitted with an Implantable
Cardioverter Defibrillator, (ICD),
which will deliver a shock to his
heart if required in the future.
Steven said: “It was great to see
some of the team in person and
thank them for saving my life.
Meeting Alex, Amy and Emily was
a really positive experience for me
and my family. They made me feel
so at ease and made it easy for
me to understand and fill in lots of
gaps in my memory.
“I’m so grateful for everything
every single person did to ensure
I am still here today. It’s been
a really tough year but I’m now
looking forward to the future
much more positively – the
meeting has been a big part of
that. I’ll be forever grateful.”
Alex said: “It was an absolute
pleasure to welcome Steven
along to the station. On behalf of
the whole team, it was lovely to
see him doing so well and really
touching to see how grateful he
and his family are.
“Responding to Steven was a real
team effort to ensure he received
the care he needed almost
immediately. He is the perfect
example of why early CPR is so
vital to a patient’s survival.”
Chairman announces
decision to step
down after more
than 50 years’ in NHS
Following a career in the NHS
which has spanned more than
half a century, South East
Coast Ambulance Service NHS
Foundation Trust, (SECAmb),
Chairman, David Astley, has
announced his decision to
step down from his role in May
next year.
David, who joined SECAmb as
Chairman in 2018, is coming to
the end of his final three-year
term. The process to appoint a
new Chair has started, with the
aim being to have a successor in
place by May 2024.
Looking ahead, David said:
“In May, I’ll have completed an
association with the NHS of more
than 50 years. It’s been a hugely
positive experience and I am
immensely proud to have served
the public and worked with so
many talented colleagues.”
David first worked in the NHS,
aged just 17, as a hospital porter
at Walton Hospital, Liverpool.
He continued to work as a
porter during his university
vacations. After graduation he
joined Chesterfield Hospitals in
Derbyshire as a higher clerical
officer before progressing
through various hospital
management roles.
He was appointed Chief
Executive of Greenwich Hospitals
in 1994. He was then appointed
CEO of the newly formed East
Kent Hospitals in 1999 and of
St George’s Hospital, Tooting in
2006. That same year he was
awarded an O.B.E for services
to the NHS.
From 2011 to 2015 David led the
Tertiary Hospitals Group of the
Hamad Medical Corporation in
Qatar. On his return to the UK
and on retirement from fulltime
executive duties, he was
appointed as a non-executive
director of Liverpool Women’s
Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
before joining SECAmb. He
remains a Trustee of Yoakley
Care, a charity based in Margate,
Kent, which manages alms
houses and a care home.
David said: “Throughout my
career I have been privileged
to work with a huge variety of
colleagues in a wide variety of
roles, both clinical and support
– all of which are vital for good
patient care.
“The way in which SECAmb
responded to the pandemic gives
me a deep sense of pride as our
staff and volunteers continued
to respond while also doing
everything possible to protect
themselves and our patients.
“I would also like to thank the
senior team and our Council of
Governors at SECAmb for all their
support during the time I have
served as chairman. Leadership
roles in the NHS have become
increasingly more challenging as
services face greater demands.
“I remain fully committed to my
role for the remainder of my term.
There remains a lot of work to
be done and I look forward to
SECAmb continuing to progress
in the coming months.”
SECAmb Chief Executive, Simon
Weldon said: “I would like to
take this opportunity to thank
David for everything he has done
for SECAmb. He has enjoyed
a full and varied career over so
many years.
“While I have only worked with
him at SECAmb for a relatively
short time, I understand
and clearly see his passion
and commitment for making
improvements for our patients
and colleagues alike. I look
forward to continuing to work
closely with him for the remainder
of his term.”
SECAmb Lead Governor, Leigh
Westwood, said: “On behalf
of the Council of Governors, I
would like to thank David for
his commitment to SECAmb
since his appointment in 2018. I
know that his focus will remain
steadfast in the months ahead
and we look forward to continuing
to work closely with him as the
Trust begins the process of
selecting a new Chair.”
Focusing on
changing patient
needs to develop a
new clinically-led
strategy
Using a detailed level of
analysis not previously seen
before in the ambulance
sector, South East Coast
Ambulance Service NHS
Foundation Trust, (SECAmb), is
developing an ambitious new
clinically-led strategy.
Members of the public are
being invited to get involved
in shaping the new strategy
which will use detailed activity
data to ensure the Trust is best
placed to respond to changing
demographics and also re-define
the role it plays in an evolving
healthcare environment.
SECAmb data shows that:
• more than half of calls (54%)
come from the over 65s, who
make up 20% of the population
in our region
• one of every 10 hours spent
with patients is on scene with
someone who’s fallen
• 20% of calls received are
cardiac related
• Mental health is the sixth
most common reason we
attend patients
• 50% of our patients take five or
more prescription medications
• Patients who’ve called
SECAmb five times or more
account for 17% of calls
Chief Medical Officer, Rachel
Oaten said: “By using the
wealth of data we have available
to us, we are developing our
strategy to ensure we’re better
placed to meet the needs of
our communities in the years
ahead, while continuing to ensure
we can respond to our most
critically-ill and injured patients in
a timely manner.
“Our patients have diverse needs,
spanning the spectrum from
social care to critical care but only
a small proportion truly require
emergency or critical care.
Despite this changing variety
and increasing complexity, we
typically respond to all patients in
an undifferentiated, time-driven
way. This one-size-fits-all model
does not always meet all our
patients’ needs or support our
workforce.”
The Trust will continue to
consult with colleagues, partner
organisations, and patient
representatives to develop its
strategy, building on the feedback
already received from our
people on what they feels needs
to change.
For further details on the
development of the new
strategy, visit: Our Vision and
Strategy - NHS South East
Coast Ambulance Service
(secamb.nhs.uk).
“Wales Air
Ambulance has given
us the greatest gift
of all this Christmas,
they’ve given our
little boy a future”
Christmas will be extra
special for Jess and Jamie
Howells this year, as they
celebrate their son Jack’s third
Christmas – something they
AMBULANCE UK – DECEMBER
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For further recruitment vacancies visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com
For further recruitment vacancies visit: www.ambulanceukonline.com