Volunteers Needed to Help Save Lives in Leeds
There are calls today for more volunteers to be trained in delivering life-saving care in Leeds.
Yorkshire Ambulance says more Community First Responders are needed in Otley, Guiseley and Horsforth in particular.
They're trained to act in emergency situations, and helped with over 10,000 thousand incidents last year.
Locality manager Paul Stevens says they can mean the difference between life and death:
“We give them the relevant equipment such as a defibrillator, and they will respond to a specific call within their community.
“They’ll try and get there to that patient in the early onset of that cardiac arrest before that front line vehicle arrives, and begin the process of basic life support.
“Community volunteers have gone to 424 cardiac arrests this year alone in the Yorkshire area. This has a significant impact on communities and on patients.”
The volunteers are trained in CPR and the use of an Automatic External Defibrillator, which delivers a controlled electric shock to restart the heart. They also carry portable oxygen.
Full training is given to successful applicants, who need to be over 18 years old, physically fit and hold a full driving licence.
“I must stress that this is a resource that doesn’t replace the ambulance service and doesn’t replace the rapid response vehicles,” says Paul.
“Every time we send a volunteer we send a vehicle to back them up. But the volunteer gets there early and starts the treatment early, which has the biggest impact on the patient’s outcome.”
Sharron Martin, Community Defibrillation Trainer for YAS in West Yorkshire, said volunteers come from all walks of life:
“Many volunteer as a CFR to gain experience, to help their local communities and some people have had personal experience of a loved one needing prompt medical attention and can see the value in this initiative.
“Being a CFR can be extremely rewarding and I would encourage anyone who may be interested in taking on the role to get in touch.”
Anyone interested can find out more by contacting Sharron on sharron.martin@yas.nhs.uk or 07789 271072.