19/11/2012 Inside Out East Midlands

We are in Leicester on the front line with the Ambulance Service.

Tonight: There is a month left to have your say about how our

ambulance service should change and not everyone is happy. The one

thing we are not prepared to have here is a second-class ambulance

service. That is what this proposal is about. So how do ambulance crews

cope with the pressure to get to each emergency? With traffic, rush-

hour, eight minutes is such a tight time-frame especially with the city

centre traffic. The house where jacket - the story of the youngest

person to receive the George Cross. I am pleased I have come back. It

brings back a lot of memories. They East Midlands Ambulance Service has

the worst record for response times in the country but plans to shake

things up and shake off that reputation are controversial.

Managers insist the changes have to happen if they are to reach

patients vast air but tonight in a special report, we investigate

where paramedics and patients who need them are filling the most.

Every 45 seconds there is a call to take. Often a life or death

decision to make. Welcome to the 999 frontline. With tough targets

for the time it takes an ambulance to get to you and tough fines for

the service if they earn it. The clock starts ticking at the moment

you get through to the ambulance control and it doesn't stop until

the paramedic comes through your front door. It is 7 am on a Friday

and we are trucking in with paramedics Dylan and 10. It is

surprising perhaps to find them having to take care of their

ambulance before they can look after patients. Every morning we

spend 10 or 15 minutes going through all the kit, making sure we

have everything we need for the day. We have to do all the daily checks

to make sure the road for the Czechs are done. I thought it was

all about patient care but we have to make sure the vehicle is safe to

get us there. Meanwhile, the calls are stacking up in control. The

team here are in effect, first on the scene. A call taker would ask

the person what is the nature of the emergency. The call to go with

him but the address and we would know where to respond to. In fact,

here we go... We have a job, guys. We are going to somebody who has a

rapid heart rate that is feeling unwell. The elderly patient lives

alone and is quite frightened, complaining of dizziness and a

pounding chest. Let's put you on this manager. They are happy she

doesn't need to go to hospital but a gentle touch and plenty of

reassurance has been needed. Years ago, people only used to render it

was life-threatening but more now, you're getting more social care

calls. It has taken the two men have an hour to get back in play.

That is a relief to control, where they are juddering to a good and 50

frontline vehicles at any one time. The East Midlands ambulance service

has the worst response time record in the country. The government has

set to strict targets for how long an ambulance should take Jimmy Choo

in an emergency. Trusts are fined if they miss them. The first

response must get to 75% of category A emergencies within eight

minutes and for the first time in three years, they have squeaked

over the line, largely thanks to a fast response of paramedics but the

clock is still ticking because they cannot get the patients to hospital

and so there is a second target because an ambulance give up a lot

to gain patients to hospital must arrive within 19 minutes and that

is where East Midlands has been falling short. Phil Milligan wants

to turn things around. After 11 months in charge, he is proposing

one of the service's most radical shake-ups. He wants to sell off

most of his ambulance stations. They would be replaced by

superstitions where paramedics will not have to check there oil every

morning and better resourced stand. -- standby points where they can

wait for calls. The focus for the change programme is not money, it

is getting to patients faster so they get the right treatment faster.

That is what the focus is and that is the board's main objective

behind this programme. Our initial assessment is that the cost of

these buildings is �29 million and the cost of replacing them with the

community and villains posts is about �28.5 million. Save our

services. Not everyone is convinced. This march against the closure plan.

The message was loud and clear. you all hear me? People are worried

that the nearest station would be 18 miles away in Mansfield. The

protest is painfully personal first there. She was looking forward to

pushing a double buggy but in May, her unborn baby died at 30 weeks.

She blames a long wait for an ambulance. We were thinking, should

be get in the car or not. We were waiting so long and we thought,

when is this ambulance going to arrive? When it did arrive, was it

too late? Yes, by the Tamika to the hospital, no heartbeat. There are

no words to describe how horrible lattice. No one can say the

speedier response could have saved her baby but her fears are shared

by plenty of people. Particularly in rural areas. The one thing they

are not prepared to have in battle is a second class Ambulance Service

and that is what this proposal is about. They have served us in the

community for years and years and they want to disrupt it to save

money, not to save lives and that is what we're here for. How can an

area as big as this be covered by a people going to faraway places.

Lives will be lost because of it. There's also disquiet from within

the service. And it is a fast response paramedic and a steward.

She organised the march is in north Nottinghamshire which were also

supported by the GMB union. It is commonplace for all community

paramedics and emergency care practitioners are to be waiting to

a three hours for that second resource. It is not all the time

but these crews are tied up in jobs and we're having to wait for them

to come back and take patients to hospital. In contrast to the

control room which buzzes with 1600 calls a day, many ambulance

stations are empty for most of it. Any time gaps between jobs are

usually filled sitting in lay-bys. We are about to go on standby now.

He is in the centre of Leicester. It is a bus lay-by and there is

nothing there for us. The standby posts are used to jiggly moved

paramedics closer to where people hour at different times of the day.

