Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust has helped East Midlands Railway (EMR) staff at Sheffield Railway Station to train colleagues as Community First Responders (CFRs).

As a result of their training, they now have the skills needed to provide vital care, comfort, and reassurance to anyone who is suffering from a medical emergency before an ambulance arrives to take over their treatment.

Colleagues from the supervisor, platform services and customer information teams took part in a three-day Community First Responder course. Among the topics covered was how to carry out cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and how to use a defibrillator and administer oxygen.

The East Midlands Railway team now has a Community First Responder kit bag provided by Yorkshire Ambulance Service that includes, among other things, an automated external defibrillator (AED), which supplements the four AEDs already available on the platforms at Sheffield station.

Four colleagues have already undergone training as Community First Responders, with more due to be trained in January. The intention is that at least one trained Community First Responder will be available at the station at all times.

Dave Meredith, Customer Services Director at East Midlands Railway, said: “Sheffield is a very busy railway station with 8-10 million passengers passing through every year. The safety of passengers is our utmost priority and this scheme means that we are better trained to provide initial care during any medical emergencies.
We’re looking forward to rolling the CFR course out to more station staff so that when someone falls ill or becomes injured, we’ll be on hand to provide the best possible first-response care.”

Warren Bostock, Community Defibrillation Officer with Yorkshire Ambulance Service, said: “We’re really pleased to be partnering with EMR to deliver our training to their colleagues in Sheffield, and particularly in such a busy station setting.

“CFRs make an extremely valuable contribution to their communities, and anyone using Sheffield Railway Station has the added benefit of CFRs working on site. We know that in many medical emergencies, such as a heart attack, breathing difficulties or a collapse, the first few minutes are critical. If effective treatment can be given within those first minutes, lives can be saved.”