Keeping you, the people who matter to us, informed

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News 3

Staff 8

Communities 10

Patient Experience SuccessPatient Transport Service UpdateResults of Governor ElectionsNWAS Know-How: Calling 999 - What Happens Next

The GEM Awards 2013

CardiacSmart – They Have What it Takes!Chain of Survival Saves a LifeOlympian Welcomes Defib at Ice RinkGoostrey Becomes ‘Heart Safe’

999 doesn't always mean an ambulance or a trip to hospital...Find out more about the service's

newest campaign

NOTE FROM LIFELINE EDITOR, SARAH SMITHWelcome to the latest edition of Lifeline, the North West Ambulance Service’s (NWAS) magazine for its members, staff, patients and public – The first edition of 2013.

The past couple of months have certainly proved to be a challenge, as winter is always the busiest time of the year for NWAS and any ambulance service across the country. However, we have continued to work really hard to provide the best possible care to patients requiring our service.

Now the winter months are behind us, we are looking forward to the start of a new financial year, the events we have planned and the opportunities it will bring.

In light of the recent, second Francis Report which looks at the failings at the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, I felt it appropriate to highlight how committed we are as an NHS Trust to delivering a quality service. The report sets out a number of recommendations which all NHS organisations need to pay attention to. To read more on the report visit: www.midstaffspublicenquiry.com.

In addition, we will continue to focus on developing and improving our service in order to maximise resources available for those in genuine need of our emergency service or patient transport service across the North West. We will also move forward with our plans to become a Foundation Trust, more of which you can read about on page four.

Also in this edition, we have a lot of updates for you to read including an introduction to our governors who were elected at the start of 2013. On page three, you can read why we have an award winning Patient Experience Team and some facts about the Trust.

999 doesn't always mean an ambulance or a trip to hospital, you can find out more about the Service's newest campaign on page five. NWAS has recently celebrated its 2013 Staff Award Ceremony and the true hidden GEMs of the Trust are revealed on pages eight and nine.

On pages 10 to 12, you can read about the launch of the CardiacSmart initiative which recognises individuals and organisations, who have dedicated time to raising awareness of heart health, basic life support and defibrillators in their local communities. You can also read about how two long lost friends were reunited through a cardiac arrest and the story of Bridget whose life, thanks to some quick thinking individuals, was saved.

Lifeline is your magazine, so if you have any suggestions on how we can improve it, please email your opinions and suggestions to:communications@nwas.nhs.uk.

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NWAS NEWS FACT CORNERWho we areNWAS is the largest ambulance service in the country employing more than 5,000 staff, serving a population of seven million and covering over 5,400 square miles.

The Trust headquarters is in Bolton and there are four supporting offices in Liverpool, Preston, Carlisle and Manchester, serving the communities of Cheshire and Merseyside, Cumbria and Lancashire and Greater Manchester.

What we doNWAS provides a 24 hour, 365 days a year, emergency service to those people in need of emergency medical treatment.

NWAS deals with more than one million emergency 999 calls a year. These are dealt with by emergency operations centres (EOCs) across the North West. Our EOCs are based in Manchester, Liverpool and Preston.

NWAS also provides a non-emergency service known as the Patient Transport Service.

PATIENT EXPERIENCE SUCCESSThe first quarter of 2013 has seen NWAS declared national winners of the 2012 Patient Experience Network National Awards (PENNA) for Outstanding Patient Experience Innovation. The Trust’s submission for this award centred on the ‘NWAS Patient Experience Board Game’, predominantly used to engage with the diverse communities and ‘vulnerable’ groups in the region. The award ceremony took place at the Birmingham and Midlands Institute on Wednesday 6 February. Sarah Smith, Assistant Director of Corporate Communications and PR, said: "The Board Game is an innovative tool to engage with local communities. It is a great way of allowing people to express any issues and consider their expectations and experiences of using our service. The Game is unique in that it ensures we can engage with community groups, in a fun, informal and unimposing way whilst helping us to get important feedback and improve the service we provide. The award is a perfect celebration of the Game.” The Patient Experience Team has been finding out about the experiences of patients in a number of different ways. This includes conducting patient surveys for both Paramedic Emergency Service (PES) and the Patient Transport Service (PTS) in hospitals across the North West. The team has also conducted postal and telephone surveys with patients who have been discharged from hospital using the ambulance service and patients that have used the Urgent Care Service. They have also engaged with a number of community groups, by playing the board game with them and also by arranging visits to local Emergency Operations Centres, so they can see how emergency calls are handled. The results from the patient surveys show a continued increase in patient satisfaction. Patients were asked to score the overall care they received between 1 and 10, and 91.5 percent of PES patients surveyed gave a score of 9 to 10. When asked how likely they would be to recommend NWAS to a friend or relative, (a score of 1 being the least likely and 10 being the most likely), 86.1 percent of PTS discharge patients gave a recommendation score of 9 to 10.

