Busy day in Casualty. 1:76 scale/OO Gauge Diorama
Trauma Team (BMW) and Roads Policing Unit (Volvo) vehicles outside Mossend DGH Emergency Department. Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) Urgent Tier vehicles sit outside the Acute Assessment Unit (AAU) to the left. SH62 XDY, a Mercedes Sprinter of SAS’ Accident & Emergency service, is parked to the right of frame, and sits in Resus bay 1 closest to the Ambulance Only and Resuscitation Area doors.
A man stands by the taxi rank, hand in the air trying to flag down a passing taxi. A man walks hand in hand with his young daughter, passing UT ambulances outside AAU. A woman adjusts to mobilising on crutches as she leaves the public entrance to A&E. Behind the Trauma Team car, a staff member picks litter from under the canopy. Finally, to the far right of frame, a Paramedic stands next to his Ambulance, having brought a patient into Resus under emergency response driving conditions.
Real life:
Ambulance and Emergency Medical Services in Scotland are provided by the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS), a special Health Board of the greater National Health Service (NHS) of Scotland. SAS provides these services throughout all of mainland Scotland and the Islands. Emergency Medical Services are provided by the Accident & Emergency branch, providing Double Crewed Ambulances typically formed of a Paramedic and Technician, but which can be formed of double Tech or Para crews. Single Paramedics in cars, motorbikes or bicycles are Paramedic Response Units (PRU), used to provide immediate pre-hospital care to patients, or treating and discharging at scene. Also part of the A&E branch is the Urgent Tier service, using crews formed of an Ambulance Technician and Care Assistant, Urgent Tier convey patients who have been urgently referred for admission to Hospital and who require clinical monitoring and/or assistance of crews to mobilise. The patients General Practitioner can request admission within a 1-4 hour timeframe. As such Urgent Tier vehicles use their emergency warning systems less than standard A&E crews. Due to the presence of a qualified Technician however UT resources can be used as a first responder to immediately life threatening calls and provide manual defibrillation and airway management skills.
SAS also has an Emergency Medical Retrieval Service (ScotSTAR), bringing Medical and Nursing care to patients as they transfer between Hospitals. Scotland is the only part of the UK to provide fully government funded Air Ambulance services, with two fixed wing and two rotary aircraft. They are assisted by the Scottish Charity Air Ambulance who provide additional cover with two helicopters of their own.
Special Operations Response Team (SORT) provide an emergency response to complex rescue, CBRN, terrorist attacks and other such incidents.
Scheduled Care is provided by the Patient Transport Service, the non-emergency branch of SAS. Using a variety of vehicles from cars, people carriers, minibuses and minibus conversion ambulances, PTS provides transport to and from outpatient clinics, for planned admissions and discharges. Staff crewing PTS vehicles are called Ambulance Care Assistants (ACA). They are experts in moving and handling, whereas A&E crews frequently remove patients from houses using equipment such as carry chairs, ACA’s must be adept at taking their patients back up stairs as well as extrications.
As with the majority of healthcare in Scotland, ambulance and emergency medical services are free at the point of use. Funded by National Insurance contributions made by those in work, Scots are extremely proud and defensive of our NHS. We generally believe that everyone should pay towards the common fund to ensure no-one has their life destroyed by medical costs, as illness and injury are not a choice. Having worked in the NHS and with SAS myself, I have resuscitated a man having a heart attack, conveyed him to Hospital, watched as Coronary Care staff removed the blockage from his artery and left the man sitting up in bed in CCU. Knowing that he will be repatriated to his nearest General Hospital for Coronary Rehab and will go home to ongoing care in the community. That man could take time to recover, safe in the knowledge that no crippling bill or endless fights with healthcare insurance would befall him. That is our NHS, that is why we love it and cannot understand the US system.
Busy day in Casualty. 1:76 scale/OO Gauge Diorama
Trauma Team (BMW) and Roads Policing Unit (Volvo) vehicles outside Mossend DGH Emergency Department. Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) Urgent Tier vehicles sit outside the Acute Assessment Unit (AAU) to the left. SH62 XDY, a Mercedes Sprinter of SAS’ Accident & Emergency service, is parked to the right of frame, and sits in Resus bay 1 closest to the Ambulance Only and Resuscitation Area doors.
A man stands by the taxi rank, hand in the air trying to flag down a passing taxi. A man walks hand in hand with his young daughter, passing UT ambulances outside AAU. A woman adjusts to mobilising on crutches as she leaves the public entrance to A&E. Behind the Trauma Team car, a staff member picks litter from under the canopy. Finally, to the far right of frame, a Paramedic stands next to his Ambulance, having brought a patient into Resus under emergency response driving conditions.
Real life:
Ambulance and Emergency Medical Services in Scotland are provided by the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS), a special Health Board of the greater National Health Service (NHS) of Scotland. SAS provides these services throughout all of mainland Scotland and the Islands. Emergency Medical Services are provided by the Accident & Emergency branch, providing Double Crewed Ambulances typically formed of a Paramedic and Technician, but which can be formed of double Tech or Para crews. Single Paramedics in cars, motorbikes or bicycles are Paramedic Response Units (PRU), used to provide immediate pre-hospital care to patients, or treating and discharging at scene. Also part of the A&E branch is the Urgent Tier service, using crews formed of an Ambulance Technician and Care Assistant, Urgent Tier convey patients who have been urgently referred for admission to Hospital and who require clinical monitoring and/or assistance of crews to mobilise. The patients General Practitioner can request admission within a 1-4 hour timeframe. As such Urgent Tier vehicles use their emergency warning systems less than standard A&E crews. Due to the presence of a qualified Technician however UT resources can be used as a first responder to immediately life threatening calls and provide manual defibrillation and airway management skills.
SAS also has an Emergency Medical Retrieval Service (ScotSTAR), bringing Medical and Nursing care to patients as they transfer between Hospitals. Scotland is the only part of the UK to provide fully government funded Air Ambulance services, with two fixed wing and two rotary aircraft. They are assisted by the Scottish Charity Air Ambulance who provide additional cover with two helicopters of their own.
Special Operations Response Team (SORT) provide an emergency response to complex rescue, CBRN, terrorist attacks and other such incidents.
Scheduled Care is provided by the Patient Transport Service, the non-emergency branch of SAS. Using a variety of vehicles from cars, people carriers, minibuses and minibus conversion ambulances, PTS provides transport to and from outpatient clinics, for planned admissions and discharges. Staff crewing PTS vehicles are called Ambulance Care Assistants (ACA). They are experts in moving and handling, whereas A&E crews frequently remove patients from houses using equipment such as carry chairs, ACA’s must be adept at taking their patients back up stairs as well as extrications.
As with the majority of healthcare in Scotland, ambulance and emergency medical services are free at the point of use. Funded by National Insurance contributions made by those in work, Scots are extremely proud and defensive of our NHS. We generally believe that everyone should pay towards the common fund to ensure no-one has their life destroyed by medical costs, as illness and injury are not a choice. Having worked in the NHS and with SAS myself, I have resuscitated a man having a heart attack, conveyed him to Hospital, watched as Coronary Care staff removed the blockage from his artery and left the man sitting up in bed in CCU. Knowing that he will be repatriated to his nearest General Hospital for Coronary Rehab and will go home to ongoing care in the community. That man could take time to recover, safe in the knowledge that no crippling bill or endless fights with healthcare insurance would befall him. That is our NHS, that is why we love it and cannot understand the US system.