Seahouses Ambulance First Responders

- What are we ? - We are volunteers, trained originally by the Royal Lifesaving Society, but now by the North East Ambulance Service. We are controlled and deployed by the North East Ambulance Service. We aim to reach a potential heart attack victim in the first vital minutes before the paramedic ambulance can reach the scene. We carry life saving equipment, including an A.E.D. (Automatic Electronic Defibrillator), which can restart a patients heart in certain circumstances. We also carry oxygen therapy equipment, and basic first aid equipment.

We are dispatched by Ambulance Control where an ambulance cannot realistically reach the patient in 8 minutes. Our purpose is to save lives, by keeping a patient alive until the arrival of the highly skilled paramedic ambulance crew, who are trained to administer further life saving techniques.

ALL FIRST RESPONDERS ARE SECURITY VETTED BY NORTHUMBRIA POLICE. PERSONS WITH CONVICTIONS ARE EXCLUDED FROM THIS ROLE. IT MUST BE UNDERSTOOD THAT RESPONDERS WILL BE COMING INTO CONTACT WITH VULNERABLE PERSONS AND CHILDREN, AND MUST HAVE THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF PERSONAL INTEGRITY.

- Where are we ? - Seahouses is on the North Northumberland Coast, approximately 27 miles south of the Scottish Border. The village has a working harbour, and enjoys a glorious coastline, and the area is designated an area of outstanding natural beauty, with the picturesque villages of Bamburgh to the north and Beadnell to the south, and the towns of Berwick upon Tweed and Alnwick close by.

- Who are we, and why were we established ? - A First Responder is a person trained to use a Cardiac Defibrillator, which is a machine capable of delivering a carefully measured electric shock, to a patient who has suffered a cardiac arrest, which has the capability to restart the heart. For every minute that the casualty's heart has stopped, their chance of survival diminishes by 10%. After 8 minutes, it is likely that the patient may not survive. Our Team provide 24/7 emergency cover for Seahouses, Beadnell, Bamburgh and the surrounding areas, being activated as required by Ambulance Control and/or the Local Medical Practices.

Research in the United States (Seattle) in 1985 proved that victims of cardiac arrest had a 21.5% chance of survival. After introduction of the First Responder Scheme, the survival rate rose to a staggering 89%.

First Responders can be equally relevant in busy towns as they can be in rural settings. Check out the North East Ambulance Website Click Here and click on the Community Link.

- Why are we needed ? - The experience in the case of this Group, is that the time taken for an emergency paramedic ambulance crew to reach a suspected cardiac arrest, can vary between 15 and 45 minutes. This depends on the available ambulance's location, and the location of the patient. Local community First Responders aim to be with a patient within 3-4 minutes of the emergency call, and a number of people now owe their lives to the speed, efficiency and dedication of Community First Responders, who can hopefully maintain a patient's life till arrival of the expert Para-Medic ambulance crews, who will then take over the patient's care and treatment.

The Chain of Life that can make a critical difference

The Seahouses Team

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