Great Western Ambulance Service
Encyclopedia
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
(NHS) trust providing emergency and non emergency patient transport services to Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
, Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, Swindon
Swindon (borough)
The Borough of Swindon is a local government authority in South West England. It is centred on the town of Swindon and forms part of the ceremonial county of Wiltshire...
and Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
in the South West England
South West England
South West England is one of the regions of England defined by the Government of the United Kingdom for statistical and other purposes. It is the largest such region in area, covering and comprising Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. ...
region. It was formed on 1 April 2006, from the merger of the Avon
Avon (county)
Avon was, from 1974 to 1996, a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England.The county was named after the River Avon, which runs through the area. It was formed from parts of the historic counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset, together with the City of Bristol...
, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire ambulance services.
It is one of twelve Ambulance Trusts providing England with free Emergency medical services, and is part of the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
, receiving direct government funding for its role.
Operations
The Trust headquarters is at Jenner House, Chippenham, WiltshireChippenham, Wiltshire
Chippenham is a market town in Wiltshire, England, located east of Bath and west of London. In the 2001 census the population of the town was recorded as 28,065....
.
The Trust has one main call handling control room ("EOC — Emergency Operations Centre") and two "dispatch centres". The main control room, the EOC at Acuma House, Almondsbury
Almondsbury
Almondsbury is a large village near junction 16 of the M5 motorway, in South Gloucestershire, England.-Description:The village is split by a steep hill, part of the escarpment overlooking the Severn floodplain. At the bottom of the hill is Lower Almondsbury where a pub and hotel, The Bowl Inn, is...
, has been recognised as a Centre of Excellence for emergency call handling and dispatch for 2006, 2007 and 2008 by the company that supplies their computer software.
The EOC in Quedgeley
Quedgeley
Quedgeley is a suburb and civil parish of Gloucester, England, situated southwest of the city. It is the only civil parish in Gloucester, and a has a population of 11,800.-See also:*RAF Quedgeley, a large RAF logistics site which closed in 1995...
, Gloucestershire, is also the hub for the Gloucestershire out-of-hours "urgent care" service. The emergency control centre
Emergency Control Centre
An Emergency Control Centre or Emergency Communications Centre more commonly abbreviated to ECC is a concept used by emergency services in the UK describing a building or room where control room operators take calls from members of the public in need of assistance through the 999 emergency number...
for Wiltshire is located in the WES building in Devizes
Devizes
Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The town is about southeast of Chippenham and about east of Trowbridge.Devizes serves as a centre for banks, solicitors and shops, with a large open market place where a market is held once a week...
, as the Great Western Ambulance Service in Wiltshire is part of Wiltshire Emergency Services
Wiltshire Emergency Services
Wiltshire Emergency Services is the collaboration of the emergency services in Wiltshire, England, including Wiltshire Police, Great Western Ambulance Service and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service- History :...
project.
In common with all UK ambulance services, the control room triage
Triage
Triage or ) is the process of determining the priority of patients' treatments based on the severity of their condition. This rations patient treatment efficiently when resources are insufficient for all to be treated immediately. The term comes from the French verb trier, meaning to separate,...
s and categorises 999 calls into three categories — A, B, and C. Category A are potentially life threatening emergencies requiring an immediate response. Category B are potentially serious but not life threatening emergencies. Category C require do not require an emergency response and are relayed to NHS Direct
NHS Direct
NHS Direct is the health advice and information service provided by the National Health Service for residents and visitors in England, with advice offered 24 hours a day, every day of the year through telephone contact on the national 0845 46 47 number, web based symptom checkers at and via...
, specially trained paramedics or nurses for over-the-phone advice, GP services or Emergency Care Practitioners(ECP).
Below are the performance targets the government has set out of ambulance trusts to meet.
- to reach 75% of immediately life threatening emergencies (category A) within 8 minutes
- to reach 95% of non life threatening emergencies (category B) within 19 minutes
- where a doctor requests an ambulance for a patient under the Doctors' Urgent Standard, to deliver 95% of patients within 1, 2 or 4 hour targets, as requested by the health care professional.
History
Formed on 1 April 2006, from the merger of the AvonAvon (county)
Avon was, from 1974 to 1996, a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England.The county was named after the River Avon, which runs through the area. It was formed from parts of the historic counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset, together with the City of Bristol...
, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire ambulance services, the trust had a difficult start, marked by redundancies, closure of its training centre and the threat of ambulance station
Ambulance station
An ambulance station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of ambulance vehicles, medical equipment, personal protective equipment, and other medical supplies. Most stations are made up of garage bays or a parking area, normally undercover...
closures, though in the end, only one ambulance station was closed (Newent, Gloucestershire).
