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Tag: North West Ambulance Service

North West Ambulance Service Ready For Winter

With winter fast approaching, North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) has announced plans to deal with the anticipated rise in demand for NHS and ambulance services, and ensure it continues to deliver high-quality care while supporting patients and staff during this peak period.
Over the past year, the service has recruited over 280 new staff members to the Paramedic Emergency Service, Patient Transport Service, and NHS 111 service. These additional recruits strengthen NWAS’s capacity to provide timely and appropriate care to those who need it. In addition, since February 2024, 32 new emergency vehicles have been added to the fleet, bringing the total up to 553 ambulances. All these vehicles will be available to respond to patients across the North West this winter.
Frontline staff are also being supported. To help them manage the increased demand, volunteers will be deployed to assist with staff welfare – offering refreshments at hospitals during peak times and helping to move equipment, staff, and vehicles around the region.
Over the last 12 months, NWAS has remained one of the top-performing ambulance trusts in the country. Fewer patients have experienced long delays, and they continue to work closely with local hospitals to reduce handover times, freeing up crews and ambulances to respond to new emergencies.
Dan Ainsworth, Director of Operations, emphasised: “We’re here for you this winter, as always, and our comprehensive plans will help us to maintain the high-quality care you expect. Winter brings unique challenges and increased demand, but we’re as prepared as possible.

To help us help you, consider getting your flu and COVID-19 vaccines if you haven’t already, keep your medicines cabinets stocked up, order repeat prescriptions in advance, make use of local pharmacies, and visit 111.nhs.uk for advice on non-urgent conditions.”

North West Ambulance Service Appeal: Use NHS 111 online for non-urgent health concerns

North West Ambulance Service is highlighting the benefits of an online service that could provide quicker health advice for people who need it this bank holiday weekend.

Callers to the NHS 111 phone line often find there are longer wait times to speak to a health advisor during the bank holiday as demand traditionally rises when access to their GP is restricted. Earlier this month, during the early May Bank Holiday weekend (4th-6th May 2024), the North West NHS 111 service saw a 46% increase in calls compared to the previous week.

Patients seeking help through NHS 111 online (111.nhs.uk) will answer the same questions as if they were speaking to someone but without the wait.

111.nhs.uk can help you with:

  • Where to get help for your symptoms if you’re not sure what to do
  • How to find general health information and advice
  • Where to get an emergency supply of your prescribed medicine
  • How to get a repeat prescription
  • Getting emergency dental appointments

You can also access it through the NHS app. 111 online is not suitable for queries regarding patients under 5. You should still dial 111.

Paul Johnston, 111 Senior Service Delivery Manager, said, “Demand is always high on the 111 service during bank holidays as the public has less access to other healthcare options, such as their GP. We try to ensure we answer as many calls as possible by increasing staffing levels, but some callers will still wait longer than usual. We also expect the number of people calling 999 to increase in the days after the bank holiday, so we also urge patients to ONLY call 999 in life-threatening emergencies (see below) so as to keep ambulances available for those who need them.”

You should call 999 if you or someone else experiences:

  • Signs of a heart attack like pain like a heavy weight in the centre of your chest
  • Signs of stroke, such as your face dropping on one side
  • Difficulty breathing
  • Heavy bleeding that won’t stop
  • Seizures
  • Or sudden and rapid swelling of the eyes, lips, throat or tongue.

Dr Paula Cowan, Medical Director for Primary Care at NHS England – North West, said: “This is an extremely busy time for NHS staff and we are extremely grateful for them working tirelessly over this bank holiday weekend and the days after, to ensure all those that need care receive it. The public can help us by using the right service for their needs, including 111 online for quick and easy medical help. NHS 111 online can help with the same problems as the 111 phone service and is a fast and convenient alternative. You can answer questions about your symptoms on the website or in the NHS App and get advice about what to do next. This includes getting a call back from a clinician if you need one.”

BEEP Doctors

BEEP Doctors awarded The King’s Award for Voluntary Service

BEEP Doctors (BASICS Cumbria), a team of dedicated volunteer doctors which carries out life-saving work in Cumbria, has been awarded The King’s Award for Voluntary Service – the highest award a local voluntary group can receive in the UKi and is equivalent to an MBE.
“This is a massive honour and we are immensely proud to have been awarded The King’s Award for Voluntary Service,” said Dr Theo Weston MBE, the chair and founder of BEEP Doctors. “In my view it is by far and away the best thing to have happened to the BEEP Doctors charity in our near 30-year history.”

The King’s Award for Voluntary Service aims to recognise outstanding work by local volunteer groups to benefit their communities. It was created in 2002 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee and, following his accession, His Majesty The King emphasised his desire to continue the Award.

Cumbria’s BEEP Doctors, who are all volunteers with the charity, provide enhanced pre-hospital emergency medical care. They work closely with the police and fire services, North West Ambulance Service, Great North Air Ambulance Service and North West Air Ambulance. At incidents, BEEP Doctors can carry out some surgical procedures, such as inserting chest drains; some can perform pre-hospital anaesthetics and all are able to administer drugs that most road crew paramedics cannot, such as ketamine/fentanyl to give pain relief and allow fracture manipulation. Many of the emergencies they attend are road traffic collisions, as well as incidents involving farms, pushbikes, horses and water.

Beep Doctors’s 11 doctors include A & E consultants at West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven and Cumberland infirmary in Carlisle; two anaesthetists who work at Royal Lancaster Infirmary; and three GPs.
So far in 2023 the BEEP Doctors (BASICS Cumbria) charity has attended 272 incidents and members have completed 872 volunteering hours.

More details in the document below.

BEEP-Doctors-awarded-The-Kings-Award-for-Voluntary-Service-media-releaseDownload