Ambulance services: an introduction

Air ambulances
The first recorded British ambulance flight was in Turkey in 1917 when a wounded soldier in the Camel Corps was flown to hospital in 45 minutes, a journey that would have taken some three days to complete overland.

Ambulance Service Network
This represents all ambulance trusts in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Gibraltar, Isle of Man and Isle of Wight. It's part of the NHS Confederation.

ASA
The Ambulance Service Association (ASA) is the main body representing the NHS ambulance services across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, plus the public ambulance services of Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man and Gibraltar. It merged with the NHS Confederation (NHSC) to form the Ambulance Service Network.

BAA
The British Ambulance Association is a trade body representing companies involved in the provision of private ambulance and medical services.

History
The first full-time ambulance service in London began in 1897, when it was used by the Metropolitan Asylums Board (MAB) to carry patients to its hospitals. By 1930 the city had a fleet of 150 petrol-driven ambulances.

The modern ambulance service traces its roots to the 1946 National Insurance Act, and the subsequent National Health Service Act of 1948, when local authorities were required to provide ambulances "where necessary". Before then the service was erratic, especially outside the towns where ambulances were mostly based.

Initially staffed by volunteers, NHS ambulance services became more professional, and after 1964 began providing treatment on site as well as transporting patients.

NAPAS

The National Association of Private Ambulance Services is a self-regulating industry body representing private and professional ambulance services and consultants.

Private ambulances
Private ambulance fees typically include a call-out charge, plus costs per mile, as well as extra charges for disposable items such as oxygen, pads or dressings.

Repatriation costs
If you travel without the appropriate insurance, you could be liable for the costs incurred from private ambulance services in getting you home. An air-ambulance returning you to the UK from New York, for instance, could set you back £35,000.

St John Ambulance
The charity, whose roots date back to 11th-century Jerusalem, provides first aid at public events and emergency response. It offers training courses (it trains more than 250,000 first aiders every year), and organises neighbourhood first responders—its volunteers are trained to provide care until the ambulance arrives.

St John Ambulance also provides a range of patient transport services, transferring patients to non-emergency medical appointments such as admissions to and discharge from hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and other medical facilities.

St Andrew's
Scotland's main first-aid charity was founded in 1882. It initially provided first-aid classes, stretcher stations in chemist shops in central Glasgow and an ambulance. The first organised ambulance service in Scotland, however, dates back to 1775.