This caused strained industrial relations with its recognised union, UNISON, and attacks from the local media. From the date of merger, Great Western Ambulance Service struggled to achieve the Department of Health Key Performance Indicators and in 2007-2008 the Trust lost two contracts for non-emergency Patient Transport Services (PTS) to private contractors. Huge numbers of ambulance shifts were covered by private agencies.
In September 2008, the Chief Executive, Tim Lynch resigned. He was replaced by an Interim Chief Executive, Anthony Marsh, from West Midlands Ambulance Service. Marsh identified a lack of operational leadership and a "competition of priorities" within management and removed two Directors (the Director of Operations and Director of Corporate Development).
In February 2009, a ceremony was held to present almost 60 staff, partner agencies and members of the public with Chief Executive Commendations.
In September 2010 a specialist unit, the Hazardous Area Response Team
Hazardous Area Response Team
The Hazardous Area Response Team initiative seeks to provide medical care to patients in hazardous or 'Hot' environment. They utilise special vehicles and equipment. Hazardous Area Response Teams originated from a 2004 report on the feasibility of Paramedics working in the inner cordon or hot zone...
, was established and went live after months of preparation and training. This unit consisting of 32 paramedics is trained to respond to complex or large incidents involving fire, chemicals, biological or nuclear risks, collapsed buildings, cliff or heights, confined spaces, water or firearms incidents. The GWAS unit was planned to be one of the last parts of the national scheme to be established, but has already had national acclaim with high levels of activity and a dedicated base being built in Filton, North Bristol. The team is currently working from a temporary depot in a classified location not far from Bristol.
In summer of 2010, the regional NHS announced that after a tough competitive tenering process, GWAS had secured the major patinet transport service contract for the former Avon area, representing an estimated three-quarters of non-emergency patient journeys in the region. The new revamped service, operating 24/7, went live on 1 October 2010.
In 2010 the trust board recommended the closure of at least one county's control room, and gave the go ahead to an "Estates Review" to prepare the trust for closure of local ambulance stations.
In 2009, the new chief executive, David Whiting, previously director of operations from East Midlands Ambulance Service
East Midlands Ambulance Service
East Midlands Ambulance Service National Health Service Trust provides emergency 999, urgent care and patient transport services for the 4.8 million people within the East Midlands region of the UK - covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Lincolnshire , Northamptonshire and...
, was appointed as Chief Executive. He announced his resignation in November 2010, having served just nineteen months, a situation the union described as "difficult". The resignation came at the height of an industrial dispute as the trust attempted to adjust rota patterns, rest break configutarions and staff shift times, which caused staff to be concerned about safety and welfare of patients and colleagues.
In December 2010, the Trust announced another interim Chief Executive, Martin Flaherty of the London Ambulance Service
London Ambulance Service
The London Ambulance Service NHS Trust is the largest "free at the point of contact" emergency ambulance service in the world. It responds to medical emergencies in Greater London, England, with the ambulances and other response vehicles and over 5,000 staff at its disposal.It is one of 12...
. When Mr Flaherty leaves, and his replacement appointed, it will be the 5th Chief Executive in only 3 years.
At the beginning of January, 2011, UNISON
UNISON
UNISON is the largest trade union in the United Kingdom with over 1.3 million members.The union was formed in 1993 when three public sector trade unions, the National and Local Government Officers Association , the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service...
(the only approved union within GWAS until January, when the GMB was 'suddenly' accepted) announced the results of a ballot for industrial action. From those that voted, the result was 96% in favour of taking industrial action as a form of protest against the changes implemented during 2010.
Later in 2011 plans were revealed for the merger of the Great Western Ambulance Service with South Western Ambulance Service
South Western Ambulance Service
The South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust is the authority responsible for providing ambulance services for the National Health Service in the English counties of Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset...
.
Wiltshire Emergency Services
Great Western Ambulance Service's Wiltshire branch is a member of the Wiltshire Emergency Services (WES) project, a collaboration of emergency services in Wiltshire. The project has seen the construction of the WES building at Wiltshire Police Headqaurters and the relocation of all three emergency services control centres into that one emergency control centreEmergency Control Centre
An Emergency Control Centre or Emergency Communications Centre more commonly abbreviated to ECC is a concept used by emergency services in the UK describing a building or room where control room operators take calls from members of the public in need of assistance through the 999 emergency number...
where information is shared instantly between the three. The project has overseen the sharing of stations at Bradford-on-Avon and Mere
Mere, Wiltshire
Mere is a small town in Wiltshire, England. It lies at the extreme southwestern tip of Salisbury Plain close to the borders of Somerset and Dorset....
, and also the sharing of Wiltshire Air Ambulance
Wiltshire Air Ambulance
The Wiltshire Air Ambulance or Wiltshire Police Helicopter, is an air ambulance and police helicopter which responds to seriously ill or injured casualties and police incidents across Wiltshire...
and the training of Fire and Rescue crews to use defibrillators on occasions when the ambulance service is busy.
