Following the TUC Conference, Dave Prentis (UNISON General Secretary) has announced that UNISON members will be balloted for industrial action over the threat to pensions.

Having published the WMAS Weekly Briefing since our website started some time ago, it is with regret that we have to report that the document will no longer be published on our UNISON in WMAS website.

To mark 25 years of providing welfare for members of the UK ambulance services, the trustees of the Ambulance Services Benevolent Fund have commissioned 150 exclusive limited solid silver ambulance service crown cap badges.

Made by Firmin and Sons, a leading British silversmith, the cap badge will be hallmarked and issued with a certificate of authenticity and will come in a quality anniversary presentation case. These badges will be highly collectable and will be issued on a first come basis so registering interest in the first instance is recommended. The cost of the badge is £87.50 including VAT, first class special delivery and packing. Please make payment by postal order or cheque.

All the profits will be used to help continue the work of the charity in assisting serving and retired ambulance personnel in a time of personal crisis and hardship.

Please contact Gordon Enstone or Simon Fermor by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

New figures outlining the performance of ambulance trusts have revealed regional variations in treatment times and survival rates for patients including heart attack, cardiac arrest and stroke victims. The statistics, relating to ambulance treatment and outcomes in April 2011, take a number of clinical quality indicators into account.

The figures show that the survival rate for patients resuscitated by ambulance staff after an unwitnessed cardiac arrest varied from 0% for those treated by the Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Trust to 12% of patients attended to by North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust. The national average rate was 6%.

The data showed that nationally, 90.8% of heart attack patients eligible for primary angioplasty received the treatment within 150 minutes. For patients treated by North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust the same timeframe was achieved in 82.3% of cases, compared with Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust which achieved 97.6%.

The statistics show that nationally, 66.2% of suspected stroke patients who were assessed face-to-face arrived at a hyperacute stroke centre within 60 minutes. Regionally, that figure varied from 0% in the Isle of Wight to 90.9% for patients treated by the North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust. The proportion of suspected stroke patients assessed face-to-face who received an appropriate care bundle varied from 84% to 100%, with a national average of 91.3%.

Joe Korner, director of Communications at The Stroke Association, said: ‘Tremendous progress has been made in recent years with more patients than ever before getting to hospital quickly and being admitted to designated stroke units. But unfortunately this isn't true of the whole country and it's worrying to see that in some regions ambulance services aren't getting patients to hospital within 60 minutes.’

Since 1 April 2011, 25 front-line staff from South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust (SCAS) have been assaulted during the course of their work. The number of assaults on ambulance staff in the year 2010/11 rose by 22% compared with the previous year.

Mark Ainsworth, South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust Area Director South (Hants) said: ‘It’s disappointing to see an increase in the number of assaults on ambulance personnel. We are doing all we can to protect staff by intervening on calls where staff may be at risk and are also providing training for staff to recognize volatile situations.’

The trust encourages staff to report assaults to the police and will provide support to victims through their line managers and SCAS’ local security management specialist and provides conflict management training to all front-line staff as a matter of course.

All SCAS’ new double crewed ambulances are fitted with 4 cameras - one inside, one over each of the side and rear doors and one in the cab mounted in front of the rear view mirror. In addition the new ambulances are fitted with 3 panic strips - one in the cab and two in the back. Once a panic strip is pressed, the cameras lock the previous 30 seconds recording, record the incident and then continue recording for 2 minutes after the incident.

 

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