LARGS FIRST RESPONDERS

PROVIDING A VITAL SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY

Gill Sherry

This year, the Largs First Responder unit is celebrating 20 years of active first response. It was originally set up in 2004 with the late David MacDonald as Coordinator, and Duncan McCallum as his Deputy.

“The team was formed in the February,” Thom Williamson tells me, “but we didn’t go active until the autumn so we’re planning on doing something at the end of September.”

Thom is the current Coordinator for the Community First Response unit, as well as Secretary of the charity that supports it, and hopes to arrange a ‘Meet the Teams’ day as part of the 20th anniversary celebrations.

“We’ll get all of the emergency services to come together and let the public meet the volunteers… the people who support the community.”

Thom joined the team back in 2017, largely because he wanted to give something back to the community. He is one of 16 volunteers in the group, which includes 13 active First Responders.
“Different types of people become responders…” Thom continues. “It’s good to get retired people because they’re available during the day, and people who work can be available at night. The variety is good and there’s a good camaraderie in the team, we get on well.”

The team includes current and retired school teachers, nurses, a police officer, a student paramedic, and carers (amongst others). Everyone brings their own skills which contribute to a successful team. Two of those involved with the charity actually work for the Ambulance Service but volunteer in their spare time.

“They started off as First Responders,” Thom confirms. “They enjoyed it, went on to join the Ambulance Service, but still actively support the group. Locally there are many people who now work for the Ambulance Service who started out as First Responders.”

So, how exactly does it work? Well, the volunteers are trained by the Scottish Ambulance Service to attend life-threatening medical emergencies before an ambulance arrives. The group’s vehicle has the necessary equipment on board, including a defibrillator and a radio. This radio is the same as that used by the Ambulance Service.

“The radio has GPS… so if a call comes into Ambulance Control and it’s a life threatening emergency in our area, the ambulance dispatchers can see available resources on their screen. So, if they see the ambulance is 20 minutes away but the First Responder is 10 minutes away, they will send both of us. They’ll always send an ambulance, but if a First Responder is available and closer, they will send us as well.”

You’d be forgiven for thinking that Largs First Responders only respond to emergencies in Largs itself. However, the area covered by the unit stretches across to Kilbirnie, up to Weymss Bay, and down as far as Seamill, sometimes even further.

“If there are two emergencies,” Thom continues, “they can send us to one and the ambulance to the other. We can then stabilise the patient until another ambulance becomes available.”

Largs is served by an Ambulance Station with one ambulance. The nearest hospitals are Inverclyde Royal in Greenock, and Crosshouse in Kilmarnock. However, for emergencies in Largs and the surrounding area, ambulances may also attend from Greenock, Kilwinning or Kilbirnie.

It’s very much a team effort with the patient always being the number one priority. Which is why training is so important.

“The Ambulance Service sets out what we have to do. All volunteers are trained by the Scottish Ambulance Service. They get trained over two weekends in the basics of life support. That’s followed by an assessment. Not everybody passes first time so they might have to go back for another weekend. And every month there’s ongoing training which always includes patient scenarios and CPR practice, because that’s the key thing that we do.”

As Coordinator, Thom is responsible for the ongoing training. But training isn’t restricted to within the group.

“We also go out into the community and teach CPR to local schools, clubs and groups. It’s a really good resource.”

Although Largs First Responders provide a vital service to the community on behalf of the Scottish Ambulance Service, their work relies entirely on grants and public donations.

“About ten years ago, we decided to put Public Access Defibrillators around the town. We now have 23 of them from Weymss Bay down to Hunterston Castle. We fundraised for those, and we look after them and maintain them every second week. If they get used, we go back and clean them and put new pads in them. We also replace the batteries in them. That’s another reason we need to do the fundraising.”

The defibrillators cost around £1,000 each, with new batteries costing approximately £150, and new pads costing on average £50.

“A couple of years ago we had to replace 50% of the cabinets they’re in because they were getting old and weathered so we applied to Kelburn Windfarm and they gave us £5,000. That allowed us to replace 10 of the cabinets.”

On average, those Public Access Defibrillators are used three or four times a month, so keeping them in perfect working order is essential.

Donations are gratefully received from supporters who take part in The Kiltwalk and other sponsored events, or from collections received from funerals. The group also raises money by packing bags at its local Morrison’s store.

Speaking of Morrison’s, the vehicle used by Largs First Responders was donated by the Morrison’s Foundation back in 2016.

This is another reason why fundraising remains high on the agenda.

“We have to keep the vehicle on the road,” says Thom. “We have to insure it and maintain it.”
This is vital if Largs First Responders are to continue responding to emergency calls (which recently averaged 20 per month) and providing support not just to the Ambulance Service but also to the local community.

“In general, the public are great, but sometimes we can get a bit of abuse,” Thom admits. “The main thing for us is that people appreciate that we’re volunteers. If they’re having a really bad day, they can get frustrated, and I get that… but please appreciate the fact that these people are giving up their time to help you.”

The upcoming anniversary celebrations will provide the perfect opportunity to raise awareness of the invaluable service carried out by Largs First Responders, and to raise funds for the charity. If you wish to donate, this can be done via the website at www.largsfirstresponders.com. And for those interested in joining the unit, Thom is more than happy to explain exactly what is involved. Just drop him a line at largsresponders@gmail.com