Thursday 5th June 2014 – 10.30am – Claire Brown.
Whether you’re a community first responder, a volunteer car driver, a dedicated fundraiser or part of an aid or rescue organisation helping the people of the West Midlands , we’d like to say a really big ‘thank you’ during National Volunteers Week.
Over 2,000 Community First Responders (CFRs) across the Region give up their spare time, unpaid, to respond to 999 calls in their local community. Whilst CFRs are always backed up by the ambulance service, there is no doubt that their early intervention saves lives. In May alone, CFRs responded to over 3,000 patients across the West Midlands equating to 4% of our total number of 999 calls.
If you’re housing an automated external defibrillator (a device used to restart a heart when someone suffers a cardiac arrest) and have had CPR training to help treat someone in cardiac arrest, you’re helping us and your local community more than you think.
Water and land rescue charities as well as 4×4 groups are always on hand to help us through harsh winters, periods of high demand and at the scene of incidents where skill and time are of the essence.
Another set of volunteers work behind the scenes silently by fundraising and offering support to the likes of their local CFR group or Midlands Air Ambulance to ensure they can keep saving lives.
Volunteering isn’t all about the emergency side of the service. Our non-emergency Patient Transport Service is supported by a team of volunteer car drivers who help to ensure patients are picked up and dropped off at hospital appointments.
Chief Executive Anthony Marsh said: “National Volunteers Week is a celebration and opportunity to say a really big thank-you for helping and supporting the ambulance service. With literally thousands of people giving up their time to help their local communities we should all be grateful. I am personally very appreciative of the time you free up to help us to continue to save lives. Supporting any facet of the ambulance service means a great deal to us and I’m really proud of you all. Thank you.”
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