Name: Mick Donnelly
Job Title: HART Operative
Base: Oldbury
Length of service: 2 ½ years
Role within WMAS:
The Hazardous Area Response Team consists of 42 Paramedics, which are split into seven teams of six. HART Operatives are paramedics that are trained in a variety of specialist skills enabling them to provide lifesaving emergency medical treatment in some very difficult environments. Teams are trained to use specialist equipment enabling them to work at heights, within confined spaces such as tunnels or collapsed buildings, rough terrain, at the scene of severe building fires, as well as water rescue incidents. They also have specialist knowledge surrounding hazardous materials, such as chemicals, and how best to treat those patients that may have come into contact with such materials.
Christmas day plans:
I worked Christmas day last year and so I am off this year. I am looking forward to spending Christmas day with my fiancée and future in laws!
Top tip for winter:
What better present for the next Chris Hoy or Bradley Wiggins. Time may be running out, but there is a present that all of our staff would support you buying, if your loved one rides a bike – a cycle helmet. There is now a huge amount of research that shows that for many patients, the level of injury is significantly reduced in cases where the cyclist was wearing a helmet. Wearing one doesn’t mean you can be reckless; far from it. What a helmet does is provide some protection for your face, head, and brain in case you come off your bike. While wearing a helmet does not reduce the risk of injury entirely, it does significantly reduce the extent of injury due to impacts to the head, particularly with children. Whether you are a cyclist or not, we would also ask all that all road users look out for each other. Doing so will go a long way to meaning cyclists will not need their helmet. Cycle helmets do not need to be expensive but could make the difference between life and death. The cost is surely a price worth paying. Helmets should be a snug fit and positioned squarely on your head – sitting just above your eyebrows, not tilted back or tipped forwards. Make sure that it is securely fastened by straps, which aren’t twisted, with only enough room for two fingers between your chin and the strap.