Community First Responders

CFR picture

Community First Responder volunteers are trained to attend emergency calls received by the ambulance service and provide care until the ambulance arrives.

Volunteers can arrive at an emergency scene in a matter of minutes, as they are sent to calls in their local area.

The schemes operate as a community partnership between St John Ambulance and local ambulance service trusts. Having someone in the community who has been trained in first aid and can reach the patient quickly makes all the difference.

SJA has been working hard across many counties to establish a close working partnership with NHS Ambulance Service Trusts in maintaining existing CFR units and establishing new units to fulfil this very worthwhile role. Several counties now have units operating in their area with more counties seeking to establish this worthwhile role.

In the counties where a scheme exists new volunteers can join up specifically to take on this role. Existing members can also join a CFR unit as well as maintaining their existing unit membership and obligations.

Volunteers operate as part of a rota system from their own home or place of work. They are dispatched at the same time as an ambulance via ambulance control to attend Category A 'immediately life – threatening' calls. These calls can include:

  • cardiac arrest
  • diabetic emergency
  • unconscious patient
  • breathing difficulties
  • seizures.

Community First Responders are dispatched to calls under normal road conditions using their own cars. They do not have the authority to drive under emergency conditions.

This worthwhile role means that you can often be first on the scene to a patient in need, assessing the condition and prioritising your response. CFRs are trained to not only assess the immediate situation but also to ascertain a previous medical history whilst treating a patient. Sometimes they can simply be a very vital second pair of hands to an ambulance crew when they arrive.

A CFRs kit consists of a basic first aid kit and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) as well as a separate bag for oxygen therapy.

New volunteers and those wishing to qualify for this role will need to attend an approved training course which includes assessment, and will be required to re-qualify annually.

Last year our current CFRs attended more than 3,500 calls on behalf of the Ambulance Service Trusts.