Planned improvements to the service are one thing but sometimes there

are elements conspiring that are beyond their control. Eight minutes

is such a tight time frame. Especially in a city-centre

environment with traffic, rush-hour. This is how the service looks at

the moment. 66 ambulance stations serving six counties. Many have

served their local communities for decades. This is Phil Milligan's

big idea, to sell off most of the old stations to pay for 13 new big

central hubs, supplemented by 131 community ambulance posts and

strategic standby points. This is what I used to respond when I am on

call. This lady is on the town council and on call as a volunteer

community are first responder. The life-saving kit in her but is for

local emergencies like heart attacks and strokes. This is a real

life-saver? Absolutely, this is what saves people's lives. If we

are there on time. It is a deep good relations machine which we're

trained to use. Ambulance trusts around the country have teamed up

with son John Sandilands to train people and the former Mayor of

Bradford is busier than ever. I first started, you get one: Six

hours. Now in six hours we could get up to 10 goals and what puts a

concern on me is in a solo community, we don't have the safety

equipment of a paramedic, we don't have a radio that we can call for

help if we are a difficult situation. All we have is our own

phone. If you get into any situation, we would have to get a

phone to call control. He had been in a situation? I was attacked at

nine months ago. The ideal for people in your position is to be an

addition to the service but do you feel and a sense that because you

are very good at what you do, effectively you are being used to

supplement the service? I care for people and that is why I do it.

Sometimes families get aggressive - where is the ambulance, where is

it? I try to say to the family member, I am sorry but they are on

their way. It is putting us in situations where we can get abused

by family members and it is quite embarrassing after an hour and 15

minutes and they are saying, where is this ambulance? What you say to

them? It is honest way sometimes not enough. In Leicestershire's

picturesque village, this family's experience was far from pretty.

Four year-old Flynn suffered from what doctors now believe was an

epileptic seizure. Frantic with their son unresponsive and foaming

at the mouth, they dialled 999. was a wreck, I couldn't bear to be

in a room with him. I honestly thought we were going to lose him.

The paramedic was panicking. From the initial phone call, it was

three hours before a friend arrived in hospital in an ambulance.

needed to be in an HND or resuscitation room immediately and

he wasn't there for hours. It is not good enough. You certainly

don't expect it when you dial 999. Back in Leicester, another child is

in trouble. What is the address? You need to come down, what is the

postcode? I don't even know the postcode. One female, severe

breathing difficulty, turning blue. My daughter is only five weeks old

and she has vomited and she cannot breed. -- breeze. I have help

coming to you, stay on the line to get more information. She went blue

and I was smacking her on the back. How long she not breathing for?

few seconds. What was going through your mind when you're waiting for

the ambulance? As soon as she was breathing, I wanted someone to

reassure me that she was OK. Born six weeks prematurely, she needs

checking over in hospital. It has been a scare for her mum but the

paramedics are confident this is a simple case of choking on her milk.

The threat of so many ambulance The boss says he is listening and

we decided to put people's questions directly to him. His

first one is from one of your community first responders, a

volunteer. I would like to ask if he is in touch with what is

actually going on? He is not frontline. Is he aware about rural

areas which have to be covered? His proposal is going to cost lives.

don't agree that this will cost lives. I have been out on

ambulances with crews. I spent New Year's Eve in Derby city centre so

why am well aware of the programme that the offering and that it is

based on feedback from our staff saying what they need to improve.

We've made improvements already. We are now achieving the National

eight-minute target. That is better than last year. We are maintaining

that improvement. We want to do even better than that. A OK. This

next question is from one of your fast response drivers. I ask that

Mr Milligan and listens to the public during this consultation

period and understands how the service is going to operate in

rural areas and perhaps re-evaluate his plans. Consultation is about

listening to others and seeking advice. Our plans, I think, on a

very good for -- model. We are looking at how we should amend them

to take account of the unique features of the different parts of

the East Midlands, such as rural areas, Lincolnshire and so on. I

have said repeatedly, on the basis of advice from the public and our

staff, we are prepared to change the plans. We want to get it right

because patients deserve it. I want to stop spending money on empty

buildings. Alarmed and buildings are empty pretty much all day every

day. -- hour ambulance buildings. We can share buildings which must

be good for the public purse. while managers ponder the future,

on the road it is all about the next call. They are highly trained

and calm under pressure but the job can take its toll. A little old

lady had died at the sink. She had nobody near by and you just

It has a big weakness, staff sickness levels which are the

highest in the country. And two stations offer little support at

the end of a traumatic day. -- empty stations. East Midlands

Ambulance Service has been called the worst in England. We already

making improvements and doing better than we have of for a long

while. We want to build on that and be the best. One of the things I've

been able to do in the last 11 months as go to other ambulance

services, see what they are doing well, steal their ideas and look to

how we can bring them into the East Midlands. This shift is not over

yet. Tell me what has happened. Somebody has been hit by a taxi.

she awake? Yes, she is. Is she breathing? Yes. Go-ahead. We are

still taking details. It was a car Hello. Explain to me what has been

happening... I cannot find a breeding source on the scalp.

going to hold your head for a second. This chap is a GP for stop

OK. We have got you. Lie back. Let's all slide. I know it is

difficult with a car being here. Do you have any pain? No. Of we ready,

guys? Ready, steady, slide. injured cyclist suffered a nasty

knock on the ankle with a bump to the head but was back on her feet

in a few days. It has been a good day for our crew, who got to every

job on time, much to the relief of their patients. But Dylan and Tim

would also like to be judged on the care they give.

