Derbyshire: RADIO RESCUE

Series

Series Name

Mining Review 7th Year

Issue

Issue No.

9

Date Released

May 1954

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1Yorkshire: SAFETY FAST
2. 2Yorkshire: BRASS - Sheffield Band
3. 3Derbyshire: RADIO RESCUE

Story

Story No. within this Issue

3 / 3

Section Title

Derbyshire

Summary

BFI synopsis: East Midlands ambulance service and its use of radio communication. Demonstrate a typical case of a man injured at one of the collieries in the area; how he is brought to pithead; taken to medical centre; the ambulance service is alerted and arrives to take the man to hospital.
NCB Commentary - The centralised ambulace service in the East Midlands has been proved a highly successful organisation. To-day, with radio communication extending over a wide area the service is giving even faster and more efficient aid when it’s called into action.
Here’s what happend on a typial case. A man has been injured at one of the collieries in the area. As soon as he’s brought to the pithead, stretcher bearers and ambulance men take him across to the colliery medical centre. Many collieries to-day are equipped with these miniature hospitals capable of treating minor injuries and receiving serious cases for first-aid. Our injured man is a fracture case, and he’ll have to go to hospital.
A phone call is flashed through to the Ambulance Headquarters. One of their ambulances is out on the road somewhere returning from a job. The driver is contacted immediately by radio from Headquarters. In the cab he has a hand receiver - transmitter. He gets his fresh orders, and with no time wasted heads off on his new road. At the colliery medical centre the patient is transferred on a portable stretcher to the bed which fits into the ambulance.
One man from the colliery will accompany the patient on the run into hospital. In nine cases out of ten the patient would have an uneventful ride to the hospital where the doctors would take him over. But in this case, something has gone wrong. The patient has developed serious haemorrhage and will have to be rushed to hospital even more quickly than usual. So the driver gets out his hand-transmitter and calls up Headquarters once more. "I want a police escort through the city" he says. Headquarters acknowledge his message and radio direct to the polie control. On the outskirts of the town the ambulance is met by a police car escort which conveys the casualty quickly and safely through the crowded streets. Precious minutes are saved, and minutes are precious when a life may hang in the balance.
The hospital has been alerted to expect the patient and he’s unloaded straight into the casualty department. All that’s left now for the driver to do is to radio back: "Job completed. I am ready for further duties."
This twenty-four hour service saves time, manpower and lives.

Researcher Comments

According to bfi records, this story was filmed on 3rd and 4th March 1954 with a budget of £138 19s 7d. Commentary recorded 6 April 1954.

Keywords

Education and training; Health and medicine; Transport; Communications; Mining; Emergency services

Locations

England

Written sources

British Film Institute Databases   Used for Synopsis
Film User   Vol.8 No.95 September 1954, p436.
The National Archives COAL 32   /3 Scripts for Mining Review, 1949-1956

Credits:

Production Co.

Documentary Technicians Alliance

Director

John Krish

Sponsor

National Coal Board