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Nwicker60
13-Sep-11, 08:13
Responder scheme has something to celebrate

FIVE years ago today, four Highland GPs launched an organisation called SHERPA - the Scottish Highlands Emergency Response Association.

SHERPA, in partnership with the Scottish Ambulance Service and the British Red Cross, has provided skilled medical help at the scene of potentially life threatening emergencies such as road traffic accidents and heart attacks, as well as medical cover for events such as Rock Ness and other large gatherings.
From these small roots, a much larger network of responders has built up throughout the north of Scotland and now consists of over 60 doctors spread throughout the Highlands and Islands.
Since its beginning, almost 1500 call outs have been made by the Scottish Ambulance Service Emergency Medical Dispatch Centre (EMDC) in Inverness.
Dr Mike Langran, a GP from Aviemore, one of the organisation’s founders said: “Advancements in technology meant that for the first time we were able to integrate ourselves into the EMDC system. When an incident is logged, we show as being available alongside other ambulance resources and if we may be of help a call can be put through to us.”
One major advance that provided SHERPA with momentum was the availability of automated vehicle locator systems (VLS) for responders. These devices, which combine a mobile phone and GPS unit into one, track the position of the doctors’ cars at all times so they can be dispatched to incidents near to their location.
The units are purchased by the Sandpiper Trust, a charity closely associated with BASICS Scotland, the umbrella organisation for immediate medical care in Scotland. To join the scheme, all responders must first undergo specialised training with BASICS Scotland before applying for equipment and a VLS unit through the Sandpiper Trust. The Highland Council has also supported some SHERPA doctors with grants for specialised pieces of equipment.
Dr Langran said: “Many of our responders are available during the night and at weekends as well. We’re proud of the good working relationship we have built up with our colleagues in the Scottish Ambulance Service, from the managers and dispatch staff at the EMDC through to the local crews at the coal face. Its all about working together as a team, often in very stressful circumstances, for the ultimate benefit of our patients.”
Call out data shows that trauma calls make up almost half of all calls, with road traffic accidents being the single most common reason for a call out. The summer months are the busiest for SHERPA responders who now respond to a call out every day somewhere in the north of Scotland.
Dr Brian Fitzsimons, GP in Tain and Chairman of SHERPA is pleased with the progress made so far.
He said: “We’ve come a long way in the last five years. We’ve been able to respond to a huge variety of calls in this time. Many of us are also trained to act as medical incident officers at major incidents and we’ve attended several big incidents including the outbreak of illness on the Marco Polo Cruise ship and the Culloden Court Nursing Home fire. More and more doctors and GP practices are joining us increasing our ability to respond particularly in more remote and rural areas of the Scottish Highlands.
“We are currently funded by NHS Highland, but have plans to apply for charitable status. This will allow us to realise our vision to develop the scheme further. We want to be able to continue to support responders, provide more localised refresher training and facilitate the re-supply of expensive items of equipment with more efficiency.”