Six new community first responder cars for ambulance service

Six new cars have been unveiled for South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust's volunteer Community First Responders.

The six Dacia Dusters response vehicles, paid for thanks to a £128,000 grant from NHS Charities Together, were officially presented to the ambulance service at Buckfast Abbey today (Wednesday, June 7), on the last day of Volunteers’ Week.

Every day, volunteers from across the South West support the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) by attending emergencies within their local communities ahead of an emergency ambulance.

Sometimes the difference is providing reassurance; sometimes it is saving someone's life.

In the last 12 months, Community First Responders were mobilised approximately 24,000 times, to medical emergencies such as: cardiac arrests, chest pains, breathing difficulties and patients who had fallen.

The grant was secured by the South Western Ambulance Charity as part of a collaborative project with the trust’s volunteering and community services team.

Each car has been converted and equipped with a full Community First Responder kit including a defibrillator and observation equipment.  Each car also carries a Raizer lifting chair to assist patients who have had a fall.

Will Warrender, chief executive of SWASFT, said: “The funding received by the South Western Ambulance Charity is enabling us to better support our volunteers, who, in turn provide incredible support to the communities they serve.

“The six cars that are being provided through the charity will enable Community First Responders to respond to emergencies across a wider geographic area and support the training of new volunteers through observer shifts.”

Zoe Larter, head of South Western Ambulance Charity, said: “We would like to thank NHS Charities Together for awarding us this grant. It’s really going to make a huge difference and help improve the patient care delivered by our dedicated volunteers.”

Ellie Orton, chief executive of NHS Charities Together, said: “NHS Charities Together is the national charity caring for the NHS, and we’re delighted to support South Western Ambulance Charity with this project. Our ambulance services are facing pressures on a colossal scale, and CFRs provide vital support when every second counts. We hope these new response vehicles will help them reach vulnerable patients even faster in emergency incidents – and ultimately help save lives.”

SWASFT has over 500 active volunteers who support the service in patient-facing and non-patient facing roles.

To find out about volunteering roles at the trust and to express an interest, visit https://www.swast.nhs.uk/welcome/community-first-responders/volunteer-recruitment.

The cars will enhance the work of the Community First Responders in their communities by supporting operational requirements in the following ways:

• additional response vehicles to extend Community First Responder capacity and improve patient experience
• provide a response vehicle that allows two Community First Responders to respond together to patients across the South West
• volunteer training activities, such as experienced crew members taking out new volunteers on familiarisation shifts
• for double-crewed shifts to enhance skills or to enable work with other professionals
• cars may also be used to target specific types of incidents, such as falls or welfare support, or to work alongside a skilled professional such as with the mental health team or home treatment team.