As the UK marks 55 years since paramedicine became a recognised profession 
From the early days of basic transport medicine to today’s advanced clinical decision‑makers, paramedics have been at the heart of emergency care for over half a century.
Although North East Ambulance Service didn’t exist 55 years ago, the organisation has grown and transformed over the decades into the modern, regional service we know today.
Today, NEAS serves a population of 2.7 million people across 3,230 square miles of the North East, employing more than 1,000 paramedics over 60 different specialist paramedic roles including specialist and critical care clinicians to HART responders and educators.
Covering County Durham, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, and the Tees Valley boroughs, our ambulance crews respond to over 400,000 patients every year and are often the first highly trained clinicians to reach people with problems ranging from those who are seriously ill or injured to frail complex problems.
Director of paramedicine at NEAS, Andrew Hodge said: “As British Paramedicine turns 55, we’re celebrating the people who make it possible - paramedics, control room teams and everyone across the service who supports them.
“The profession has changed beyond recognition, but one thing hasn’t: our commitment to compassionate, high-quality care for the communities we serve.”
Andrew added: “Paramedics play a pivotal role, not just in our service but in the NHS, with different parts of the system increasingly realising the potential for our profession within their services.
“Today’s paramedics are clinicians, leaders and innovators. Our apprenticeship, career framework and research partnerships are building the next generation of expert practitioners, so we can keep improving care at home remotely, on scene and on the road.”
To support clinical growth, NEAS delivers one of the most successful and diverse apprenticeship programmes in the NHS- with NEAS named one of the country’s top apprenticeship employers, supporting more than 300 apprentices at any one time across clinical, operational, corporate, educational and leadership roles.
In 2023, the service introduced an internal paramedic apprenticeship, offering 20 places annually to give staff a new route into the profession. Currently, around 60 paramedic apprentices are undergoing their training and will qualify with a degree-apprenticeship, delivered by NEAS education staff and supported by course leaders at Teesside University’s School of Health & Life Sciences.
Deputy director of people and development at NEAS, Karen Gardner said: “The future NHS relies on new ways of developing and retaining talent, and apprenticeships are central to that ambition.
“At NEAS, we are not simply delivering programmes - we are building pathways that transform lives, strengthen our services, and secure the long-term clinical capability of our organisation. This work is shaping not just our service today, but the ambulance workforce of the next generation.”
The Royal College of Paramedics has also reflected on this important milestone. “The paramedic profession we know today is unrecognisable from the one born 55 years ago,” says Chief Executive of the Royal College of Paramedics Tracy Nicholls OBE.
“But it’s thanks to the early pioneers of Paramedicine that our profession has evolved and adapted so that paramedics now work across multiple settings in primary, community and extended healthcare beyond traditional ambulance-based services.
“However, the value of those paramedics who work within the ambulance sector has exponentially increased as they bring vital skills and critical thinking to support patients in their communities every day, often being a lifeline for those they care for in their daily work.”
She added: “For the paramedics who have gone before us, for those working now and for future generations, we thank you for the commitment, skill and compassion you show to your patients and the vital contribution and benefit you bring to society as a whole.”
Thank you to every paramedic past and present for 55 years of dedication, courage and compassionate care and to every colleague across NEAS who supports them every step of the way.
NEAS will continue marking the anniversary with photos and insights from colleagues across the service on our social media channels.
