Recruitment & Training

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All Community First Responders undergo an intensive training and assessment program in Emergency First Aid by the East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Community First Responders come from all different walks of life and volunteer for many different reasons. Anyone who wants to help their community can become a CFR.  No previous medical experience or training is necessary although you will need a caring attitude and be able to cope with potentially distressing situations.

While a responder is on call, they can continue with their normal day to day activities while in the local area, but must be ready to drop everything and attend a call should one arise. A Community First Responder needs to be extremely reliable and trust worthy, good under pressure, able to remain calm in emergency situations, be caring when dealing with patients and have a good level of physical fitness.

You will also need to:

• be aged 18 or older;
• Have a full UK Driving Licence which you have held for over 12 months and which carries no more than 3 penalty points. Please note we cannot accept volunteers with Drink Driving Endorsements until a period of 11 years has expired form the date of the offence
• Have access to a car for responding purposes (we do not allow responding on motor bikes)
• Be willing to undergo an Enhanced Disclosure and barring Service check and be prepared to disclose any previous convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings, including those which for all other purposes may be considered spent. (Please note this post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and acceptance is at the discretion of East Midlands Ambulance Service) Failure to disclose any previous criminal record will affect your application be prepared to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service check;
• Be able to commit to a minimum of 4 hours a week voluntary service (to be arranged in conjunction with your CFR coordinator)
• be prepared to undertake occupational health screening; 
• Attend a training course which is currently 3 days in length.

In addition to the above volunteers are also required to:

• Attend scheme meetings as often as possible, for support and training
• Assist the CFR group with events, fundraising, rota compilation, recruitment etc
• Keep up to date and in touch with the group coordinator by regularly checking email/Whatsapp or use of social media i.e. Twitter/Facebook 

You will be asked to attend a welcome evening and introduction to East Midlands Ambulance Service. Subject to acceptance of your application, and the completion of relevant checks we will then arrange training in your local area.

There are 2 training levels

Level 2 training includes:

• Introduction to Community First Responding;
• Automated External Defibrillation and Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR);
• Including the use of all associated equipment;
• Oxygen Therapy;
• Treatment of Medical Conditions;
• Responder Safety and Risk Assessment including:
  • Communicating with Patients;
  • Health and Safety;
  •  Infection Control;
  • Completion of Paperwork -  Patient Report Form;

Level 3 training includes:

• Paediatric Resuscitation ;
• Drug Administration;

To achieve level 3 you must complete 12 months of service and 200 volunteer hours on duty.

Each unit requires the completion of a written and practical assessment which then must be updated every year. 

Public training for CPR & Defibrillator is also available. This takes approximately two hours and is completely free of charge.  The training covers CPR, Defibrillator, Choking and Heart Attacks. 

Please send us an email to recruitment@northnorthantscfr.nhs.uk  if this is something you would be interested in doing within your community. 

Please note that this training is not certified.