Professor hailed for 999 service probe
EDGE Hill University’s business school is celebrating the recognition of one of its staff in a recently launched national review of ambulance performance targets.
The independent “Amber Review” was commissioned by the Welsh Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services in May into the “amber” category of calls made to the ambulance service in Wales. Amber calls are those categorised as “serious but not immediately life-threatening”.
Such calls represent the majority of the almost half a million emergency calls made to the Welsh Ambulance Service each year.
Prof Paresh Wankhade was invited to join the expert reference group to the review team for his internationally recognised expertise in ambulance performance management challenges.
His role expanded to that of the “advisor and lead reviewer” to the report as he was brought in as part of the review team and was involved with further discussions about some follow-up work from the review.
Amber Review, which was published this month, assesses an important aspect of the traffic light system for assessing the urgency of emergency calls in use in Wales since 2015.
It concluded that the ambulance service is getting to the sickest patients first, but has identified a number of areas where NHS Wales can work collaboratively to provide a more timely and effective response to patients.
Prof Wankhade said: “It is a great honour to be part of this important review of ambulance performance in Wales.
“The report has looked at the evidence from the clinical response models being used in Wales and has not recommended setting a target for responding to the ‘amber’ category of calls made to the ambulance services.
“I have been a strong advocate of moving away from response time targets to a more outcomebased approach. The Amber Review is a bold step forward in setting the agenda for dealing with such calls in other countries in the UK.”
Prof Wankhade leads the UK’s first Professional Doctorate in Emergency Services Management.
His full profile is available on the Edge Hill University website.
For his latest blog on the winter crisis and impact on ambulance services, visit the university’s website.