Staff engagement also took place in the form of an online portal, ‘Talk to Us’, a sophisticated online web platform which, amongst other things, allows staff to post an idea or suggestion of their own and add comments to suggestions that have already been posted. Over 95 unique ideas, with 364 comments and 1,165 votes were generated from the first initial campaign, and a further campaign has now taken place generating more resuls. From the feedback received on how both patient and staff experience can be improved, work is now underway to identify learning points and recommendations that can be used in the future to help benefit NWAS in making changes that could improve the patient experience.

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IN THE SPOTLIGHTIn each edition of Lifeline, we ask ’10 questions’ to somebody associated with the Trust. This edition, we speak to Bob Williams, Acting Chief Executive of NWAS.

1. What did you want to be as a child?From about age 10, all I wanted to do was fly helicopters – So I did for a couple of years, as an Officer in the Fleet Air Arm, until I got medically grounded.

2. How did you work your way up to become Acting Chief Executive for England’s largest ambulance service?I don’t see it as working my way up – I am just very passionate about the ambulance service and want to do the most I can to help us be the best we can be! I never set out in the ambulance service to be anything other than a good Paramedic, but I have been incredibly lucky with opportunities arising at the right time that have coincided with me wanting to take my experiences and expertise to a new level.

3. What are your CV tips?Be honest. Too many people over-egg their CV and it doesn’t go down well at interview.

4. What are the best bits of your job?Three things. Firstly, getting to hear about the fantastic job that our staff do along with the exceptional incidents that occur regularly across our very large patch. Secondly, getting out and spending time in the Emergency Operations Centres or with a crew, to get an insight of how it ‘really’ is at the frontline these days – Which I don’t do enough of, no matter how hard I try. Thirdly, doing something that actually makes a difference over time – That’s the biggest change between my role now and the one at the operational front end. As a Paramedic the results are immediate and obvious, in this role, the strategies take years to come to fruition and are more nebulous to determine, such as the planning and implementation of the clinical leadership programme, for example.

5. What is the best decision you have ever made?Marrying my wife.

6. Who are your heroes?People at opposite ends of the spectrum. I admire visionaries who understand and can see how the world and the lives of individuals lives can be improved. But I have total respect for people who do an amazing task, just to live every day and don’t look for or expect thanks for it.

7. What is your best memory?The birth of my children. But from a work perspective, passing the very first national Paramedic course in 1986 as one of the first six nationally licensed extended skills qualified ambulance staff - As we were titled at the time.

8. What inspires you?I am self-motivated in life, but sitting at the top of a hill surveying the beauty and power of nature is pretty awe-inspiring.

9. In today’s world, where people are constantly on the go, what do you do to relax?I try to spend quality time with my family, keep fit and go running up hills for personal satisfaction.

10. What song can get you up onto the dance floor?I don’t dance – At all! But I do listen to a lot of music, especially when out running and that tends to be rock – Queen, Led Zeppelin, Heart, UFO etc.

Calling 999 doesn’t always mean an ambulance response; it’s about getting the right care, at the right time, in the right place. On road, on foot, over the phone and in the sky, there are a variety of ways that North West Ambulance Service can react to each and every 999 call.

A new film featuring emergency ambulance staff and volunteers, available to view in the coming weeks at nwas.nhs.uk, will explain what could happen with your 999 call.

Assistant Director of Corporate Communications and PR, Sarah Smith, said: “Not all patients are taken to the nearest emergency department, instead, they are assessed or treated by highly skilled clinicians who work out the best place for them to get help for their specific needs.

“This is all about getting the right care, at the right time, in the right place and our new film shows that there’s so much more to calling 999.”

Many of the 999 calls received by the service are deemed not to be life threatening so new ways to deal with these incidents have been established.

Specialist paramedics based in the emergency operations centres, where 999 calls are handled, call back many patients whose conditions are considered less serious, and provide an assessment over the phone. They can then determine where the patient will get the most appropriate care.

