London Ambulance Service
What are the main things you expect from London’s Ambulance Service?
The London Assembly Health Committee is currently looking at how Londoners could have more of say in the way that the London Ambulance Service works, what Londoners want from the Ambulance Service in the future and how it can be helped to perform better.
What are the main things you expect from London’s Ambulance Service? What do you think are the main challenges that the Service is facing today? And what do you think the London Ambulance Service could do about the number of alcohol related call outs?
Summary
The London Assembly Health Committee published their report ‘Supporting London’s ambulance service’, which makes recommendations on how best to support the London Ambulance Service. The committee listened to members of the public, representatives of the London Ambulance Service Patients Forum and Talk London.
The recommendations include:
- Develop an access to work programme to help unemployed Londoners get a job within the service.
- Share best practice to encourage workforce diversity and engage more with London’s diverse communities.
- Identify community safety needs and the resource needed to maintain a safe and secure environment.
- Identify gaps in existing provision for falls, mental health, maternity care and end of life care by developing a city-wide response.
The discussion ran from 25 June 2018 - 25 September 2018
Closed
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Log into your accountchristophercurtin
Community Member 7 years agoImmigration.
Show full commentImmigration.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoAgreed.
Show full commentAgreed.
Show less of commenthalconrudch
Community Member 7 years agoI believe that there were some changes to the service. It seems that they will cut the amount of ambulances to transport and help people and increase the number of medical first response medics. Still, that is being done and I don't know...
Show full commentI believe that there were some changes to the service. It seems that they will cut the amount of ambulances to transport and help people and increase the number of medical first response medics. Still, that is being done and I don't know how it is going to affect the need for people to be transported to hospitals.
My suggestion is that there is the need to increase the number of ambulances, qualified personnel, and of course of the first response medics.
Show less of commentClive
Community Member 7 years agoReduce the number of "top level" management and make sure the ones who are there are suitably qualified.
Improve pay and conditions for front line staff and give them the proper equipment to do the job they have trained for.
Make the...
Show full commentReduce the number of "top level" management and make sure the ones who are there are suitably qualified.
Improve pay and conditions for front line staff and give them the proper equipment to do the job they have trained for.
Make the roads better so ambulances can travel at a reasonable speed without risking damage to the vehicles and give them some kind of "priority button" so they change traffic lights in their favour.
Make better use of first responders
Show less of commentomvalli
Community Member 7 years agoExpectations include speed of response, ability to handoff to secondary urgent care that is able and ready to receive patients, well trained staff, and properly equipped to handle all manner of incidents - this includes up to date IT...
Show full commentExpectations include speed of response, ability to handoff to secondary urgent care that is able and ready to receive patients, well trained staff, and properly equipped to handle all manner of incidents - this includes up to date IT, communications as well as modern medical equipment.
The challenges include the congested secondary care system and the delays this causes, the use of ambulances by repeat callers without life threatening conditions, and traffic in London and available equipment.
Show less of commentajw
Community Member 7 years agoThe biggest problems facing the London Ambulace Service today is poor and badly managed roads in London, an excess of road works and road blocking construction works, rickshaw taxis and traffic congestion caused by all of the above and...
Show full commentThe biggest problems facing the London Ambulace Service today is poor and badly managed roads in London, an excess of road works and road blocking construction works, rickshaw taxis and traffic congestion caused by all of the above and including an excess of cycle lanes, some of which are not even used.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoThe ambulance service is clearly under a huge amount of pressure. I lived in Australia for a while. There, if you are in a higher earning bracket, you pay for annual ambulance insurance. This is either a separate insurance or within general...
Show full commentThe ambulance service is clearly under a huge amount of pressure. I lived in Australia for a while. There, if you are in a higher earning bracket, you pay for annual ambulance insurance. This is either a separate insurance or within general health insurance package. This costs for a couple, roughly $100 per year. If you don’t have insurance and you call an ambulance you risk a bill of $1000. This is good as it helps further fund the ambulance service and also discourages people for calling out ambulances for non emergencies.
Show less of commentlivehere
Community Member 7 years agoThe Australian system is shameful.
Show full commentThe Australian system is shameful.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoLondon's Ambulance Services are doing a great job and considering the size of London it is certainly not the easiest job.
However, I always wonder, and pretty much every Londoner I talk to, why the sirens are the most ear pearcing of all...
