Healer on Wheels
When in the West End you may spot Ben Forde, one of the members of the Cycle Response Unit (CRU) for the London Ambulance Service; paramedics that get to their patient’s by bicycle. Ben lives in Blackfen but resided in Eltham for over 20 years, and has just recently become a permanent member of the CRU.
He attended St Thomas More School but it wasn’t there he decided to become a paramedic, “I saw an advert on the television asking people to join the London Ambulance Service, and I just thought it looked like a really good job” commented Ben. It was another 8 years before Ben entered the CRU, “I was at the Ambulance Service in Waterloo, a colleague and I poked our head through the door of the CRU, and it looked like a lot of fun, luckily they were recruiting at the time so I went for it”. And indeed it seems a job that is entirely suited for him; Ben has always cycled and has even taken part in charity rides from London to Brighton, “It is a really good way for me to incorporate a hobby I’m passionate about into my job too”. The CRU members could be on the bike for up to eleven hours a day and Ben has even ridden from his home in Blackfen to the Waterloo station.
When in the West End you may spot Ben Forde, one of the members of the Cycle Response Unit (CRU) for the London Ambulance Service; paramedics that get to their patient’s by bicycle. Ben lives in Blackfen but resided in Eltham for over 20 years, and has just recently become a permanent member of the CRU.
He attended St Thomas More School but it wasn’t there he decided to become a paramedic, “I saw an advert on the television asking people to join the London Ambulance Service, and I just thought it looked like a really good job” commented Ben. It was another 8 years before Ben entered the CRU, “I was at the Ambulance Service in Waterloo, a colleague and I poked our head through the door of the CRU, and it looked like a lot of fun, luckily they were recruiting at the time so I went for it”. And indeed it seems a job that is entirely suited for him; Ben has always cycled and has even taken part in charity rides from London to Brighton, “It is a really good way for me to incorporate a hobby I’m passionate about into my job too”. The CRU members could be on the bike for up to eleven hours a day and Ben has even ridden from his home in Blackfen to the Waterloo station.
The CRU is able to respond to 999 calls quicker than an ambulance by weaving through the traffic, answering calls that can range from headaches to even cardiac arrest. “You’ll answer the call and someone will say ‘oh...are you the ambulance?’” laughs Ben, “they don’t usually expect a bike to pull up”. Sometimes members of the CRU are able to tell ambulances they aren’t needed, saving them over 250 hours of time a year per bike; “As well as it being more economical and time saving, it’s a greener way of us getting around too”.
When asked what his favourite aspects of the job are, it is clear Ben is passionate about his work; “I think it’s the fact that you get to attend calls in so many different places; theatres, restaurants, Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden. We’re needed for events too like the Chinese New Year and recently the Pope’s visit. You get to meet so many different kinds of people, and I think that’s why it’s such an enjoyable job”. Now that Ben is a permanent member of the CRU, you may always see him around some of your favourite parts of London- though let’s hope he isn’t answering your call.
No comments:
Post a Comment