By Kim Haskins

The importance of volunteers in supporting medical emergency teams was highlighted in the aftermath of the London terror attacks on July 7, 2005. St John Ambulance alone provided over 100 fully trained volunteers, 37 ambulances and 20 mobile treatment units to the scene of the blasts.

Such large-scale disasters are rare in the UK, but every day volunteers assist medical emergency response teams across the country. What's more, you don't need to have any previous medical experience or training to start getting involved.

St John Ambulance

St John Ambulance is the UK's leading first aid, transport and care charity. As well as providing medical assistance within local communities, its uniformed volunteers are a familiar sight at major public events, where they're on hand to provide immediate first aid.

"The modular training at St John means that you can progress at your own pace and within areas that suit your abilities," explains St John volunteer, Gareth Davies. "I've been volunteering here for four years now, and my level of training has advanced a great deal - I've progressed from knowing very little first aid to now training in ambulance aid, which mainly involves carrying out patient transfers between hospital and home.

"You don't have to volunteer for a specific amount of time per week or month - you can give as much or little as possible, but any amount is very much appreciated."

In May 2005, Gareth and a fellow St John Ambulance volunteer, Dr Amy Marshall, put their first aid skills and quick thinking to use in saving the life of teenage jockey William Lloyd, who was critically injured at the Tabley House steeplechase in Knutsford.

"We were following the race in the ambulance when we saw William's horse fall at the last jump," Gareth says. "Amy and I ran to help, but when we got there we realised that William was lying underneath the horse, which had broken its neck and died. We had to act quickly because William was unconscious and turning blue."

Course officials moved the horse away, which prevented William from suffocating further. Meanwhile, Amy and Gareth put a tube down his throat and administered oxygen. They managed to get him breathing again, before helping paramedics to transfer him to hospital. The young jockey was fortunate to have survived the incident with only internal bruising and a fractured collarbone. "Amy and Gareth saved my life," he says.

British Red Cross

Many other organisations also involve volunteers in emergency work.

Emergency response is the core service of the British Red Cross, and it encourages all of its volunteers to get emergency skills training. An emergency could mean anything from a transport incident to a flood or fire, and in such a situation a Red Cross volunteer could offer crucial support in the form of offering practical and emotional support, providing transport assistance or administering first aid.

With advanced training in first aid and life-saving techniques, Red Cross volunteers attend over 14,000 events each year (including music concerts, sports events and festivals) and provide necessary aid to people who are sick or injured before the emergency services arrive.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI)

Braving all-weather conditions and dangerous situations, 4500 RNLI crew members are dedicated to carrying out life-saving rescues at sea in the UK. Lifeboat crews are mainly volunteers, and they're on-call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They're responsible for carrying out duties that are essential for the operation of a lifeboat during rescues, as well as ensuring the safety of the people that have been rescued and using first aid skills when necessary.

RNLI volunteers come from all walks of life, and less than 10% have a maritime background. Courage and commitment is essential, and all crew members regularly receive training to ensure they have the skills needed to save lives at sea.

Not all volunteers are crew members, yet all roles are a vital part of the emergency team.

The British Association for Immediate Care (BASICS)

BASICS provide voluntary major incident support to the emergency services. Its volunteers are professional immediate care professionals, such as doctors, nurses, state-registered paramedics and military medics. Medical students may also volunteer. Together, they aim to bring increased clinical expertise to scenes of medical emergencies before the sick or injured are taken to hospital.

Overseas

Emergency volunteering tends to hit the headlines when there are disasters overseas. Most charities dealing with these situations only want volunteers with specialist skills (mainly medical, logistics or engineering)  - for more information see the Professional and skilled listings in our overseas section.

Search the Do-it.org.uk database for health emergency volunteering opportunities in your area.

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