Skelton First Responders

We are in the process of setting up a community first responder group for the Skelton area. We already have a number of volunteers wishing to undergo training and others who will help with the administration.
Community first responders are an intrinsic part of the North West Ambulance service. They are volunteers trained to attend emergency calls received by the ambulance service and provide care until the ambulance arrives.
Responders work as part of a local team. They are on call and are dispatched when a life threatening situation is reported. Volunteers can often arrive at an emergency scene in minutes as they are sent to calls in their local area. Their role is to assess the immediate situation, offer help where appropriate and find out relevant information about previous medical conditions.
Responders carry oxygen and automatic defibrillators and have been trained to deal with life threatening conditions such as cardiac arrest, when any delay in restarting the heart will reduce the chance of a successful outcome.
Because it’s so vital for emergency services to reach the casualty without delay we are appealing to everyone in the area to make sure their house name is clearly displayed. In addition it’s a good idea for everyone to register their address with the ambulance service. This is particularly important if you live in a remote or hard to find location. Log onto www.nwas.nhs.uk/pointtaken and follow the simple instructions.
It can take many months for the volunteer team to train and “go live”. In the meantime we are encouraging as many people as possible to attend the Heartstart sessions which are being run locally, to learn basic life support. Almost anyone can do this and everyone should know how. There is no further commitment after the initial two hour session, but learning simple skills really can save lives.
The next step is to raise around £2000 for our own public access defibrillator, to be sited somewhere in the centre of Skelton. Lets hope we never need to use it, but it would be reassuring to know it’s handy and people have the knowledge and confidence to do so if required!
All offers of help to get this project off the ground will be gratefully accepted.
The first meeting of the co ordinating group is taking place in Skelton on Wednesday 23rd November 2011 at 10.30am. Anyone interested in coming along or helping should contact Sue Rowlands on 017684 84881 or susanrowlands1@hotmail.co.uk