Fire and ambulance services partnership set to save more lives in Hertfordshire

As part of the trial firefighters from Berkhamsted Fire Station will now be able to respond to cardiac arrest emergencies in the area together with the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST), speeding up response times and getting help quicker to people in need.

According to the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE), around 60,000 cases of suspected cardiac arrest happen while someone is not in hospital every year, and those who receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) have double or even quadruple the chance of survival. Survival rates rise to 50 to 70 per cent if the patient receives defibrillation within three to five minutes of collapse.

If successful, other fire stations in Hertfordshire could be included in the innovative approach to providing emergency medical support, alongside their existing duties. EEAST already works closely with fire stations in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to provide back-up for the most urgent calls they receive. Across the east of England there are now 13 fire stations offering their services, with more to come.

Having these partnerships in place and increasing blue light collaboration allows for quicker responses to patients in medical emergencies. All fire service crews involved have received training from EEAST in basic life support including resuscitation and defibrillation.

Tom Barker, Community Responder Manager at EEAST, said: "It is great to have the first fire station in Hertfordshire ready to respond to medical emergencies, as part of EEAST's expanding blue light collaboration with other emergency services.

"Having crews available at Berkhamsted Fire Station will help us get life-saving support to patients in that area faster, and we hope to have more fire stations across Hertfordshire taking part soon.

"Firefighters are not intended to replace the ambulance service, but instead offer extra support as best practice shows that the earliest arrival of multiple responders is beneficial in the critical early stages of a cardiac arrest."

Andy Hall, Head of Operational Response at Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "Firefighters are trained to provide immediate emergency care and already carry trauma kits and defibrillators on our fire engines. It makes sense for us to use these life-saving skills to support the ambulance service in situations where we can get to a patient quickly.

"This trial is part of our continued commitment to working in partnership with other agencies to help save more lives across the county. It's about making the best use of the emergency services' capabilities, regardless of which uniform they wear."