Wednesday 22nd January 2014 – 4.50pm – Suzie Fothergill.
Codsall Ex-Service Sports Club recently presented a cheque for £2,500 to their local community responder group; South Staffordshire First Responders (SSFR).
The donation was made following a presentation delivered to the club by scheme responders Louise Davies and Matt Jevons.
Community First Responders (CFRs) are groups of volunteers trained to a nationally recognised level by West Midlands Ambulance Service and respond to 999 calls in their local communities. They can be vital in reaching those people suffering from medical emergencies fast, particularly in remote rural communities, prior to the arrival of an ambulance.
In many illnesses or injuries the first few minutes are critical and simple interventions can be performed in order to save lives or prevent disability. CFR’s maybe requested to attend to medical emergencies such as cardiac arrests, diabetic emergencies, strokes, falls, and breathing problems.
The South Staffordshire First Responders (SSFR) charity provides trained volunteers in Codsall, Perton, Pattingham, Wombourne, Kinver and surrounding villages.
Matt Jevons, Founding Trustee of SSFR said: “This is a fantastic donation to receive and is much more than we originally thought it might be. The money donated to us will go towards funding a new responder kit, which includes a defibrillator, oxygen and masks, bandages, a pulse oximeter, suction equipment, blood pressure monitoring kits amongst other vital equipment.”
Derek Buxton, President of the Ex-Service Sports Club said: “Although our members have seen the first responders in the village, we were not aware of the impact they can have and indeed that they all give their time voluntarily. We invited Louise and Matt to present to our committee and were all amazed at their dedication. They are a very worthy group to receive this donation.”
The group is currently looking for new recruits, if you are interested in becoming a Community First Responder please visit http://www.wmas.nhs.uk/Pages/CFRs.aspx or email cfradmin@wmas.nhs.uk
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Note(s) to Editors:
Pictured (L-R) Dennis Potts, Doug McDonald, Matt Jevons (SSFR Trustee) receiving cheque of £2,500 from President Derek Buxton and Bryan Fowler.