WREXHAM RURAL COMMUNITY FIRST RESPONDER CAR

Wrexham Rural First Community First Responders (Registered Charity number: 1186910) are raising funds towards buying a dedicated Community First Responder car.

CFRs are volunteers, trained by the ambulance service, assigned to attend local 999 emergencies to assess patients and begin treatment in advance of the arrival of the professional crew. Whilst the ambulance service provides excellent and ongoing training, and replenishment of consumables such as oxygen, trauma bandages and defib pads, CFRs are obliged to raise all the money required for their main equipment, e.g. kit bags and defibrillators, and uniform for themselves. CFRs receive no funding from any official source.

The proposed dedicated CFR car, such as the example shown in this photograph,




would be available to all the CFRs in the Wrexham group, holding all the equipment necessary when attending an emergency without time being wasted loading and moving kit about. The car will not be fitted with blue lights or sirens, but recognition of the car`s livery allows easy passage en route to an emergency, while eccentric parking at the location is forgiven. Not only does this help keep the attending CFR safer, but also there is visible relief when the liveried car shows up quickly and patient and relatives see that help has arrived.

It is intended that the proposed car would be on call for emergencies in the area at least five hours a day, most days of the week throughout the year, benefiting many ill, injured and distressed patients within the Wrexham Rural location which stretches as far as Cymau and Bangor on Dee to the north, Llangollen and Glyn Ceiriog to the west, Chirk and all the English border villages to the south, and Overton, Penley and Bettisfield to the east, a huge area.

A car would also be available to transport the manikins and training defibrillators used at Defibrillator and CPR Awareness courses organised and led by the team across Wrexham county and adjacent districts in England. These educational courses are delivered without charge by CFRs to local communities, youth groups, schools and organisations which may have a Public Access Defibrillator and want to be sure of using it correctly when there is a cardiac arrest.

CFR cars are the property of the group and no funding for purchase or maintenance is received from the ambulance service. Running a car is a big financial commitment, taking into account annual insurance and servicing, etc., but the Wrexham group is prepared to continue fund raising for future expenditure.

The Wrexham Rural Community First Responder team has a target of raising £10,000 by December 2020 which, it is hoped, would be sufficient to purchase and insure a suitable and reliable vehicle, together with sourcing and applying the appropriate livery. Members of the group are investigating the possibility of raising funds through grants and match funding.

Any funds raised above the target amount would be ring-fenced to defray future costs of running the car.

If insufficient funds are raised to make the purchase of a car viable, donations would be used instead to purchase kits and defibrillators required by new CFR recruits, running at approximately £1500 per individual.

The Wrexham Rural Community First Responder team has over 30 members across the county. It is very well supported by Welsh Ambulance Service Trust. During the current Covid19 crisis Wrexham CFRs are continuing to provide front line assistance to the Welsh ambulance service.