WEST Midlands Ambulance Service is investing more than £400,000 to bolster its Hazardous Area Response Team (HART).
Under current Government requirements the trust has to have 42 HART paramedics, which is broken down into seven teams of six.
However, in order to strengthen the team, West Midlands Ambulance Service has employed an extra seven HART paramedics so an extra member can be added to each team.
Having an additional seventh member of the team will allow them to provide a more robust response to hazardous incidents.
The seventh paramedic will also be able to work with Trust staff at bariatric incidents using specialist equipment that has been issued to HART.
HART provides paramedic care to patients within a hazardous situation that would otherwise be beyond the reach of NHS care.
This can include working at height, collapsed structures or within contaminated environments.
HART and Special Operations Manager for WMAS, James Price, said: “The significance of the Trust’s decision to extend our HART teams cannot be underestimated.
“Not only does it give us increased resilience in terms of a job HART are required to attend, it also further develops the skillset of an additional seven members of staff into the diverse operating environment of Hazardous Area Response Teams.
“By increasing the number of HART paramedics within the West Midlands, we are further enhancing the service patients receive throughout the region when calling 999 in their hour of need.”
