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Ambulance

 National Ambulance Committee
Emergency Care Assistant Report September 2009

Following the publication of the Emergency Care Assistant pilot site evaluation
report, representatives of the Trade Union partners in the National Ambulance
Strategic Partnership Forum (the Forum) met with employers’ representatives
to discuss the outcome.
It was clear at that meeting that there was a difference of opinion over the
implications of the report. The UNISON National Ambulance Committee met
on 22 September to consider the issues and agreed as follows:

The ECA role as currently designed is not fit for purpose in that it fails to
deliver appropriate levels of clinical care to patients and has adverse effects
on staff welfare.

No staff should be deployed by Ambulance services in a front line capacity
who have not been trained as a minimum to standards as set out in the
Millar report.

These minimum standards are not and cannot be reflected in any band 3 or
lower graded roles.

To seek urgent national discussions with English Ambulance trust employers
on a timetable of withdrawal of all band 3 roles from front line vehicles and
to work with UNISON Ambulance branches in pursuance of immediate
implementation of this policy.

This position was endorsed at a meeting of UNISON’s Health Service Group
Executive on 23 September 2009 and by our partner unions in the Forum that
have jointly written to the Employers advising them of the following:

“Staff whose roles have been job evaluated at band 3 or below should not be
deployed by Ambulance services in any front line capacity as they will not
possess the necessary knowledge, training and experience to deliver the level
of patient care expected from an emergency ambulance practitioner. This
applies whether or not they are accompanied by a paramedic or technician as
it is clear from our members input and the evaluation report that reducing the
skill set of one of the emergency ambulance team has a detrimental impact on
patient care.

“In the circumstances we are seeking an urgent meeting of the NASPF to
discuss a timetable of withdrawal of all band 3 roles from front line
deployment. We feel this process can be best achieved through enhancing
the training of existing band 3 ECA’s to bring their skill set up to the standard
as reflected by the National Ambulance Practitioner band 4 job profile and in
the North West Ambulance Service Assistant Ambulance Practitioner pack.”
UNISON’s Ambulance Committee wish to make it clear that the above policy is
consistent with the views of our many ECA members. An update will be
forthcoming when the employers’ response has been received.

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