Ambulances aren’t sent to patients if specialist paramedics determine that the right care can be provided by a district nurse, GP, dentist, another community healthcare professional or at home with self-care advice.

If an ambulance response is the most appropriate, there are over 300 vehicles across the North West, staffed by paramedics and emergency medical technicians, ready to help at all times. As well, a vast network of volunteers operates throughout the region.

We would always urge the public to call 999 only when someone is seriously ill or injured and to consider what alternative healthcare options are available to them.

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NWAS KNOW-HOW: CALLING 999 - WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

We are pleased to announce that we have received a very positive report from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as a result of an inspection of the Trust recently.

The Trust received an unannounced visit from the CQC at the end of February. The inspection concentrated on the emergency services provided by the Trust, focused in the Greater Manchester area. They visited Parkway Control Centre, eight ambulance stations and three A&E departments as well as talking to a wide range of staff, managers and patients to seek their views. The Trust was awarded full compliance against the five care standards assessed by the review.

These were:

· Care and welfare of people who use services

· Management of medicines

· Supporting workers

· Assessing and monitoring the quality of service provision

· Complaints The report highlights the positive feedback provided by staff and patients and the inspectors noted safe and good care when reviewing protocols and observing practice. The outcome is testament to the hard work and dedication of staff across the whole Trust.

HIGH PRAISE FROM THE CARE QUALITY COMMISSION

To showcase the changing role of the ambulance service, an evolutionary timeline has been added to North West Ambulance Service’s Facebook page to demonstrate the key technological, educational and governance related milestones within the service’s history, which have been instrumental in revolutionising the way the service works.

From high profile tragedies, which brought to attention the need for one centralised emergency service hotline, known as ‘999’, to medical advances such as the correlation between Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and the increased chance of survival from cardiac arrest, all are featured on the timeline.

Take a look at facebook.com/nwasofficial.

EVOLUTION OF THE AMBULANCE SERVICE

In the last edition of Lifeline, you will have read the news that the Patient Transport Service (PTS), went out to tender last year, based on the five counties which make up the North West region.

NWAS successfully secured the Cheshire, Merseyside, Cumbria and Lancashire bids, but, disappointingly, lost the Greater Manchester contract to a commercial provider.

The new contract will start from 1 April 2013 for three years. Numerous quality improvements have been incorporated as a result of feedback from our stakeholders, including patient representatives engaged in the process, with an overall focus on the quality of service for all our patients.

The Trust has modernised its operations through increased quality standards, particularly around the journey waiting and collection times and a new workforce plan, which will provide a flexible service that meets the needs of patients. The 'provision of next patient journey notifications' and freephone telephone numbers are also intended to provide an improved patient experience.

As part of the new contract, improved quality requirements will be monitored by the lead Commissioner, NHS Blackpool.

The Trust recognises the diverse needs of all our patients and the service will

now accommodate appointments between 8am and 6pm, Monday to Friday, excluding Bank Holidays, as well as an enhanced service for regular users – haemodialysis and cancer patients. Patient transport will be available for haemodialysis patients to cater for appointments up until 7.30pm and collection up until 1am, Monday to Saturday, including Bank Holidays. Patient transport for patients receiving treatment for cancer is available Monday to Friday, including Bank Holidays.

To ensure all our stakeholders and patients are communicated with effectively, new PTS communication material has also recently been produced. This includes an updated patient and public information leaflet, and an NWAS Patient Charter – A document which describes the standards of service a patient should expect from NWAS and what patients can do to help us meet their needs most efficiently. A new website, which contains all the latest information and developments, has also recently been launched and can be accessed by visiting: www.patienttransport.nwas.nhs.uk.

The Trust and Commissioners have also been out and about talking to patients and hospital representatives about the contract. If you would like any further information, you can contact PTS@nwas.nhs.uk.

PATIENT TRANSPORT SERVICE UPDATE

RESULTS OF GOVERNOR ELECTIONS

Our first ever Council of Governors has been set-up, to ensure we involve local communities in our future plans, as we continue with the journey to becoming an NHS Foundation Trust.

Over 13 thousand people, made up of staff and public members, were able to vote for the candidate they wanted to represent them on the Council of Governors.

At the end of January, the results were announced by Electoral Reform Services, the independent agency that ran the elections process on our behalf.

Since the announcement, the council members have been busy learning

more about the Service and what their new roles will entail.

