St John Ambulance Cymru leads the way in a ground-breaking healthcare initiative

St John Ambulance Cymru have been commissioned to support the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust in a ‘Virtual Ward’ project with Community Welfare Responders. The scheme will see qualified volunteers acting as first responders to 999 calls, to help ease pressure on the NHS.

The scheme is focussed on helping to provide more information to clinicians for people who have dialled 999 and are waiting for a response. The pilot scheme will initially be rolled out in four health boards – Betsi Cadwaladr, Aneurin Bevan, Hywel Dda and Swansea Bay. St John Ambulance Cymru volunteers will support Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust clinicians to enhance their remote clinical decision-making capabilities, providing them with the latest clinical information to support informed decision making and to provide patients in our communities with more appropriate access to care options.

The scheme will be coordinated by the Welsh Ambulance Service’s Clinical Contact Centre, who will assess calls and then alert St John Ambulance Cymru’s Community Welfare Responders to incidents where there are opportunities to provide care closer to home, or improve patient experience. The Community Welfare Responders would then attend the scene and assess the patient, feeding back the information to clinicians in the Clinical Contact Centre who will determine the best course of action for the patient.

The aim of the scheme is to support the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust, and to reduce waiting times by responding to calls where an ambulance conveyance to an emergency department might not be required, and additional patient observations from the scene will enable remote clinicians to determine a more appropriate treatment plan. This enables patients to remain at home where appropriate and be assessed quicker thus reducing strain on Emergency Departments, where treatment in hospital is not required.

Benjamin Savage, Chief Operating Officer, at St John Ambulance Cymru said, “This is such an incredible project, and we are so proud to be involved.

 At a time of extreme pressure on our health care services, which is likely to increase into the winter months, it is more important than ever that, where possible, we keep people out of our hospitals in a safe and controlled manner, and allow our partners in the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust to respond to the people in most severe need.

 We are excited for the potential of this scheme to be rolled out across the whole of Wales which will allow us to live out our vision to be there for everyone, anytime, anywhere. We look forward to seeing how this pilot project develops and the positive impact it has on the people and communities we serve. It’s an honour to be part of something so innovative and ground-breaking.”

Since launching the pilot scheme, early indicators are already demonstrating the positive impact Community Welfare Responders are having on reducing the need for an ambulance in less urgent cases. It  is hoped that following continued evaluation, the scheme will be extended to support the increased pressures placed on both the Ambulance Service and hospitals in Wales during the winter period and beyond.

We are always looking to recruit new volunteers to support our work across Wales. If you would like to volunteer for St John Ambulance Cymru register your interest at Register – St John Ambulance Cymru – Member Services (sjaw.org.uk) or email peopleservices@sjacymru.org.uk .