Murray MacGregor – Tuesday 31st December 2019 – 6.00am.
As the decade draws to a close, it also marks the beginning of the end of Sir Graham Meldrum’s time as Chairman of West Midlands Ambulance Service; he officially steps down on 31st March 2020.
Sir Graham has been in the position for almost 14 years, and during that time, has seen the ambulance service develop into the top performing Trust in the country.
WMAS is the only ambulance service rated as Outstanding by the Care Quality Commission and one of only two who are rated in segmentation one by NHS Improvement.
In addition, the Trust is the only one consistently exceeding the national performance standings, has a paramedic on every vehicle and has no frontline vehicle older than five years.
Sir Graham said: “The last decade has been an incredibly special one; seeing the Trust develop and achieve things that might not have seemed possible ten years ago.
“While the decisions taken by the Board and senior leadership have undoubtedly shaped the way the Service has developed, it could not have been achieved without the most important part of the organisation; the staff.
Sir Graham added: “To a large extent, the reason we have been so successful is the roll out of the ‘Make Ready’ system where we have 15 large hubs instead of over 80 small ambulance stations:
It has allowed us to become far more efficient which has allowed us to invest far more than we would have been able to in frontline staff and vehicles, which is ultimately what is needed to provide a high quality service:
“Whilst we are undoubtedly successful, the service will not stand still and will continue to develop long after I have left. The next decade looks like an exciting time to be within the ambulance sector:
Ends