GWAS is also supported in Wiltshire by a group of volunteer doctors ('SWIFT Medics') who respond from home, in their own time, to incidents involving seriously sick or injured parients throughout the county. The doctors involved are all either senior GPs
General practitioner
A general practitioner is a medical practitioner who treats acute and chronic illnesses and provides preventive care and health education for all ages and both sexes. They have particular skills in treating people with multiple health issues and comorbidities...
or hospital clinicians, who provide their time and expertise for free. The specially trained prehospital care doctors are able to supplement the skills of paramedics and other ambulance staff (for example with advanced decision making, administration of strong painkilling drugs, prehospital anaesthesia and certain surgical procedures normally carried out in hospital). The prehospital care doctor team receive no funding from either the government or GWAS, and rely entirely on charitable donations and fundraising to pay for their drugs, kit and training. All the doctors use their own cars and are permitted to respond with blue lights and sirens (having undergone an intensive three week police driver training course with Wiltshire Police). The team work closely with the Wiltshire Air Ambulance and the GWAS Air Ambulance. Currently SWIFT doctors are tasked to a job either by the Emergency Operations Centre in Devizes or following a direct request from ambulance personnel at the scene of a serious incident.
Vehicle fleet
Avon- PTS — Renault Master, Ford Tourneo, Citroen Picasso and Fiat Multipla
- A&E — Mercedes Sprinter
- RRV — Ford Focus Estate, Honda CRVVauxhall Astra and Vauxhall Zafira but now standardising on Ford Mondeo
- Officer Cars — Ford Smax, Ford Cmax, Honda CRV, BMW 3 Estate and Skoda Octavia vRS (Due to be delivered in the near future)
- Special ops — Land Rover Discovery 4, Volvo XC70, Volvo XC90, Iveco Daily HART units, Peugeot 207, Ford C Max, Ford Smax, Land Rover Defender.
- ASUAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
- Bo-105 charity funded helicopterAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
operated as the Great Western Air Ambulance - Other units include — Renault Master Decontamination unit, Iveco Daily comms unit stored near by to the Hart one.
Gloucestershire
- PTS — Renault Master
- A&E — Renault Master but now standardising on Mercedes Sprinter
- RRV — Renault Scenic, Honda CRV, Vauxhall Astra and Zafira but now stanardising on BMW.
- ASUAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
- AS-365 charity funded helicopterAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
operated as the County Air Ambulance
Wiltshire
- PTS — Renault Master
- A&E — Renault Master but now standardising on Mercedes Sprinter
- RRV — Renault Megane, Honda CRV, Vauxhall Astra, Vauxhall Zafira, Volvo XC70, V70 and V50.
- ASUAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
- MD 902 Explorer, charity funded helicopterAir Ambulances in the United KingdomThere are a number of air ambulance services in the United Kingdom using either helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Thirty helicopters, all operated by commercial companies and funded by charitable organisations, cover England and Wales...
operated as the Wiltshire Air AmbulanceWiltshire Air AmbulanceThe Wiltshire Air Ambulance or Wiltshire Police Helicopter, is an air ambulance and police helicopter which responds to seriously ill or injured casualties and police incidents across Wiltshire...
and shared with Wiltshire Police.
The latest addition to the vehicle fleet are £140,000 Mercedes Sprinter coach-built ambulances which represent a big step forward from the aging Renault Master ambulances in Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, many of which had to be removed from service when they were found not to meet modern safety standards.
Air ambulances
GWAS has three air support units. The West Midlands Ambulance ServiceWest Midlands Ambulance Service
The West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust is the second-largest ambulance service in the UK. It is the authority responsible for providing NHS ambulance services in Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands and Worcestershire.It is one of 12 Ambulance Trusts...
provides the County Air Ambulance which operates from Strensham
Strensham services
Strensham services is a motorway service station on the M5 in Worcestershire, England. In August 2011, it was rated as 4 stars and 3 stars by quality assessors at Visit England....
and covers GWAS northern areas. It is crewed by two air ambulance paramedics. The Wiltshire Air Ambulance operates 24/7 from the police HQ at Devizes and is crewed by an air ambulance paramedic.
The Great Western Air Ambulance is based at Filton Airfield, Bristol and operates 7 days a week during daylight hours. The helicopter is crewed by a specially trained Critical Care Paramedic and a senior Doctor trained in prehospital medicine. The helicopter covers the entire GWAS area and, if requested, will fly outside the GWAS boundary to assist other ambulance services. Although GWAS pay for the paramedics, vehciles, training and some equipemnt, the doctors all work on a voluntary basis and give their time for free.
The helicopters and their associated running costs are paid for entirely by charitable donations, receiving no funding from either government or the ambulance service. The units can be tasked to an incident either by proactive disptach from ambulance control or by a direct request from an ambulance crew on the ground.