The Council comprises of 37 members including the Chairman. There are 20 public members, 11 staff members and 5 members from partner organisations.

Profiles of your Governors will be added to our website soon, see: nwas.nhs.uk/memberszone.

MAINTAINING QUALITY WITH STATION VISITS Since September 2012, some of NWAS’ senior managers have been undertaking a series of visits to every station and control centre across the North West to ensure all is as it should be in terms of quality and standards in relation to the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) registration standards. The visits have given managers a valuable opportunity to meet and engage with a wide range of staff.

The visits to each of the 109 stations, and three emergency operations centres have now all been completed. A report has been produced sharing the findings of each visit. We are pleased to report that sites have, in general, been found to be well kept and well run, with a number of significant improvements on previous years.

The Trust’s Estates Department has carried out a large number of upgrade schemes which have significantly improved the working environment on many sites. The day-to-day running of stations has been noted as being impressive as managers and staff are taking a pride in their stations.

As a result, we are extremely pleased to give further assurance of a very high level of compliance with the CQC standards.

A team from Monitor, the independent regulator for foundation trusts, began its assessment earlier this month. From scrutinising our business and financial plans, to interviewing staff and managers, Monitor’s assessment is both exciting and challenging. At the end of the process, Monitor will make the decision to authorise, defer or reject our Foundation Trust application.

FT UPDATE!

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THINGS YOU MIGHT LIKE TO KNOW WHICH MAY HELP YOU ACCESS OUR SERVICE

Pictorial Communication HandbooksThe Trust’s first Pictorial Communication Handbook was developed with the aim to overcome communication barriers with patients with learning disabilities and patients with language barriers or communications problems who were using patient transport services.

The book uses symbols, pictures and simple words to aid ambulance healthcare professionals when communicating with patients with a learning disability or those who otherwise may not be able to speak or provide clear or coherent information. Due to the success of the handbook, NWAS has since launched a version for the Paramedic Emergency Service and issued it to all emergency vehicles.

SMS TextingThe mobile phone emergency SMS text trial was introduced to NWAS in September 2009 and has been running widely in the UK for over two years. The service is predominantly used by D/deaf and speech-impaired people who find it difficult to use the phone.

The scheme has 14,500 registered users. The trial has been successful with around one emergency text a day requiring attendance by the emergency services for situations such as strokes, heart attacks and childbirth. Ofcom, the independant regulator for the UK communications industry, has safeguarded the scheme by making it mandatory for mobile operators to provide it to registered users.

Multilingual Phrasebooks and Community HandbooksThe Trust has produced copies of the nationally recognised ASA ‘Multilingual Phrasebooks’ (MLPs) which are available on all NWAS emergency vehicles. The phrasebooks are meant to be used as an additional resource when appropriate to assist with the communication needs of community groups and individuals. The pocket ‘Multilingual Phrasebooks’ have been widely adopted by ambulance services across the country and are popular amongst ambulance healthcare professionals.

The Trust has also made pocket versions of the community handbooks ‘Working with Diverse Communities’ available on all NWAS emergency vehicles. This assists healthcare professionals to further understand the ever changing cultural and religious requirements of different community groups in the North West.

Language Line There are many different black and ethnic minority communities living in the North West and the Trust ensures, where possible, that written and verbal communication reflects the communities it is being aimed at. If written translation is appropriate, there are interpretation providers that the Trust can access through local authority offices or specialist services in this area.

Where verbal translation is required, this is accessed by NWAS using ‘Language Line’ services. This is a free service and is normally accessed on behalf of patients by our call centre operatives working in the Trust’s emergency and PTS operation centres.

For information on any of the above, please contact Yunus Mogra, Equality and Diversity Manager by emailing: yunus.mogra@nwas.nhs.uk or calling: 01204 498381.

The Trust has a number of different communication tools which we use to help people with disabilities, or where language or communication is a barrier to accessing the service. In this edition of Lifeline, we take a look at what those aids are.

The Trust is working with commissioners, hospital colleagues, GPs and community nurses to promote community care pathways to support patients with long term conditions or complex health or social care needs, such as diabetes, or where patients are prone to falls.

Each pathway is designed to improve the quality of care for patients via an individual care plan. The plan, which is kept with the patient at home, enables paramedics when attending, to easily identify the most appropriate care option for the patient based on the information in the care plan. The plan is developed by the patient's lead health professional eg. GP, district nurse.

