At BASICS Essex, our team of volunteer clinicians work around the clock providing critical pre-hospital care and assistance to the East of England Ambulance Service, typically managing day-to-day roles alongside this.
 
This includes volunteer James Samouelle from Chelmsford, who works as an Advanced Critical Care Practitioner for the East of England Ambulance Service.

Talking about his introduction to BASICS Essex eight years ago, Jay said; “Working in the ambulance service, I had a loose understanding of what BASICS Essex was, but it wasn’t until I saw a roadside incident close to home that I began to realise I could do more to support my local community, and that’s why I joined the scheme.”
 
As an autonomous responder, Jay confidently manages family life while volunteering for BASICS Essex on average 100 hrs per month, assisting in pre-hospital critical care incidents across the county.
 
In a recent case, Jay was called to the home of Nicola Giles from Broomfield, who had dislocated her hip and was in need of urgent pain relief.
 
As an experienced Advanced practitioner, Jay can often carry stronger medicine types on board his vehicle than what is typically stored by Ambulance crews, meaning he could assess the situation, effectively administer pain relief to Nicola and ultimately make it easier support the crew in getting her quickly and safely to hospital.

Nicola said; “Before the incident, I had not heard of the charity, and was surprised to learn that it was volunteer medical professionals at my side donating their time to keep Essex residents safe.

“Jay and the team were extremely pleasant, aiding my comfort with appropriate painkillers, re-assuring me with smiles and laughter, and assisting in getting me to Broomfield Hospital safely and securely.”

Three months on, Nicola is finally back to driving, while Jay continues to be an outstanding volunteer for BASICS Essex.

He added, “Testimonials like this remind me of why I love volunteering for BASICS Essex.

"While the role is certainly not without its challenges and difficult moments, I enjoy the notion of helping people, be that adding experience to the crews on site, saving lives, or simply making a patient smile."