Latest news with #JasonKillens
The Sun
02-08-2025
- The Sun
Ambulance chiefs spend £675k on body armour for paramedics after surge in violent attacks on crews
AMBULANCE chiefs are spending £675,000 on stab-proof body armour for paramedics after a rise in violent attacks. It is part of a £3.3million package to protect London Ambulance Service crews. They have seen an 11.9 increase in acts of violence or aggression, from 2,087 incidents in 2023 to 2,337 last year — an average of seven a day. That includes 11 attacks with 'edged weapons' such as knives. LAS bosses have signed a three-year contract for anti-knife gear from Cooneen Defence, which specialises in military combat and protection clothing. The ambulance service's chief executive Jason Killens said: 'Violence towards our crews is utterly appalling and unacceptable. "The impact can be devastating, especially if staff need time off the road to recover. 'Thankfully stabbings and knife injuries are rare for our frontline crews, but we provide all our staff with body armour so we can keep them safe if they feel threatened.' Last year medic Dean Hawkins risked his life to restrain a Tube passenger wielding a knife in Harrow, North West London. In 2022 a paramedic had a knife pushed to his back outside his vehicle at University College Hospital, central London. Last month two LAS members told how a patient they were treating kicked through their windscreen and threw bricks as they tried to help him in Rotherhithe, South East London. The LAS is also spending money on body-worn cameras and improved CCTV. Man in his 20s dies as car ploughs into London pub in horror early hours crash 1
Leader Live
30-06-2025
- Health
- Leader Live
Ambulance services in Wales to introduce 'purple' category
From July 1, the Welsh Ambulance Service will introduce a new 'purple' category for people experiencing out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The red category will continue to cover life-threatening emergencies involving high risk of cardiac or respiratory arrest. Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: "Since 1974, the ambulance service has been measured by the time it takes to reach emergency calls. "The ambulance service of today provides much more sophisticated care, so shifting the focus to how many people survive a life-or-death emergency because of our interventions, rather than how many minutes it takes us to arrive, is an important step to reflect that." The new system is aimed at improving survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in Wales, which currently stand at less than five per cent. It follows a recommendation from the Senedd's Health and Social Care Committee, which found the existing ambulance response target no longer fit for purpose. From July 1, ambulances will be dispatched as quickly as possible to calls in the new purple category. This covers suspected cardiac and respiratory arrests. The red category will continue to include cases involving serious injury or illness. The expectation is that ambulances will reach these calls within an average of six to eight minutes. For purple calls, the primary measure of success will be the percentage of people who have a heartbeat restored and maintained until arrival at the hospital. Jeremy Miles, cabinet secretary for health and social care, said: "We're taking decisive action to save more lives. "Until now, cardiac arrests have been categorised in the same way as less critical problems like breathing difficulties. "This new approach ensures ambulance teams prioritise people with the most urgent needs. "This targeted clinical response, combined with wider access to defibrillators in the community and improvements to hospital handovers, represents our commitment to improving survival rates." Under the new model, all calls not classified as purple or red will undergo rapid clinical screening to ensure a more tailored response based on symptoms and location. The goal is to provide the most appropriate care for each individual, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. Efforts are also underway to reduce ambulance handover times at hospitals. The Welsh Government is developing a plan to achieve a maximum 45-minute handover time, as recommended by the Ministerial Advisory Group on NHS Performance and Productivity. NHS organisations have been given clear targets to improve handovers, supported by a national taskforce focused on emergency department processes and patient flow. READ MORE: Coronation Street's Janice and Leanne Battersby appear in Superman film promo From July, the Welsh Ambulance Service will also host the NHS Wales Save a Life Cymru programme. This programme promotes CPR awareness and aims to improve access to defibrillators in the community. There are currently more than 8,500 registered public access defibrillators across Wales. The Welsh Government has provided £500,000 for an additional 500 Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) to be placed in community locations. This investment is part of a broader strategy to improve survival rates for people who experience cardiac arrest outside of hospital.
South Wales Argus
29-06-2025
- Health
- South Wales Argus
Welsh ambulance service to introduce new 'purple' category
The Welsh Ambulance Service will launch the changes on Tuesday, July 1, as part of a wider plan to improve patient outcomes and increase survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, which currently stand at less than five per cent in Wales. The changes include a new 'purple' category for cardiac arrests, which takes priority over the existing 'red' category used for other life-threatening emergencies. Jeremy Miles, cabinet secretary for health and social care, said: "We're taking decisive action to save more lives. "Until now, cardiac arrests have been categorised in the same way as less critical problems like breathing difficulties. "This new approach ensures ambulance teams prioritise people with the most urgent needs. "This targeted clinical response, combined with wider access to defibrillators in the community and improvements to hospital handovers, represents our commitment to improving survival rates." The new model follows recommendations from the Senedd's Health and Social Care Committee, which found the current ambulance response target was outdated and not fit for purpose. The revised system shifts the emphasis from response times to patient outcomes. Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: "Since 1974, the ambulance service has been measured by the time it takes to reach emergency calls. "The ambulance service of today provides much more sophisticated care, so shifting the focus to how many people survive a life-or-death emergency because of our interventions, rather than how many minutes it takes us to arrive, is an important step to reflect that." Calls in the new purple category will be prioritised for the fastest response, with the primary measure being the percentage of patients who have a heartbeat restored before arriving at hospital. Ambulances will still aim to reach purple and red calls within six to eight minutes on average. The Welsh Government has also provided £500,000 for 500 additional defibrillators in community locations to support the new system. From July, the Welsh Ambulance Service will host the NHS Wales Save a Life Cymru programme, which promotes CPR awareness and improves access to defibrillators across the country.
