VIDEO: Watch Lincolnshire firefighters in trauma training saving road crash casualty's life

LIVES First Responder Ella Tapson is helping to promote the new contract between Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue and LIVES that will see firefighters attending medical incidents trained to the same standards in trauma response.

Her screams as the crew from the Woodhall Spa Fire Station lift her from the wreckage are all too real - and the firefighters quickly begin demonstrating the treatment needed to stem bleeding from a deep gash in her leg and save her life.

The education team from the voluntary LIVES charity began last week in Bourne and is now visiting fire stations across the county, carrying out the new training sessions.

Today, we are in Woodhall Spa where the firefighters are already showing confidence with their additional responsibility.

Organisational Development Manager at Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue, Richard Friend, explained: "We have a strong history of working together with LIVES, as they have delivered our training and provided clinical governance to our co responder crews throughout our long collaboration.

"This new contract will not only deliver enhanced medical skills to all our frontline responders but will provide improved efficiencies by having one provider deliver the training for two key competencies.

"It will mean all fire crews have the same enhanced level of training in the latest equipment and techniques, adding to the existing ongoing training they already receive. Our fire crews can then do even more to save lives before the arrival of medical professionals."

Nikki Cooke, CEO at LIVES, said: “This is one of the many training sessions we are running with Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue firefighters across the county so they have all the skills they need to deal confidently with casualties with some kind of trauma at the kind of jobs they may go to every day.

"The training is based on skills that we already have so one of our missions is not only to respond to medical emergencies but to also share our skills with others.

"People say it takes a team to save a life and it doesn't matter what service they are from - or a member of the public - they are all part of that team.

"Our LIVES volunteers are lay people who often come to us with no medical background and we have trained them up to quite a high level and so our work with Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue is based on that skillset that we already have.

"What this does is build on the partnership we already have with Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue.

"We have been working together for 22 years now which is a really long-term partnership and we have been working together on delivering co-responding, medical responding.

"This means we can make sure all firefighters have those skills so it is great step forward in the partnership and long may it continue."

Chief Fire Officer Mark Baxter also went along to watch the training in progress.

"Seconds matter when we turn up at the scene of any operational incident," he said. "It doesn't matter which emergency service turns up first, that immediate lifesaving action is the best way we can ensure people's survivability and that the casualty gets the best possible care.

"This new arrangement with LIVES brings first class trauma training across the whole of our service."

Watch manager at Woodhall Spa, Ian Draper, took park in the demonstration with his crew and said he had scene the partnership with LIVES evolve over the years.

"This training is essential, due the the stresses of Covid and EMAS (East Midlands Ambulance Service) being under a great deal of pressure," he said.

"We are often first to an RTC (road accident) and being able to stop a catastrophic bleed could save someone's life.

"I've been co-responding to medical incidents for 21 years now and we have a lot of new recruits who are learning fast and this trauma course has been an essential part of their training.

"We also have an ambulance here and we attend medical emergencies to category ones - which are chest pains, heart attacks and breathing problems - and and we can transport to any hospital."

Lincolnshire County Council's executive councillor for emergency services Coun Lindsey Cawrey said it was important the emergency services ran as efficiently as possible so the taxpayer could see their money was being spent wisely.

"I never stop having to take a moment when I hear a siren because I know someone has been hurt," she said. "Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue is an executive function of LCC and we are proud to deliver these services.

"We have long seen the benefits of emergency services training and learning together, and this is particularly apparent at medical emergencies which often involve multiple responders in hugely challenging situations.

"Firefighters and LIVES have now carried out co-responding duties for more than 20 years in Lincolnshire, and saved hundreds of lives. It's such a valuable part of our service to the public.

"It's about improving efficiency so that when the different agencies get to site they know what the others are doing and just makes the whole operation run much smoother."

Ella Tapson, of Grantham, was the LIVES co-responder who was casualty for the day.

"I've been a co-responder for three years and they run an advanced course which I have been doing and this course came up and they asked me if I wanted to be a casualty," said Ella, who is also studying to be a paramedic at Lincoln University.

Looking at the fake blood oozing from her leg she said: "I'm sure I'll be absolutely fine and these lovely guys will get me cleaned up soon."