South West Ambulance Service celebrates volunteers

This week marks Volunteers’ Week – the Trust celebrating the hundreds of people who give up their time to provide care in their communities

2024 marks the 40th anniversary of Volunteers’ Week – which the team at South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust are celebrating by thanking the work of more than 600 people who dedicate their time to supporting the service and providing emergency care in their premises. the communities.

Those who volunteer with SWASFT operate in both patient-facing and non-patient-facing roles up and down the South West – and include more than 600 community first responders, as and 35 by the British Association of Emergency Physicians.

Volunteers also work to support ambulance crews by moving Trust vehicles between locations.

In the past three months, SWASFT says volunteers have moved more than 100 ambulances across the South West.

Those working in patient-facing roles help the service respond to 999 calls and provide emergency care to patients, often before an ambulance arrives at the scene.

In the last financial year, they responded to more than 22,500 calls across the region.

The work of volunteers like CFR who work in their local area ranges from sharing a cup of tea and a chat with a patient to performing CPR and saving someone’s life.

The Trust is also supported by 35 BASICS responders who are experienced pre-hospital doctors who give up their time to attend some of our most seriously ill patients in their local community.

Jane Whichello, Head of Volunteering and Community Services at South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Volunteers Week is a great opportunity for all of us to recognize the value of our volunteers and the difference they make to people’s lives and their communities.

“I am honored to lead such a talented and dedicated team here at SWASFT. Our volunteers play such an important part in the service we provide to patients and I would like to thank each and every one of them for their support. With our team of volunteers by our side, SWASFT can continue to provide the best possible patient care.

“Volunteering is a great opportunity to meet new people and learn valuable life-saving skills through training and ongoing support from the dedicated volunteering support team. If you want to find out more about what you can do to make a difference, why not visit our website and social media to find out more.”

You can learn more here.

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