Our Patient Transport Service (PTS) is an important operational service for NEAS, providing pre-planned non-emergency transport for patients who have a medical condition that would prevent them from travelling to a treatment centre by any other means, or who require the skills of an ambulance care assistant during the journey.
We also have dedicated PTS crews who transport patients who need to be transported to the emergency department at their local hospital but do not need an emergency ambulance or paramedic.
Our PTS crews also play a vital role to the wider health service, supporting hospitals to discharge patients back home.
Ambulance care assistants
The role of the ambulance care assistant involves conveying a wide range of patients to and from their homes to out-patients' appointments, clinics, physiotherapy or non-urgent inter-hospital transfers. Crews are trained as ambulance care assistants with specialist knowledge of comprehensive first aid, driving skills and patient moving and handling techniques. This can often be a good introduction to an excellent career working in the ambulance service.
In order to apply you will need to:
- Have a caring disposition and will be passionate about patient care with good communication and people skills
- Be able to demonstrate a flexible, reliable, and committed approach to work variable hours/shifts, including evenings and some weekend working
- Have three GCSEs at Grade C or above or equivalents or previous customer care experience or working in a caring capacity
- Have a full current manual driving license (Cat B car), valid in the UK
- Have previous customer care experience or working in a caring capacity
The Ambulance Care Assistant Apprenticeship is 13-months long, during which time you will be fully supported and is assessed against the; Level 3 ambulance support worker standard (emergency, urgent and non-urgent), which includes achieving the following qualifications:
- Level 3 Certificate in Ambulance Patient Care: Non-Urgent Care Service
- Level 3 Award in Patient Care Services:
- Ambulance Driving (L3 APCSAD)
- The Care Certificate
Training
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Initial training on commencement consists of a 7-week course (including driving and classroom-based learning); failure to pass the course may result in dismissal
- Those who do not hold the relevant level of maths & English will be supported to achieve level 2 functional skills in maths and English.
Progression
There is opportunity to progress through the Patient Transport Service to the Band 3 Integrated Care Assistant role, transporting patients who need emergency or urgent treatment but do not require an emergency ambulance or paramedic. There are also opportunities to progress into management roles.
Often our ambulance care assistants will also apply for other roles in the Trust, such as the internal paramedic apprenticeship as this role has given them a good understanding of our organisation.
Ambulance liaison officers
Our ambulance liaison assistant are the first point of contact for queries regarding our Patient Transport Services, taking calls from healthcare staff, GP surgeries, patients and NEAS colleagues.
They are responsible for taking bookings for our services, ensuring they have all information regarding the patient's condition, mobility and special requirements to ensure the appropriate vehicle and crew are allocated. They also respond and deal with patient and general enquiries, aiming to resolve problems where possible.