East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust welcomes students with autism for work experience

Two students from Wherry School in Norwich, a specialist school for those with autism, joined the team at the Waveney depot to work in the Make Ready service.

The service prepares ambulances and other vehicles with medical supplies and equipment to deploy.

The students, both 16, toured the depot and helped plan and prepare kit and load ambulances. In an emergency, ambulance crews must know where equipment is quickly, so each vehicle has a clear plan for where individual pieces of equipment go and in what order.

From defibrillators to dressing packs, equipment is laid out in exactly the same place across the whole EEAST fleet, and it is essential that the Make Ready teams get this right each time. The students worked through hundreds of medical items of equipment and consumables. In addition, the students were also able to get involved in maintaining the very high standard of infection control measures to clean and prepare the clinical area.

Paul Walmsley, Sixth Form teaching assistant, said:

"It is a great team at the make-ready ambulance centre at Gorleston and of course it was a privilege to work with people who care so much about our community.

"The staff were super sensitive to our students' needs. They were able to produce two programmes that were bespoke for two very different students. At the end of each programme both students were keen to come back for more."

Susan Purcell, Make Ready supervisor, said:

"When approached about supporting the project, as a team we jumped at the chance. It was an absolute pleasure to welcome the students into our workplace, they both did an amazing job. We look forward to supporting the project again in the future."

The Wherry School caters for all age ranges, including sixth form and teaches mainstream education curriculum alongside life skills.