IFSEC Insider is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is opposing plans for firefighters to respond to medical emergencies following their work providing life-saving treatment during the pandemic.
Avon Fire Authority (AFA) will be asked to approve a plan including potentially expanding its crews’ medical roles.
The Fire Brigade Union (FBU) said members had not been consulted on the “half-baked scheme”.
The three-year service plan will be proposed today, 30 March.
AFRS plans to grow its current partnership with South Western Ambulance Service (SWAST) where fire crews can reach someone suffering a suspected cardiac arrest before paramedics and administer potentially life-saving treatment.
But FBU Secretary, Amanda Mills, said firefighters would need proper training, provision of equipment, risk assessment procedures and sufficient government funding in place to ensure “costs of the additional work is not a burden on fire and rescue services which will detract from the ability to provide core services”.
She argued the increased responsibility raised the “other important issue of payment”, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
According to Amanda, a major problem identified in previous trials was that some ambulance services “gamed the system” by redirecting paramedics to other calls knowing fire crews were on hand for cardiac arrests and that this was to the detriment of patients and the fire services.
She said: “Half-baked schemes that purposely don’t involve the FBU will inevitably result in worse patient care, not better.”
In response to these concerns, AFRS said staff would receive sufficient training to be able to use specialist equipment such as defibrillators.
“We are committed to implementing new ways of working to assist with medical emergencies to support our ambulance colleagues to keep the public as safe as possible, and to save and preserve endangered life in the widest sense.”
Secure your ticket for FIREX 2023!
16-18 May 2023, ExCeL London | Bringing competency in fire safety to the forefront
Connect with the fire safety community at FIREX 2023. You'll find hundreds of leading exhibitors from the active and passive fire sector, showcasing all the latest in fire protection, prevention and detection solutions. With third-party product approvals a condition of exhibiting, visitors can be assured of the quality of solutions they're seeing, and the all-new distributor network is also launching this year.
Network with thousands of peers and likeminded professionals, while attending dedicated conference sessions covering updates in legislation, technology and building safety from leading figures in the industry.
Avon fire crews resist plans to work as paramedicsThe Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is opposing plans for firefighters to respond to medical emergencies.
IFSEC Insider
IFSEC Insider | Security and Fire News and Resources
Related Topics
“If people don’t feel safe they won’t go in a building” – Bridging the gap between facilities and security
IFSEC Global Podcast: Episode 10 – Security as a community & responding to crises with Bonnie Michelman
IFSEC Global Podcast: Episode 8 – Securing healthcare facilities during a pandemic and beyond
Subscribe
2 Comments
Oldest
NewestMost Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Allan Guest
April 14, 2022 9:46 am
Over my years as a Firefighter there were numerous ‘good ideas’ put forward an expanded role being one such. There were, and are many reasons why this is, as described ‘half baked’. I have often been told that attending medical emergencies is a good idea but, rather than make the counter argument, I ask a simple question. Imagine you are out with family, loved ones friends etc and someone has a medical emergency-do you want a fully equipped emergency ambulance with fully trained paramedics or a very well intentioned but, comparatively, poorly trained and equipped fire appliance? There should be… Read more »
The problem with this comment is that it assumes that fully trained paramedics and a ambulance will be available when the reality is that they are not in many cases. I have never understood why the FBU has always been so reluctant to endorse this idea. It seems they are always reluctant to help support local communities to be provided with a better service. In the case above a fully trained fire crew even with the basic first aid training that all crews receive will bring comfort to those in need, let alone with a couple of firefighters having received… Read more »
Over my years as a Firefighter there were numerous ‘good ideas’ put forward an expanded role being one such. There were, and are many reasons why this is, as described ‘half baked’. I have often been told that attending medical emergencies is a good idea but, rather than make the counter argument, I ask a simple question. Imagine you are out with family, loved ones friends etc and someone has a medical emergency-do you want a fully equipped emergency ambulance with fully trained paramedics or a very well intentioned but, comparatively, poorly trained and equipped fire appliance? There should be… Read more »
The problem with this comment is that it assumes that fully trained paramedics and a ambulance will be available when the reality is that they are not in many cases. I have never understood why the FBU has always been so reluctant to endorse this idea. It seems they are always reluctant to help support local communities to be provided with a better service. In the case above a fully trained fire crew even with the basic first aid training that all crews receive will bring comfort to those in need, let alone with a couple of firefighters having received… Read more »