Ambulance 999 control hub to receive the Royal seal of approval
Thursday, 24 May, 2018
A cutting-edge Ambulance 999 Control Hub in South Gloucestershire will be officially opened on Thursday 24 May 2018 by a very special visitor. HRH The Duchess of Cornwall will be in attendance and welcomed by a host of dignitaries.
Within South Western Ambulance Service Foundation Trust there are two clinical hubs receiving all 999 calls, based in St James Court, South Gloucestershire and Trust HQ in Exeter.
St James Court in South Gloucestershire is the Trust’s latest capital project. An urgent need to relocate the North Clinical Hub led to the provision of the optimum working environment for those staff working in the challenging arena of responding to emergency 999 calls.
Along with the skills and knowledge of a great number of people, the call handlers, dispatchers and clinicians who work in this very busy and often stressful environment have all had input into the design of the new control hub. Their requirements included an open plan space to optimise communication between teams. Each of the workstations can be adapted to the requirements of the individual.
This clinical hub is strategically located to enable our staff to deliver the highest quality care to our patients across the South West. The technology in this new facility means that our two clinical hubs are able to share and dispatch all calls across the South West, providing critical back up as required.
Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall will meet the teams who manage the 999 calls and will see the new environment in which they work. She will officially open the St James building and cut a cake to celebrate the 70th birthday of the NHS before meeting others involved in the building project and the wider work of the Trust.
The Chief Executive of SWASFT, Ken Wenman, is delighted that the control hub at St James is receiving a royal visitor and said: “It is a real honour that HRH The Duchess of Cornwall is officially opening our 999 control hub at St James. The control team work incredibly hard to provide the best possible care to patients across the South West. Often their work can be challenging and distressing, and it is fantastic that we have such an excellent opportunity to showcase the good work of the team and indeed all of our staff. The control hub is a very impressive facility that fulfils both training and operational requirements in an excellent strategic location.”
The Trust’s Chairman, Tony Fox added: “Receiving such high profile attention from a member of the royal household is such a privilege and we look forward to welcoming HRH The Duchess of Cornwall to this excellent new facility.”
HRH The Duchess of Cornwall will be welcomed to St James by HM Lord-Lieutenant of Gloucestershire, Dame Janet Trotter OBE DBE CVE, The High Sherriff of Gloucestershire, Mr Charles Martell, Councillor Rachel Hunt and Councillor Benjamin Randles. The Chief Executive of South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) Ken Wenman and its Chairman, Tony Fox will also be present, along with other board members and staff.
