What's new in Burnham - Local Volunteering Opportunities

Burnham Community First Response Team - part of the Royal Berkshire Ambulance Community Responders

 

Community Responders are people who volunteer to help save lives in their community. There is good evidence to suggest that if people are trained to help someone whilst the ambulance is on the way then more lives are saved. Community Responders under go a two day, specially designed training course provided by the Royal Berkshire Ambulance Service in the essential skills needed for the role.

These include resuscitation techniques and giving oxygen. One of the most important pieces of equipment carried by the Responders is an Automated External Defibrillator (AED). A defibrillator is designed to deliver a shock to a person whose heart has stopped but unlike the units carried by Paramedics, the AED unit talks the Community Responder through the process and will not allow the Responder to deliver a shock to someone who does not need one.

 

  

Typically Community Responders operate as a member of a scheme. A scheme is a group of 10 – 15 people who all live and / or work within about a five minute radius of each other. They are led by a member of the group who acts as coordinator. The group meets regularly to discuss call outs and also to plan when they can each be available.      

If you are the duty Community Responder then you hold the duty phone and Responder bag with AED. When a call is received by ambulance control they send the ambulance and then, if it is a suitable call, they alert the duty Community Responder who lives or works close to where the emergency has occurred. The Community Responder then drives at normal road speed and provides assistance until the ambulance arrives. 

Obviously it is a challenging role, but Community Responders are volunteers from all walks of life united by a common aim to help save lives in the area where they live. If you drive, are over 18 and are reasonably fit then why not see if there is a scheme operating in your area today!

Contact the

Community Defibrillation Officer

 Richard Davies

0118 9365563.

Richard.davies@rbat.nhs.uk

 

 

  

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