Friday 12th July 2013 – 3.00pm – Suzie Fothergill.
West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) will be attending this year’s Staffordshire Bike Show.
The annual show, expecting to attract over 25,000 visitors, is being held at Britannia Stadium in Stoke on Trent on Sunday 14th July.
West Midlands Ambulance Services paramedics, alongside Stone Community First Responders will be on hand throughout the event talking about the role of the ambulance service, community first responders and measures that bikers can take in order to stay safe as they take the roads.
WMAS Community Response Manager, Matt Heward said: “Attending events like this is really important to the Service, allowing ambulance staff to engagewith the public.
“With the nice weather we are currently experiencing the number of bikers on the roads has significantly increased. Each year the Service unfortunately attends to numerous collision involving motorbikes, with a significant number of these crashes resulting in fatalities or serious injuries. It is important for motorcyclists as well as other motorists to understand their role in the safety of all road users.
“For motorcyclists, it is important to wear the right protective equipment. A good set of leathers, closed-toe footwear, leather gloves and a helmet can all help minimise injuries. High visibility clothing is also advised to be worn to help other motorists see bikers whilst on the road.
“It is really important for people to concentrate on arriving at their destination safely, rather than as quickly as possible.
“Equally we ask drivers to be vigilant and aware of the motorcyclist who may be on the road, all too often ambulance staff will arrive at collisions and hear stories of drivers failing to have seen bikers.”
Visitors to the show will also have the opportunity to find out more about free lifesaving HeartStart courses that WMAS has to offer.
Matt added: “The Trust has many initiatives running within the community, one of which is HeartStart. This project which was launched in April last year aims to train 60,000 members of Staffordshire public in basic first aid techniques over a five year period. The team have trained over 9,500 people already which is great news, and hopefully following this event more people will signed up to undertake this lifesaving course.”
Anyone wanting more information about HeartStart or other community engagement schemes that the Trust has in place are invited to pop along to the stand and have a chat with the team.
For more information about HeartStart or to book on to a free course please visit http://www.wmas.nhs.uk/Pages/HeartStart.aspx or contact the team via heartstartstaffordshire@wmas.nhs.uk or call 01785 237341.
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