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57
AMBULANCE SERVICE.
To the Medical Officer of Health.
I submit the Twelfth Annual Report of the Croydon
Ambulance Service, for the year ended 31st December, 1953.
During the year the Service was called upon to deal with
35,183 journeys and conveyed 87,790 patients to and from
Hospitals, etc. As judged by the number of miles travelled bv
all vehicles—412,178 against 390,535 in 1952—the increase in work
was 5.5 per cent. On a similar basis of comparison the increase
between 1951-52 was 6.7 per cent.
A new method of classifying journeys has been used since
the end of 1951 in accordance with a Ministry of Health Circular
25/51 which stated in item 12: —
A journey means a vehicle's round trip from the place where
it normally awaits orders, back to that place. This place will
usually be its home ambulance station, but where an ambulance
is stationed at a hospital during working hours it will be the
hospital. The journey should not be regarded as being broken
by diversions made to carry out fresh instructions received during
its course."
Compared with 1952 the journeys show a decrease of 423 and
the mileage shows an increase of 21,643. This is accounted for
by reason of the following : —
(1) A more rigid interpretation of the above-mew oned
Circular.
(2) Longer out of the borough journeys.
(3) An increase of 3,794 miles travelled by the Occur- :ional
Vehicles conveying Mentally Defective children
(4) Numerous patients moving from Central Croydon o the
Addington area, thus entailing more mileage per call.
The Ambulance Sub-Committee ruled that Ambulance Personnel
must attend refresher courses for First-Aid every three
years. This has been carried out and 37 men attended and were
all successful.
Four extra men were engaged during the year and have all
obtained their first-aid certificates.