The challenges and changes facing the East Midlands ambulance service

are greater than any in its history and managers are adamant that it

needs to modernise in order to move forward. There are still plenty of

people to convince among their Rome's staff and the communities

they serve, but not responding to the long-term challenge of turning

the worst performing ambulance service into the best is not an

There is still time for you to have your say on this consultation. All

Next it tonight, the story of a miner who 60 years ago, became the

youngest person to receive the George Cross, the country's highest

civilian award for bravery. Jack was only 15 when he saved the lives

of his brothers, when fire engulfed The when the Queen comes to town,

the crowds gather. From the start of her reign, there have been

cameras there to document every event. But many of the stories of

royal encounters lie behind the lens. If you get the chance to meet

the Queen -- a few. But a 15 year- old from Nottingham Show was

invited to what -- Buckingham Palace for a royal audience almost

60 years ago. In 1932, Jack Bamford was a well-known hero. He risked

his life to save his brothers from their burning home. That is the

George Cross. It six years on, he is still the youngest to get the

George Cross. -- 60 years on. Initially, he won not in the room

and they call your name out. Then you walk in to see the Queen. You

bow, she has a conversation. Chippings it on to your chest or

whatever. Then you go and sit with the rest of the audience and you

can watch everybody else go through It has certainly altered. He even

though he only lives a few miles away, this is the first time Jack

has been back to his old family home to see the Windo he threw his

brothers from into their father's arms, the Windo he fell from --

window. It was about 2 o'clock on a Sunday morning and the fire was in

the living room, underneath that bedroom. I through Roy at first

because I got him in between the knees. I turned around for Brian.

He had got back in bed. I'm sorry, it's... Is it the first time I've

been back here. -- it is. I am pleased I've come back. I am. It

brings a lot of memories back. They For George course that Jack has at

home is a replica. He has learned the real thing to the Imperial War

Museum, where everyone can see in a gallery designed to tell forgotten

stories of bravery. Have you been unseen it seems we've put in?

not in this particular situation. We have put it near the two

policemen and Robert Taylor, because there is a group of

similarly and short courses. We thought it was a nice place. It is

rather impressive. It looks very nice colour particularly said...

that we there? -- me. People thought this is an amazing thing

for this 15 year-old to do. With the intensity of the fire, the fact

he went into war three times to look for his brothers, take them to

the Windo, go back again, each of these in false Jack each time

thinking, I want to do this, and got to find my brothers, and

committed to this action. That is exactly what the George Cross

recognises. Setting aside the risk to your own life in order to feel -

- do what you feel as the right thing at the time. Here, Jacques

middle sits alongside other recipients data about the Crimean

War. -- Jack's. It is the ultimate gift of thanks from the Queen to

the recipient. That is why it carries such weight. As a nation,

we of remembering his bravery, through the Imperial War Museum.

Now, we have uncovered two wheels of forgotten film which had lain in

the BBC archives for the 60 years. The first shows Jack in Nottingham

General Hospital. He didn't know the footage existed. I have not

seen this. Jack, whilst you're having a photograph taken this

afternoon, you have been awarded the George Cross... The fire

occurred in October. John helped his father to rescue three other

children and his mother. He then returned to save six year-old Brian

and for year-old Roy. Brian and Roy Andrade. He threw them out the

winter. -- window. Brian it ran across the road because he was

frightened. It is upsetting really.! He says, are they all out?

He said yes and then he passed out.?. John received extensive

burns. He has already undergone two skin grafting operations. If it

wasn't for Jack, I wouldn't have been here. I've got a family, have

got children, and got a grant children. I would not have had any

of it if it was not for Jack. It was lovely to see my mother.

And there is film also of Jack at Buckingham Palace, the day he met

the Queen to receive his George I was still under hospital

treatment but they allowed me to go down to earth he Buckingham Palace

with the nurses from hospital. If it hadn't been for them, I would be

dead anyway. If it was me who had the George Cross, I wouldn't be

walking around with it on my chest but I would let people know! Never

ever profited from it, ever. Some people would say he was a full for

not doing it. It has not been my But Jack Bamford, still the

youngest person to be awarded the George Cross. We will be back with

more stories from across the East Midlands next month they. -- Monday.