BBC News
18-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Ambulance delays harm hundreds in Wales every month, says boss
Hundreds of patients each month come to avoidable harm because ambulances are forced to wait outside crowded A&E departments, the outgoing boss of the Welsh Ambulance Service has said. Jason Killens said the delays, which have increased fourfold during his nearly seven years in charge, are "unsustainable, unacceptable" and must "be cracked". He called his decision to become the chief executive of the London Ambulance Service in July "bittersweet".But he said he believes he has left the Welsh Ambulance Service in a "better place" than when he took over. So-called "handover delays" happen when hospitals become clogged up, but are largely beyond the ambulance service's Killens said Wales had "some of the worst in the UK"."When I came here in 2018 we were losing around 6,000 hours a month. At peak, last year, we were losing nearly 30,000 hours a month."Hundreds of patients every month come to some degree of avoidable harm because we can't get to them quick enough."I didn't join the ambulance service in 1996 to preside over that. I joined to provide great care."The delays are "a source of considerable frustration" for ambulance staff, he added. After issuing a number of similar warnings during his period in charge, Mr Killens said he was "pleased" the Welsh government and colleagues in other parts of the NHS "heard the calls". "Let's keep our fingers crossed for action which is now under way... we are starting to see improvements."Official figures indicate a deterioration in Welsh ambulance response times over a number of years, which Mr Killens blames in part on handover denied his period in charge had been about "managing decline" and said the service was now "much more sophisticated", only taking about half of 999 callers to hospital, while handling "almost a quarter" via phone or video consultation."I worry less about the [response time] numbers and more about the quality of care and its impact." Mr Killens said he would share lessons learned in Wales with his London colleagues, including giving patients the care they need without having to send a crew."We need to get to a point where we only send an ambulance to a patient who really, really needs an ambulance and needs to get to an emergency department."He said clinicians and the system "have evolved - we're not just drivers with certificates anymore".The ambulance boss said the key was "convincing communities that they don't need an ambulance or go to an emergency department on every single occasion".
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Thousands of attacks recorded on paramedics in 12 months as public told 'show respect to our staff'
West Midlands Ambulance Service workers were attacked a shocking 3370 times in the last 12 months. WMAS staff are subjected to incidents of physical, verbal abuse or aggression whilst doing their job every day. Nationally, there was a 15 per cent jump with a record 22,536 cases recorded nationally across 14 ambulance services. READ MORE: Gym-goers queuing at 'only working machine' slapped with parking warnings at Solihull leisure centre READ MORE: Common drug taken by millions increases dementia risk 33 per cent, warns neurologist Read More: Robber's 'three weeks of hell' in prison led to Birmingham rampage upon release The statistic were released as WMAS launched a social media campaign - 'How We Treat Each Other Matters'- to encourage members of the public to be respectful to ambulance staff. The Trust keen to reiterate it does not and will not tolerate abuse and violence directed towards our workforce, with legal action always being pursued. Following the release of the worrying figures, Chair of the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE), Jason Killens, has written to ministers responsible for ambulance services in the UK to explore what can be done to combat the growing number of violent assaults. Get the latest BirminghamLive news direct to your inbox He said: 'These figures are truly shocking and reflect a pattern of increased violence, aggression and abuse directed at hard-working ambulance people who are there to help people in their times of greatest need. "Frontline staff as well as call handlers are affected by this horrendous abuse and this unacceptable behaviour has a major long-term impact on the health and wellbeing of ambulance people who are simply trying to do their jobs and help save lives. "This situation is now so serious that we are seeking to engage with UK health ministers at the highest level to explore new interventions that could help deter potential perpetrators of these attacks. "We would also underline again that it is vital that the judiciary uses all available legislation to ensure appropriate sentences are handed out consistently to those found guilty of committing these horrific crimes against our workforce." Chief Executive Officer, Anthony Marsh, said: 'For many staff, this sort of abuse can have a profound impact on their lives with some staff never recovering and actually leaving the service altogether. "While it is a minority of people who commit these offences, we need the public to support us to make such abuse something that is unacceptable.' WMAS Head of Security and Safety, Dan Knight, said: 'Everyone deserves to come to work without fear of abuse, aggression or violence from the public. Whether that be our staff on the frontline, Patient Transport Services staff or those who work in our control rooms. 'The message is simple, abuse will not be tolerated and appropriate actions will be taken when these incidents occur. 3370 incidents of abuse and violence is 3370 too many. "We hope with the launch of this campaign, it will be an important reminder to the public that showing respect to our staff, who are ultimately only trying to help people, should be a given."
