Ambulance service team marks 90th anniversary

A medical leader has reflected on the challenges facing Guernsey's Ambulance and Rescue service on its 90th anniversary.

Chief ambulance officer John Atkins said staffing was one of the biggest changes since the service had begun as "their levels of training and expertise are far advanced from where they were 90 years ago".

He said the current team faced limited funding and it was a "case of trying to do more with the same amount of money".

"It's not just about sending big yellow ambulances out with flashing blue lights to emergency calls, although we will continue to do that, it's about identifying patients that can be safely left at home, avoiding unnecessary hospital admissions," he added.

The Ambulance and Rescue service was founded by Reg Blanchford on 2 June 1936 when he bought a second-hand ambulance.

He kept the service running throughout the Occupation during World War Two and it grew to include branches supporting cliff, diving and inshore rescues.

As part of the 90th anniversary celebrations a photographic exhibition is set to open at Guernsey Museums on 3 June, showing how the service has changed over the last nine decades.

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