To support this initiative, a computer system has been developed entitled the Electronic Referral Information Sharing System (ERISS). This system supports information sharing between NWAS and health care professionals, providing

details of individual patient needs and continuity of care outside of hospital.

Healthcare professionals and community teams will notify NWAS when a care plan has been created for a patient electronically, and the Trust can add this information to the patient's address on the ambulance computer system so it alerts paramedics to the presence of a plan if we receive a call from the patient via 999.

This new way of working supports patients to live and manage chronic conditions without involving an unnecessary trip to hospital and ensures patients are receiving the right care, at the right time and in the right place.

ERISS is now live and being used with a first phase of users, we will keeps you updated on how its working and benefitting patients. For more information, please visit: www.eris.nhs.uk.

Parkway Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) opened its doors to Dr George Mukone, a senior member of the Ugandan Department of Health, on Thursday 14 February. The Ugandan delegate was invited to the UK by NWAS Assistant Medical Director, Darren Walter, to see first-hand the inner workings of the service; from the taking of calls, to the vehicles on the roads.

NWAS is working with the Ugandan Department of Health to develop its existing ambulance service, to establish a more clinically focussed service, within the country. The East African nation has a population of approximately 35 million and the average life expectancy is 52. At present, a simple ambulance service exists to deliver patients to hospital in a very similar fashion to the ‘scoop and run’ days of the service’s early beginnings.

Interestingly, it has been mooted that the 1966 Millar Certificate, which helped to introduce clinical qualifications to the Qualified Ambulance Person role in the UK, may be adapted to train recruits in Uganda. The qualification will have to be specialised to cater for local diseases and common ailments; with higher incidences of diseases like malaria, the extreme weather patterns and the more tropical environment and wildlife, the Millar will need quite a bit of adapting!

Mary Whyham, NWAS Chairman, said: “This is a great opportunity to be able to work with the Ugandan Department of Health, and to share all that NWAS has learnt whilst developing the ambulance service from a ‘scoop and run’ facility to the clinical mobile healthcare service of today.

“The tour of the EOC, stations and inter-agency working with hospital trusts, helps to clarify all the smaller cogs that must come together to deliver healthcare to the patient. We look forward to supporting the Ugandan government to deliver this in Africa.”

INTERNATIONAL VISIT TO PARKWAY!

CARE TO SHARE; NWAS DEVELOPS NEW INFORMATION SHARING PLATFORM TO HELP IMPROVE PATIENT CARE

THE GEM AWARDS 2013 – RECOGNISING THE TRUE HEROES OF NWAS!

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NWAS revealed some of its hidden stars on Thursday 14 March at its regional Staff Award Ceremony – The GEM Awards 2013.

The annual, prestigious event took place at Ribby Hall Village in Preston, Lancashire, and recognised individual staff members, teams and volunteers who had been nominated by their peers for going above and beyond the call of duty.

The ceremony was attended by nearly 200 people from across the whole of the region, including NWAS board members, managers and staff. Special guests included our sponsors: Virgin Media Business, MIS Emergency Systems Limited, Intrinsic Technology Limited and Physio Control – Without whose help, the ceremony would not have been able to take place.

The Trust was delighted to be joined by Real Radio Breakfast Show presenter, Glen Hunt, who opened the evening and did a sterling job of compering the night.

Mary Whyham, the Trust’s Chairman, addressed the guests with her speech in which she thanked those who had attended. She also acknowledged what a busy and challenging year 2012/13 was for the organisation and thanked staff for their unrelenting work over the past 12 months.

Acting Chief Executive of NWAS, Bob Williams was then invited to the stage to present the awards. Up first was the category for Frontline Staff Member of the Year – Emergency Service which was won by Deborah Preece, Emergency Medical Technician 1 from Congleton Ambulance Station, Cheshire. This award was followed by Frontline Staff Member of the Year – Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) won by Kay Tomlinson, Emergency Medical Dispatcher from the Trust’s Parkway EOC in Greater Manchester.

Michaela Lupton, a Supervisor based at Fazakerley ambulance station, Merseyside, won Frontline Staff Member of the Year – Patient Transport Service (PTS) and Helen Marriott, PTS Control Assistant from Parkway, Greater Manchester won Staff Member of the Year – PTS Control.

The next peer nominated award, Manager of the Year, was awarded to Adrian Conboy, Professional Development Manager for the Trust and Ted Proctor,

A Domestic based at Central Station, Greater Manchester, scooped Support Staff Member of the Year. Team of the Year was awarded to the Trust’s Emergency Operations Centre Training Team.

