Ambulance service looking for lifesavers

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Could you help to save a life?

The North West Ambulance Service is recruiting volunteers to learn vital skills that could be the difference between life and death.

In many rural areas, the ambulance service uses residents known as Community First Responders (CFRs) to get to patients quickly and provide life-saving help before the ambulance arrives.

CFRs work on an on-call basis and are dispatched to certain emergency calls by the ambulance service’s emergency control centre.

They are often able to get to the scene of an emergency first and provide critical care before paramedics arrive.

NWAS’s CFR manager Dave McNally said: “None of us knows who will suffer a cardiac arrest, have difficulty with breathing or sustain heavy bleeding.

“What we do know is that when such a life-threatening condition occurs it is the simple things that save lives, including the type of assistance available and the speed of response.

"We are appealing to people living in Rochdale and the surrounding areas to volunteer to become CFRs and to agree to be trained and dedicate some of their time in helping their local community.

“The training teaches volunteers how to do deal with patients suffering from life-threatening conditions such as cardiac arrest, chest pains, difficulty breathing, allergic reactions, diabetic and epileptic collapse and choking.

“People can commit as much or as little time as they feel able, ideally a minimum of four hours a week. This is a voluntary role and is not for the faint hearted.”

A CFR needs to be extremely reliable and trustworthy, good under pressure, able to remain calm in emergency situations, be caring when dealing with patients and have a good level of physical fitness.

CFRs must be over 18 years old, have the use of a car and will undergo a criminal records bureau check.

While a responder is on call they can continue with their normal day-to-day activities but must be ready to drop everything and attend a call should one arise.

NWAS has one of the largest and longest established CFR schemes in the country.

There are over 1,200 active CFRs shared between approximately 130 teams throughout the region.

If you are interested or would like to find out more visit www.nwas-responders.info

Or call 0845-0021 999