Scottish Ambulance Service – Page 16 – The NEN

Let’s make Bonfire Night the safest ever

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) is appealing for the public’s help to ensure that 2014’s Bonfire Night is the safest ever for Scotland:

Bonfire Night is traditionally one of the busiest nights of the year for the SFRS with the number of emergency calls typically seeing a 40% increase throughout the period. SFRS is up to four times busier on 5 November than any other night of the year.

From 2009 to 2012, the number of secondary fires, which includes bonfires and refuse fires, averaged 1118. In 2013 there was a significant drop in this number to 517 bonfires on November 5th, with an overall drop in secondary fires of around 40% compared to 2012. SFRS aims to maintain and improve upon this decline in calls for Bonfire Night 2014.

The Service is appealing to the public to stay safe this Bonfire Night by attending organised events rather than staging their own bonfires or fireworks displays.

Assistant Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay, Director of Prevention and Protection for the SFRS said: “This year we want Bonfire Night to be the safest one on record. I’d ask every member of the public who is thinking of holding their own bonfire or fireworks display to attend an organised event instead. These events are well organised, much more spectacular than a DIY display and most importantly it’s much safer for you, your family and friends.

“When our crews are called to attend bonfires it means we have to divert resources away from other emergencies and life threatening calls – that could end tragically for anyone who truly needs our urgent help.

“We want everyone to be able to celebrate on 5 November and have fun, but in a safe way that doesn’t require the intervention of the emergency services.

“In the run up to Bonfire Night 2014 our Service personnel will be going to schools across Scotland to teach children about the dangers associated with bonfires and fireworks.

“We can all play a part in making this time of year safer. It is against the law for fireworks to be sold to children and young people. If you are aware of this happening please report it to Police Scotland or Trading Standards. We would also encourage the public to report unsafe or dangerous bonfires or bonfire materials and any suspicions of deliberate fire setting. In doing this, we can keep our communities safer together.

“The public are requested to pass on any information about who may be responsible for fire setting to Police Scotland using the 101 non-emergency number or Scotland Crimestoppers 0800 555 111.”

Daren Mochrie, Director of Service Delivery at the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “Every year our ambulance crews and hospital departments treat people for severe burns and other firework night related injuries. Fireworks are safe when used properly but the consequences can be tragic and life changing if the appropriate precautions are not followed and we recommend that people go along to a professionally organised display.

“In the event of someone suffering from a burn or scald, you should act quickly and:

Stop the burning process as soon as possible. Do not put yourself at risk!
Use cool water to cool a burn and reduce pain (no more than 30 mins of cooling and be aware of hypothermia due to prolonged cooling).
Remove clothing and jewellery but do not remove burnt clothing that has stuck to skin.
Do not use any creams or oils on injuries. Cover with a clean dressing or ideally cling film.

The majority of minor burns and scalds can be treated at home and if unsure you can contact NHS 24 on www.nhs24.com/SelfHelpGuide or phone 111 for further advice. If injuries are serious, seek urgent medical help and call 999 and ask for ambulance”.

Superintendent Danny Hatfield, Head of Prevention and Interventions, Police Scotland, said: “We want people to listen to safety advice and attend organised events so families can keep safe and enjoy the Bonfire celebrations. The best way of keeping safe is to attend official bonfire events which will also help reduce the number of unnecessary call outs for Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

“We can all play a part in making this time of year safer while having fun. Remember it is against the law for fireworks to be sold to children and young people. Please help us keep people safe by reporting any concerns to Police Scotland by calling 101.”

SFRS have produced lots of guidance and safety tips about Bonfire Night 2014, available online now at http://bit.ly/SFRSbonfire2014.

Advice includes information about bonfire and fireworks safety (including a bonfire and fireworks safety leaflet available for download) along with links to our TV, radio and press advertisements.

SFRS will be offering tips on staying safe in the lead up to Bonfire Night through our social media channels on Facebook and Twitter.

Ambulance service launches dementia initiative

3,800 copies of learning resource to be distributed across Scotland

Scottish Ambulance Service clinicians are set to benefit from a new learning resource on dementia designed and developed by NHS Education for Scotland and the Service itself.

It is essential that ambulance clinicians are able to recognise when a person may have dementia, and that they are are confident of their ability to provide appropriate support, care and treatment. The bespoke resource will help ambulance clinicians to give informed, high quality and person-centred support to people with dementia, their families and carers.

Ambulance clinicians will frequently come into contact with people with dementia, their families and carers as well as people with early signs of dementia who have not had a diagnosis. While recognising the often immediate and time limited nature of their contact, this will have an influence on the impact of the whole care experience for the person with dementia, their families and carers.

Pauline Howie, Chief Executive, Scottish Ambulance Service, said: “This new learning resource is an invaluable clinical support tool that will be issued to every one of our frontline emergency staff, as well as our Patient Transport Service teams.

“People with dementia often face many complex challenges and issues and this initiative, which is enhanced by a number of specially trained ‘Dementia Champions’ within the Service, will help our teams to provide the most appropriate care and treatment for people with dementia and their families and carers.”

Malcolm Wright, NHS Education for Scotland Chief Executive added: “We are delighted to have developed this important resource in partnership with the Scottish Ambulance service. NHS Education for Scotland is committed to providing educational resources and training opportunities for the entire health workforce to support rights-based, and person-centred approaches to the care, support and treatment of people with dementia and their families and carers. This new, targeted resource is a valuable addition to our suite of resources developed as a part of the ‘Promoting Excellence’ work force development programme”.

The learning resource focuses on understanding dementia, effective communication, and providing positive person-centred support. It can be used for individual learning, learning as a group or team, in a facilitated learning event, or in a mixture of all of these approaches.

As well as providing key learning, activities and scenarios are used throughout the learning resource to help encourage exploration and reflection about real practice issues.

Girl hospitalised following Gypsy Brae fall

A ten year old girl was treated in hospital following a fall from a zip line at Gypsy Brae on Sunday night.

Firefighters from Crewe Toll, Tollcross and Newcraighall responded to reports that a 10 year old girl had fallen from a zip line at Gypsy Brae, off West Shore Road at around 9pm.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s line rescue specialists lowered themselves down to reach the girl and secured her to a stretcher before lifting her to safety.

The child suffered a suspected broken arm and was attended by Scottish Ambulance Service staff before being taken to Royal Sick Children’s Hospital for treatment.