The next category up for grabs was the Student Learner of the Year Category and was won by Gary Earps, now a Paramedic who was a student at John Moores University, for his professionalism, dedication and determination in his work and studies.

The final peer-nominated awards were dedicated to our network of volunteers to recognise their commitment and support of the Trust. The Trust is extremely privileged to have an active and committed number of volunteers who give up their own time to serve their local communities throughout the year. The first winner was Christina Bainbridge from Appleby, Cumbria, who scooped the Community First Responder of the Year award. Next up was, Volunteer Car Driver of the Year which was won by Eddie Birch from Liverpool, Merseyside.

The East Lancashire sector of the Cumbria and Lancashire area won the Clinical Quality Improvement Award for showing real innovation and embedding quality improvement at a team level.

A Special Commendation was given to staff members involved in the making of the ‘999: What’s your emergency in recognition of the efforts that were put into making the documentary series.

The final award of the evening was the Chairman’s Special Commendation 2013 which was given to a significant number of colleagues who were involved in an horrific and tragic incident in Greater Manchester which resulted in the deaths of two police officers. The staff members were awarded for responding to such an incident and demonstrating what courage, selflessness and bravery they possess.

Bob Williams took the opportunity to thank all the staff and managers of the PTS Service in the Greater Manchester area, who left the Trust at the end of March.

The event was a real success and we would like to take the opportunity to again thank all of our event sponsors who made the event possible.

AWARDS CEREMONY 2013 - FINALISTS

Peer Nominated Awards

Frontline Staff Member of the Year(Emergency Service)Philip AndertonDebbie PreeceKim Tunstall

Frontline Staff Member of the Year(Emergency Operations Centre)Tracy GardinerSteve NolanKay Tomlinson

Frontline Staff Member of the Year(Patient Transport Service)David CurranMichaela Lupton

Frontline Staff Member of the Year(Patient Transport Service Control)Helen Marriott

Manager of the YearAdrian ConboyDaren HopkinsonAsiya Jelani

Support Staff Member of the YearGraeme McCormackEdward (Ted) ProctorPhilip Rowley

Student Learner of the YearAnna BurtonGary Earps

Volunteer of the Year(Community First Responder)Christina BainbridgePhilippa GrovesSimon Morrell

Volunteer of the Year(Voluntary Car Service)Eddie BirchPaul SherrattBob Ward

Team of the YearEmergency Operations Centre Training TeamFleet Care TeamLearning and Development Team

We Have Amazing Staff Here at NWAS

Bringing innovation to the heart of the Emergency Services

For more information call us on: 0800 052 0845or visit: www.virginmediabusiness.co.uk

200x80mm Virgin ad 2.1.13.indd 1 09/01/2013 09:59

CARDIACSMART – THEY HAVE WHAT IT TAKES!The CardiacSmart initiative was launched by NWAS in the North West on Thursday 28 February at the Barton Grange Hall Hotel in Preston.

The event – the first of its kind – was unique in that it not only celebrated the launch of CardiacSmart, but recognised individuals and organisations, who have dedicated time to raising awareness of heart health, basic life support and defibrillators in their local communities.

There are three different levels CardiacSmart is awarded at; Bronze, Silver and Gold, depending on the level of activity that the individual or group receiving the award operate at in their community.

On the day guests, which included award winners, Community First Responders, our staff, the British Heart Foundation and our Defibrillator providers, were greeted by NWAS Chairman, Mary Whyham. The awards were then presented by NWAS Acting Chief Executive, Bob Williams. There were 20 winners from across the North West:

GOLD AWARDWest Cheshire College, Cheshire Broughton and Brigham Community First Responders, Lancashire Caldbeck area Community First Responders, Cumbria Silloth, Cumbria Walney Island, Cumbria Whitehaven and District Community First Responders, Cumbria Bolton Lads and Girls Club, Greater Manchester Museum of Science and Industry, Greater Manchester Salford Heart Care, Greater ManchesterRossendale Community First Responders, LancashireCommunity Defibrillators for Rossendale, Lancashire Heart Beat Charity, LancashireLancashire Defibrillator Campaign, LancashireLiverpool John Lennon Airport, MerseysideKnowsley Community College, Merseyside

SILVER AWARDHolmes Chapel Community First Responders, Cheshire Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust, Greater Manchester Manchester Sport and Leisure Trust, Greater Manchester

