Lay volunteers to attend 999 calls

The ‘First Responder’ scheme - which employs local volunteers trained to attend certain 999 calls -is already up and running in parts of Counties Londonderry, Tyrone, Antrim and Fermanagh.

Now the Health Minister has revealed the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) is ready to roll out the scheme in parts of Londonderry.

Under the proposed scheme emergency patients may first receive oxygen therapy and cardiac defibrillation from lay members of the public, off-duty ambulance staff, nurses or doctors although previous experience of first aid training or medical expertise is not necessary in order to become a first responder.

Mr Poots explained: “Many communities in Northern Ireland are rural and, in recognition of that, the Ambulance Service has worked with local communities to set up first responder schemes.

“First responders are trained members of the public who are called to an emergency by the Ambulance Service. They are not a substitute for the Ambulance Service but are complementary to it.

“They are volunteers who live or work in a community or a village. First responders can attend in only a limited number of emergencies, such as those that involve chest and heart problems, choking, convulsions, electrocution, diabetic issues and unconsciousness. First responder schemes are now in place in Islandmagee; the glens of Antrim; Slaughtneil, north of Maghera; Broughderg, north-west of Cookstown; Loughguile, County Antrim; the Irvinestown and Enniskillen areas; and on Rathlin Island.

“The Ambulance Service is currently working to expand the first responder scheme in other areas, including Londonderry, parts of Tyrone and Fermanagh and the Ards peninsula.”

The Health Minister made the revelation in response to a Stormont motion on emergency life support skills which noted that “heart and circulatory disease remains Northern Ireland’s biggest killer” and that “for every minute that passes after a cardiac arrest without defibrillation, the chance of survival is reduced by around 10 per cent but that immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can improve the chances of survival by up to a factor of three.”

Mr Poots mentioned Derry City Council’s work in developing emergency life support expertise in the Londonderry area stating: “In addition, my Department has established a pilot scheme to assess the feasibility of training volunteers in ELS skills and the use of the automated external defibrillator to a level where they can cascade the training to others.

“The volunteers are from organisations involved in sport, including the IFA and the GAA, and some district councils, including Belfast, Lisburn and Derry city councils.

“When trained, those volunteers will cascade that training to others in their clubs and organisations, which will create a cohort of trained individuals who may be able to intervene in an emergency situation. The pilot will be evaluated at the end of next month.”

According to NIAS examples of calls considered suitable for first response would include: patients suffering from chest pain believed to be of cardiac origin, and who are at risk of cardiac arrest; patients who are in cardiac arrest; patients who are unconscious from unknown origin; patients who are choking; patients who are unconscious or collapsed following immersion; calls such as those above are considered to be ‘medical emergencies’ and would make up the majority of activity considered suitable for a First Responder Scheme.