A Reigate man has leant his voice to calls for everyone to learn CPR (cardio-pulmonary resuscitation) after being reunited with some of the ambulance team who help save his life. Michael Woolley, 80, suffered a cardiac arrest at his home on the afternoon of 14 December last year. His wife, Lynn, who joined him when he visited Banstead Make Ready Centre recently, immediately began CPR, called 999 a
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, (SECAmb), is celebrating a decade of running the NHS 111 service across much of its region. The Trust, which now runs the service across Kent, Medway and Sussex, handled its first 111 call 10 years ago as part of a soft launch of the service in the region. The NHS 111 service took over from NHS Direct, a nationally-run service that began in
With more than three-quarters of all resuscitations attempts by South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) crews taking place in the home, this February Heart Month, people are being asked if they would be willing and able to perform CPR on a loved one. The revealing statistic comes from a new report on out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) published by SECAmb. The report, covering April 2021 to
A prolific persistent caller who made more than 7,000 calls to Sussex Police and SECAmb from September 2020 and was continually abusive to emergency service contact officers has been sentenced to 39-months in prison. Roger Jackson, 77, from Horsham, pleaded guilty at a hearing at Lewes Crown Court on Friday, January 27. As part of the sentence Jackson will also have a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO
A new multi-purpose ambulance centre is expected to become operational this summer. The South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, (SECAmb) centre, in Bredgar Road, Gillingham, will consist of a Make Ready Centre, Emergency Operations Centre, (EOC), and NHS 111 contact centre. It will be the first ambulance centre in the country to bring all three functions together under one roof. T
In the South East Coast Ambulance Service region, the GMB Union balloted its members for industrial action last year and met the legal threshold to take action. Other unions in our region are currently re-balloting their members. To date, two days of industrial action have taken place, on 21 December 2022 and on 11 January 2023. The GMB Union recently announced four further days of industrial acti
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, (SECAmb), is encouraging its staff and volunteers to spend time thinking and talking about their mental health ahead of Time to Talk Day this week (Thursday 2 February). Throughout February, the Trust will also be raising mental health awareness among staff and volunteers with a campaign – Your Mind Matters. The campaign will focus on the im
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, (SECAmb) is to trial a new volunteer Emergency Responder role. The trial, which will cover Ashford in Kent, specifically Romney Marsh, and Tangmere, in West Sussex, focusing on the A272 corridor between Billinghurst and the Hampshire border, will last two years. The two Emergency Responder (ER) schemes will each consist of 12 community first
South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, (SECAmb), has announced the appointment of two new Board members. Joining the executive team as Chief Medical Officer is Dr Rachel Oaten, while Max Puller joins the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director for an initial term of three years. Rachel will join the Trust on 1 February with Max taking up his role from 6 February. Dr Oaten
As we continue to develop our operational fleet, South East Coast Ambulance Service, (SECAmb), staff will have the opportunity to view a newly-configured Fiat ambulance, which has been amended using feedback from a range of clinical staff, union representatives and the Trust’s fleet department. The new vehicle, which include changes aimed at improving functionality for crews whilst also fitting th