Volunteer Community Welfare Responder

Job overview

Volunteer Opportunity within the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust

This is an exciting opportunity to become a Community Welfare Responder.

Community Welfare Responders

Community Welfare Responder (CWR) volunteers are trained and equipped to support the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust (WAST) delivery of urgent care for patients and service users in their community. CWRs are enabled to provide clinical observations and welfare support to patients/service users. CWRs will also be trained in basic lifesaving skills and use of an automatic external defibrillator (AED). This is integral for strengthening the WAST contribution to community resilience.

Main duties of the job

CWRs in Wales are volunteers who donate their spare time to attend appropriate emergency calls and provide accurate and up-to-date clinical information to remote clinicians in our Ambulance Control Centres. The remote clinician will then supplement their clinical assessment with the information provided by the CWR and determine the most appropriate care plan for that patient.

Our CWRs are alerted to an emergency call via a handheld mobile device from one of our three Regional Ambulance Control Centres. Our volunteers will drive to the address of the incident, under normal road conditions, and will always adhere to the Highway Code. Our volunteers will not be permitted to drive under emergency conditions or use blue lights.

The role of the CWR is an initiative under the Connected Support Cymru project, and an integral part of our long-term strategic ambition in ‘Delivering Excellence’. The CWRs play a key role to ensure that patients receive the right advice and care, in the right place, every time.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

All new volunteers will undertake an enhanced DBS check and ID check; occupational health clearance and two-character references will also be required. Each new learner will be given access to 14 eLearning modules and pre-learning material which must be completed prior to the commencement of the course.

During the course a network of WAST support staff will train volunteers in life saving skills and how to use the equipment available to our CWRs to perform their role. On successful completion of the course, you will be supported by CWR Mentors, to allow you to integrate and start using your newly acquired skills by responding to calls in your community.

Additional information:

All Infection Prevention Control requirements must be met, to ensure the maximum level of protection can be achieved for all volunteers and staff within the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust. This includes being clean shaven for all training and when discharging duties on behalf of the ambulance service.

‘Facial hair that lies along the sealing area of a respirator, such as beards, sideburns, or moustaches will interfere with respirators that rely on a tight face piece fit to achieve maximum protection. The areas of the skin, which contact the face or neck seal and nose cup seal, must be free of any hair’.

For further information, please contact our regional Support Officers on the contact details below.

[email protected]