Standardised Ambulance Equipment Called For

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30192, 25 July 1963, Page 15

Standardised Ambulance Equipment Called For

The St. John Ambulance Association should be asked to consider specifying standard fittings and equipment for the ambulances run by its sub-centres, so that patients could be transferred readily from one ambulance to another, the chairman of the North Canterbury Hospital Board's works committee (Mr L. A. Bennett) said at the boards meeting yesterday. Mr Bennett was speaking to a request from the Amuri sub-centre of the association for a grant towards buying a new ambulance. He thought the association should lay down standards before any further ambulances were bought. Mr J. B. Hay said he was not against new ambulances, but he did object to ambulance equipment not being standardised. “There is no real co-ordination between the sub-centres. The centre should see that, when new ambulances are commissioned, patients can be transferred readily from one to another,” he said. “The present lack of standardisation is holding up the provision of new ambulances.” Mr V. J, Corbett, supporting the Amuri sub-centre’s request, said the matter was urgent, as it had already been under consideration by the board for two months. “The field covered by this subcentre’s ambulance is wider than it was, and there is increasing traffic in the area. Delay could cost a life,” he said. The existing ambulance, bought two years ago, was underpowered for the job. Mr Bennett thought there was little risk of delay costing

a life, as the existing ambulance had been considered highly satisfactory by the sub-centre when first bought, and in fact the board possessed a long letter from the sub-centre at that time saying how desirable the design was. The ambulance had done only 28,000 miles, and the board should consider very carefully before committing itself to something approaching £lOOO for a replacement vehicle at this stage. Mr Corbett said the vehicle had now done 33,000 miles, a considerable mileage in his opinion. The board decided to defer making a recommendation until Mr Bennett had discussed certain points with the Canterbury and West Coast centre of the association.