Show full commentLondon's Ambulance Services are doing a great job and considering the size of London it is certainly not the easiest job.
However, I always wonder, and pretty much every Londoner I talk to, why the sirens are the most ear pearcing of all countries. Sirens are necessary and saving lives, I am not criticising the use of it, but I think it is a serious problem for pedestrians that live in the vincinity of areas like a hospital, where we get about 40 times a day the numbing volume on the hearing system.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoAgree!!
Show full commentAgree!!
Show less of commentcolorizer
Community Member 7 years agoEmergency vehicles need to be loud for good reason. On the street, I agree that they are ear-piercing. But if you are in an ambulance, on the way to save a life, and the driver in front of you doesn't hear the siren or get out of the way...
Show full commentEmergency vehicles need to be loud for good reason. On the street, I agree that they are ear-piercing. But if you are in an ambulance, on the way to save a life, and the driver in front of you doesn't hear the siren or get out of the way because they are sitting in a vehicle with the windows up and music blasting from the speakers (and not paying attention), you have delays which could be the difference between life and death. Sirens are meant to alarm, to get pedestrians to take action and get out of the way, and to alert people of their arrival.
Show less of commentLocronan
Community Member 7 years agoWhy can't the London Ambulance Service and the London Fire Brigade be a combined emergency service.
It works well in other countries, just one control room answering emergency calls for fire and ambulance. One station to garage vehicles...
Show full commentWhy can't the London Ambulance Service and the London Fire Brigade be a combined emergency service.
It works well in other countries, just one control room answering emergency calls for fire and ambulance. One station to garage vehicles, all employed by one employer. It must reduce costs.
The NHS could still run the ambulances for routine journeys and the vehicles would be garaged at the hospitals.
At the moment there are too many chiefs and not enough Indians in both the Ambulance Service and the Fire Brigade
Show less of commentRichard Morse
Community Member 7 years agoI tend to agree with this idea.
Show full commentI tend to agree with this idea.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoFire crew receive first aid training and some have paramedic training, so another reason this combined emergency service idea sounds like a good one.
Show full commentFire crew receive first aid training and some have paramedic training, so another reason this combined emergency service idea sounds like a good one.
Show less of commentSineady
Community Member 7 years agoService reserved for cases where a rapid response and time to hospital is key to saving life. I'd like to see more air ambulances in use and more regional centres that take on cases responded to by air ambulance. More training for staff...
Show full commentService reserved for cases where a rapid response and time to hospital is key to saving life. I'd like to see more air ambulances in use and more regional centres that take on cases responded to by air ambulance. More training for staff. Staff are well rested, well paid - ideally, no conflicts with other roles they have so they're not overtired and stressed.
Show less of commentWhiffmeister
Community Member 7 years agoI agree with this. Ambulance station closures have reduced effectiveness and leads to fewer ambulances having to travel greater distances and this puts a strain on staff and organisational resource. Well trained, well rested and well...
Show full commentI agree with this. Ambulance station closures have reduced effectiveness and leads to fewer ambulances having to travel greater distances and this puts a strain on staff and organisational resource. Well trained, well rested and well compensated staff will provide greater returns where the closures have taken place. Increasing strain on existing resources doesn't lead to efficiency
Show less of commentLaura Cade
Community Member 7 years agoSpeedy service, knowledgable, competent staff who are not under time pressure or suffering extreme fatigue, who are well paid and respected.
Show full commentSpeedy service, knowledgable, competent staff who are not under time pressure or suffering extreme fatigue, who are well paid and respected.
Show less of commentjtob
Community Member 7 years agoCouldn't have said it better.
Show full commentCouldn't have said it better.
Show less of commentAnonymous - account deleted
Community Member 7 years agoYep that sums it up pretty perfectly.
Show full commentYep that sums it up pretty perfectly.
Show less of commentMarcel
Community Member 7 years agoI agree with Laura as well. I haven't dealt with London ambulance services but I've seen first hand how they work in a couple of occassions in the Midlands. Another good aspect to add is to make sure they can differentiate between true...
Show full commentI agree with Laura as well. I haven't dealt with London ambulance services but I've seen first hand how they work in a couple of occassions in the Midlands. Another good aspect to add is to make sure they can differentiate between true medical emergencies and more minor cases (e.g. alcohol-related minor injuries) when they are on-site. At the same time also have enough time to put focus on the tasks at hand whatever the case.
Show less of comment