BRONZE AWARDPoynton Community First Responders, Cheshire Ellesmere Port Sea Cadets, Cheshire

The Trust was joined by special guest and survivor, Bridget Brice. Bridget's life was saved thanks to the quick actions of seven individuals – Members of the public and trained clinicians alike, after she suffered a cardiac arrest at Lancaster Railway Station. Bridget really is living proof of the benefits of this type of life saving initiative. You can read more about her story on page 11. The CardiacSmart initiative, which has been developed by the Trust in conjunction with The British Heart Foundation, is an important part of the Chain of Survival (CoS) Partnership which, amongst many things, works to extend the network of available Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) and improve access to them for people who suffer cardiac arrest outside hospitals in the North West.

The CoS also promotes:

• Earlyrecognition-Raisingawarenessthroughhealth promotion, focusing on things such as signs and symptoms of cardiac arrest.• EarlyCPR-Trainingcommunitieshowtoresuscitate.• Earlyuseofdefibrillator–Givingaccessandtraining on how to use a defibrillator.• Earlyadvancedcare–Providinginformationonaccess to services and complementary resources available.

The CardiacSmart award will encourage the aims of the Chain of Survival as, within the CardiacSmart criteria guidelines, applications submitted must evidence some of those aspects to achieve a Bronze level and all of the aspects to achieve a Gold level. The award will promote awareness and commend the commitment of individuals and groups who strive to achieve safe and healthy communities - Something we all want to live and work in.

For more information and to apply for CardiacSmart status, please visit: www.cardiacsmart.nwas.nhs.uk.

Well done to all the winners!

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OLYMPIAN WELCOMES DEFIB AT ICE RINK

NWAS recently installed an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) at Silver Blades Ice Rink in Altrincham, as part of an initiative to improve the chance of survival of a cardiac arrest patient.

The piece of lifesaving equipment was accepted by Olympian, Beth Tweddle on behalf of the ice rink, along with her winning Dancing on Ice partner, Dan Whiston.

Steve Nicholls, Community Resuscitation Development Officer, has now trained staff and volunteers at the rink in providing cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) together with using the defibrillator. The installation of the AED supports the Trust's initiative to place defibrillators where there could be a higher risk of a cardiac arrest occurring.

Paula Hargreaves, Manager of Silver Blades Ice Rink said; “This kind donation and training will enable our staff to assist in potentially saving a life should the need ever arise. The NWAS team made all the staff feel at ease and filled them with the confidence to perform CPR and operate the defibrillator which could one day save a person’s life.

“NWAS is spreading the word and helping people save lives. We can’t thank them enough for everything they have taught us and the generous donation of the equipment. We hope to work with them again in the future and will recommend them to our community partnerships and local schools.”

Working Together in CommunitiesAcross the North West

REAL-TIME ‘CHAIN OF SURVIVAL’ SAVES A LIFE AT LANCASTER RAILWAY STATIONThe Trust, its Community Resuscitation Team and an Ulverston family are celebrating the quick actions of seven individuals – members of the public and trained clinicians alike – for helping to save the life of a cardiac arrest victim.

Bridget Brice, from Ulverston, was at Lancaster Railway Station to catch a train to London – Just as she was stepping on the train, she collapsed in cardiac arrest. This set in motion a real-life Chain of Survival as follows:

The First Link: Early recognition and call for help Luckily for Bridget, standing behind her was Shelley McKenna, who had been trained in Emergency Life Support by her local Community First Responder team, just two weeks before it happened. Along with Carole Cubin and a passenger on the train, Alisdair Gavan, they helped place Bridget into the recovery position on the platform, before calling 999. They were put through to NWAS Emergency Medical Dispatcher, Trish Ferguson.

The Second Link: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Recognising that Bridget was unconscious, not breathing normally, and was in cardiac arrest, Shelley and Alisdair started effective CPR immediately.

The Third Link: Defibrillation Fortunately, Bridget had collapsed just a few metres away from a publicly accessible Automated External Defibrillator (AED), located on the platform. The electric shocks provided by the AED, combined with CPR, resulted in stabilising Bridget. A local GP from Carnforth, Dr David Wrigley, happened to arrive at the station and came to assist with the resuscitation attempt.

