firstresponders

Welcome to Wrentham

Wrentham Community First Responders

If you live in Wrentham, Covehithe, Frostenden, South Cove, Benacre, Uggeshall, Stoven, Wangford, Henham or any of the surrounding area, we are now recruiting volunteers. HOW TO JOIN

We are a small group of people working and living in and around Wrentham, Uggeshall, Wangford and the surrounding rural villages who volunteer in partnership with the East of England Ambulance Service (EEAS), responding to life threatening emergency 999 calls.

Providing vital assistance to the local community who maybe taken ill or injured prior to the arrival of Emergency Rapid Response Paramedics or Emergency Ambulance.

Community First Responders (CFR's) provide vital rural assistance to the East of England Ambulance Service occasionally making the difference between life and death.

Our aim is to provide life-saving treatment, including CPR (cardio pulmonary resuscitation) using a defibrillator to restart a person’s heart after suffering a cardiac arrest.

First responders are members of the community who have been trained to attend specific emergencies. (heart attacks etc.).

We are recruiting now to train people with the aim of providing several teams of “First Responders for Wrentham and Surrounding Areas”.

Team 1 - covers the Wrentham, Covehithe, Frostenden, South Cove and Benacre areas.

Team 2 - covers Uggeshall, Stoven, Brampton and overlaps some of Frostenden, Wangford and Henham areas.

They are contacted by the emergency services and can usually get to an emergency before the paramedics. Because they are on the spot, they are able to start the crucial recovery process within a very short time.

Types of callouts Community First Responders may attend:

Cardiac arrest Choking

Heart attack Diabetic emergencies

Strokes Breathing difficulties

Chest Pains Seizures

Unconscious patient

Responding in rural areas

Thanks to volunteers in and around Wrentham, Frostenden, Uggeshall and South Cove, a team of ‘First Responders’ has provided early help in numerous local emergencies.

Five volunteers have been trained by the Ambulance Service to give vital support in the first critical minutes of an emergency such as cardiac arrest and breathing difficulties, as well as giving reassurance to patients and their family until the ambulance arrives.

Launched in 2008, by the joint Parish Councils of Wrentham and Frostenden, Uggeshall and South Cove, the team has received generous support from:

Adnams Charity - £1276.59

The Benacre Trust - £1000.00

Southwold Lions - £2124.19

Reydon & Southwold Pantomime Group - £600.00

‘The Ladybirds’ - £50.00

(As well as from fund-raising events and many individuals).

This support has enabled the team to be equipped with kits each containing defibrillator, oxygen and other essentials.

The ‘Responders’ continue their training on a monthly basis at Wrentham Village Hall and Saxmundham Ambulance station.

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