Stakeholder newsletter - December 23

COVID-19 Vaccine

In great news in the fight against Covid-19, the first Scottish Ambulance Service staff were vaccinated on the Westerns Isles on December 16, and our fantastic team of vaccinators started vaccinating across the whole country during the week of December 21.

This has been a tremendous team effort to get to this place and thanks to the teams who have helped to achieve this. Our first priority has been vaccinating patient-facing staff, with the remaining SAS staff being offered the vaccination in line with the national direction in the coming months.

We have also been working hard on distributing the Lateral Flow Test devices to patient-facing staff across the country. This is for asymptomatic staff to be tested, via a self-test device, on a weekly basis.

William and Kate Visit SAS

Earlier this month (December 7), the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met staff from the Scottish Ambulance Service in Newbridge as part of their tour of England, Scotland and Wales.

This was a fantastic visit and Their Royal Highnesses, who had been announced as the joint patrons of NHS Charities Together that day, heard from a number of staff members, who spoke about their mental wellbeing, the challenge of working during a pandemic and the camaraderie of the Service. The couple also gave special thanks to cleaner Helen Reeder, describing her as “one of the most important people in the whole organisation”.

In a lovely gesture for the family of veteran paramedic Rod Moore, they sent a special bouquet of flowers to them. Rod passed away last month and was a much-loved and respected member of staff.

Mobile Testing Units (MTUs)

Mobile Testing Units (MTUs) are continuing to operate in locations across Scotland, providing a service to ensure patients in urban, rural and remote areas have easy access to a coronavirus test.

The units, which complement the static drive-through testing centres and the testing being carried out in hospitals and care homes, ensure that testing is as accessible as possible for all communities. 

In the New Year, we are increasing the amount of MTUs to 32 with the recruitment of an additional 368 staff and extending existing MTU staff contracts until the end of May.

Together Let's Care for your
mental health this festive season

NHS 24, Police Scotland and the Scottish Ambulance Service are working together to support mental health and wellbeing for people across Scotland, ahead of this festive season 2020. 

After a year like no other for the people of Scotland and our NHS and emergency services, the Together Let’s Care for your Mental Health campaign aims to raise awareness of a range of mental wellbeing information and services that support mental health.

Ambulance staff to share base with SFRS

Ambulance service staff based in Linlithgow have relocated to Bo’ness Fire Station in a move which will benefit patients in the area.

A total of 11 Accident and Emergency staff, along with two A and E vehicles, are now housed at the fire station on Linlithgow Road.

The new base at Bo’ness provides modern and improved facilities for the staff, who responded to more than 6,400 emergencies in the past year.

Patient Story

We recently received a fantastic compliment from a first-time mum who thanked the Scottish Ambulance Service staff who helped her deliver her first child in her bathroom.

Emma Senior, of Maddiston, was at home when in the early hours of October 12, she went into labour. Several hours later, she had given birth at home.

She said: “We were so grateful when the paramedics arrived and helped us get more towels to warm Fraser up properly and to cut the cord. The paramedics were so calming. This is our first baby. It was very scary, especially when he came out very blue and seemed to not be breathing. Everyone from SAS were so calm and reassuring from the moment they arrived, all the way to the hospital.

For the full release visit The Scottish Ambulance Service Stakeholder News - December 2020 (mailchi.mp)