The Fourth Link: Advanced Life Support/Post Resuscitation Care Paramedic, Danny Riley, and Emergency Medical Technician, Paul Wynn, from Lancaster and Morecambe respectively, arrived on scene, and continued to provide post-resuscitation care. Bridget was taken to Lancaster Royal Infirmary, where she arrived alive but unconscious, and was admitted to Intensive Care.

Bridget said: “I cannot express my thanks and gratitude enough to everyone who helped me that day. It is quite amazing that all of these people knew what to do and wanted to help save my life. I’ve learnt, from the most extreme position, how invaluable learning basic life support, CPR and defibrillation is in helping to save the life of a cardiac arrest victim. Thank you to all who helped me that day, your actions were truly heroic.”

To read about the story in full, please visit the Trust’s website at: www.nwas.nhs.uk.

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A Community First Responder (CFR) team based in Aspatria, Cumbria, has been successful in applying for funding from The Co-Operative to purchase more life saving equipment!

Trevor Earthy, Chair of Aspatria CFRs, submitted an application for funding from The Co-Operative's Community Fund, in order to purchase this equipment, and heard in late-November that the team had been successful in being awarded £1,240!

The team, which has been established for 10 years and has 12 members, aims to raise enough funds to be able to equip every member of the team with a full set of life-saving equipment; including an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).

Trevor said: “We're immensely pleased to have been awarded this funding. It is guaranteed that, at some point, the equipment that it will buy will save a life. Having even more equipment to hand means that more of the team can be on-duty to be dispatched to a 999 call at any one time. Our aim is to equip all 12 members of the team with complete equipment – with this funding we're 'ten down', and only have 'two to go'!”

A dad whose heart stopped beating had his life saved by a long-lost friend he hadn't seen in thirty years.

William Coop, 46, almost died when he collapsed and suffered a sudden cardiac arrest in the living room of his home. His wife Susan dialled 999 and Paramedic, David Blowers, was quickly sent to the scene along with volunteer Community First Responder (CFR), Simon Morrell.

Alongside a further ambulance crew, they fought for 40 minutes to resuscitate William, managing to shock his heart back in to action with an AED (External Automated Defibrillator). After being taken to hospital, William made a good recovery and was allowed home after six weeks.

William and his wife wanted to thank the people involved personally and, on contacting the Trust, they were stunned to find out that the CFR who had helped save his life was a long lost friend who William hadn’t seen since he was 16. The pair were reunited at Altrincham Ambulance Station and have now vowed to be life-long friends.

William said: “When I heard Simon's name I just couldn't believe it. We had been good pals but we drifted apart and lost touch. It is hard to describe my emotions – You would be grateful to a stranger if they saved your life but for it to have been a long-lost friend just made it even more mind-blowing.

"I can't put into words how much Simon and Dave mean to me, but someone was definitely watching over me when they sent them to save my life."

Simon, who has volunteered as a CFR for more than three years, said: “When I later heard the patient's name, following a request for my details so the family could pass on their thanks, it took my breath away as I realised it was my friend. It made what I did even more meaningful and special. It was one in a million.”

Remarkably, William and Simon, live just around the corner from each other in Timperley.

LONG LOST FRIENDS REUNITE AFTER ONE HELPED SAVE THE OTHER'S LIFE

CFR TEAM SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS FOR CO-OP FUNDING

GOOSTREY BECOMES ‘HEART SAFE’The Trust's Community Resuscitation Team has been hard at work, alongside Holmes Chapel and District Community First Responders (CFRs), to install an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in a shop in Goostrey Village, Cheshire.

Sally and Michael Ball, both Holmes Chapel and District CFRs, worked with the Trading Post to install the NWAS-funded AED in the Goostrey village shop, which is open 15 hours a day, seven days a week.

Since qualifying as NWAS and British Heart Foundation (BHF)-approved trainers in February 2012, Sally and Michael have trained nearly 100 people in life-saving care.

Sally said: “The swift combination of dialing 999, beginning Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and application of defibrillation, can improve a cardiac arrest victim's chance of survival. It is vitally important to teach as many people as possible that it's those simple things that can save a person's life.”

Rob Sharples, NWAS Community Resuscitation Development Officer, said: “We're constantly working to extend the Chain of Survival, in helping to save the lives of cardiac arrest victims, by reaching out to local communities and raising awareness of the importance of CPR and defibrillation. The installation of this defibrillator makes one more community a much safer place.”

Members of the community have also contributed to raising funds to purchase two more publicly accessible defibrillators, which should be installed in the coming months.