Patient Transport Service

Our Patient Transport Service (PTS) is the non-emergency arm of our service and plays a vitally important role in the service that we deliver to local patients.

PTS provides pre-planned routine transport for patients who need to attend hospital, medical centres and outpatient appointments and cannot make their own way there. PTS also provides pre-planned transport to patients who require clinically trained staff to transport them because of their medical requirements, e.g. patients requiring dialysis.

PTS also carries out many hospital discharges and transfers to hospices, nursing and care homes as well as assisting SECAmb’s emergency care service when required.

The Trust’s PTS staff are trained in patient care and assessment, basic life support, manual handling, airway management as well as being able to recognise the signs and symptoms of many conditions.

PTS undertake journeys primarily in Sussex and Kent but also Surrey and Hampshire and regularly operate 114 PTS ambulances, Monday to Friday with a number of ambulances working at the weekend to transport patients. The hours of operation are from 06:00 to 23:00 Monday to Friday and 06:00 to 22:00 at the weekend.

The PTS ambulances carry on them a defibrillator, comprehensive first aid kit, entonox (analgesic gas) and a manual handling kit to assist the crew in the transferring of patients either from the stretcher to a wheelchair or to one of the seats in the ambulance.

All patient transport journeys are booked through the local hospitals or healthcare provider. If you would like to find out about booking this service, please contact the hospital or department dealing with your appointment.