25
Aug 2015
Increased demand prompts firefighters to assist with emergency services
Following a pilot scheme in the east Midlands, appointing firefighters to support ambulance crews could become a possibility.
Three ‘fire ambulances’, manned by Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, have been used for the last 12 months as a first response for the most critical medical emergencies.
The firefighters, trained in basic emergency care, attend patients while awaiting the arrival of a paramedic from East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), and transport the patient to hospital if necessary.
Early figures show that patients who were attended by the fire ambulances arrived at hospital between 20 and 40 minutes quicker and that the assistance of the firefighters has freed up 600 hours of ambulance time, which means that ambulance crews are free to respond to other calls more quickly.
While the demand for ambulances is currently growing by around 6 per cent each year, fire emergency numbers are dropping, with fire prevention drives including smoke alarm installations and checks, thought to be factors behind the decrease in numbers.
Steve Pratten, community response manager at EMAS, said the ‘blue light collaboration’ scheme had generated interest from ambulance and fire services across the UK, and Chief Fire Officers Association president Peter Dartford, said that services in other parts of the country would be likely to investigate the scheme.
Mr Pratten said “Fire stations are within the heart of every community. This is really about getting to patients really quickly, which in a rural county like Lincolnshire we struggle to do, we can’t have an ambulance in every town, every village. This is about the five to 10 minutes of care before the paramedic arrives.”
The Association of Ambulance Chief Executives said it was aware of “early positive feedback” from the pilot scheme, but added that similar schemes may be “less likely to be suitable in less rural communities.”
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Posted by Karen Motley, Paralegal, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (karenmotley@chadlaw.co.uk ), Medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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