First Responder Group is Formed to Help Stansted Community and Local Ambulance Services
Volunteers from the Stansted community have come together to form a new group that will assist the East of England […]
Volunteers from the Stansted community have come together to form a new group that will assist the East of England Ambulance Service in Stansted, EEAST.
A community first responder, CFR, group consisting of 9 members has been put together to support EEAST with their service, the coordinator of the group is local Stansted resident, James Mace.
The idea behind the CFR team is that they can be dispatched by EEAST and get to the scene of an accident before paramedics are able to. So far the new Stansted team has been called out to help on 13 emergencies.
Ambulance services do their best but can take too long to reach certain areas. With CFRs plotted around the community aid can get there more quickly and emergency situations can be stabilised more rapidly.
Volunteer Groups Make A Real Difference
Volunteer groups like the new EEAST CFRs make a real difference in emergency situations and can genuinely be the difference between life and death. To provide a greater cover of the Stansted area, the group would desperately like more volunteers so that they can save many more lives than is possible for the ambulance service to do alone.
A current CFR group in West Essex were the first to promote the idea of a similar scheme in Stansted. West Essex’s lead CFR, Jack Squires told the press:
“Last year we highlighted the need for a group to start in the Stansted area and we’re pleased to say that it is now fully operational with members trained and ready to help their community.
“The benefit of having a Stansted group is that our volunteers should only be a matter of minutes away from a call as they live or work locally. This way, a patient can be assessed and treatment started during those vital first minutes of an emergency while an ambulance response is on its way.”
Time is Valuable
New volunteers will take turns to be on call and carry the necessary first aid equipment and an AED to help patients in emergencies. Time can be very valuable in life threatening emergencies, and every minute counts. Both ambulances and CFRs will be called out to an emergency, but because of the locality of the CFRs they are often able to reach the scene more quickly, and are able to give patients care within minutes of a call.
Another member of the West Essex team, Karl Edwards, the senior locality manager, was thrilled with the new group’s formation.
“I’m so pleased to see the group finally up and running. First responders provide such a good lifeline to communities and poignant relationships are often established because it’s not unusual to be called to neighbours or even family members.
“As with any voluntary group, the more members we can recruit the more cover we can give. People can be on call for as little or as much time as they’re able to give up. What’s important is that they want to contribute something worthwhile to Stansted in a positive way.”
If you would like to join the EEAST CFRs, or another local CFR group please get in touch with Jack Squires. jack.squires@eastamb.nhs.uk
