Community First Responders’ role in current and future Rural Health
• Are you an adult or the relative of an adult who has needed to call an ambulance and has received care from a Community First Responder in the last 6 months?
• Would you like to take part in a study to help improve emergency care in rural settings?
The University of Lincoln is collaborating with seven UK ambulance services to conduct a study to improve access to emergency health services in rural areas.
The purpose of this study is to look into patients’ experiences of having community first responders attend to them for a 999 call relating to a medical emergency before or around the time that ambulance staff arrive. We hope that the results of the study will enable us to make recommendations that will lead to improvements in patient care.
We would like to interview patients and their relatives, to find out their thoughts and experiences of these events. By collecting this information, we hope to be able to make recommendations that will improve emergency care in rural settings future.
The study will involve a short telephone interview lasting up to 60 minutes with a researcher from University of Lincoln.
The study is funded by NIHR Health Services and Delivery Research Programme.
If you would like to take part, please follow this link to our online form [click here] or email nsiriwardena@lincoln.ac.uk.
Does this include Fire and Rescue Service First Responders ?
Thank you for your enquiry. The study is focussed on lay community first responders. Prof Niro Siriwardena
March 27th 2021, I was in severe pain in the sternum/throat area not aware I was suffering a heart attack. My husband phoned 111 who identified the urgency and Eccleshall First Responders were on the scene in 3mins. They saved my life quickly and efficiently with the Ambulance arriving in 6mins later and “blue lighted” straight to Keele University Hospital for emergency procedure.
Dear Brenda, thank you so much for posting your message. I’m pleased you had a good experience. If you are interested to get involved in our research please let me know. Prof Niro Siriwardena: nsiriwardena@lincoln.ac.uk.