Wellington Free Ambulance
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wellington Free Ambulance | |
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| Formation | 9 November 1927 |
| Type | Charitable organisation |
| Headquarters | 19 Davis Street, Thorndon, Wellington |
| Location |  New Zealand |
| Chief Executive Officer | John Britton |
| Budget | ~NZ$11 M |
| Staff | 74 paramedics, 63 volunteer paramedics, 55 support staff |
| Website | www.wfa.org.nz |
The Wellington Free Ambulance (WFA) provides free to the patient ambulance services in the Wellington Region of New Zealand.
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[edit] History
The ambulance service was created on 9 November 1927 by the mayor of Wellington, Sir Charles Norwood, and initially operated out of the Old Navals boatshed. The service moved into a purpose built station on Cable Street in 1932, with Lord Bledisloe laying the foundation stone. The board created a long service medal for staff in 1956, for twelve (later ten) years service.[1] In 1994 Prince Charles opened the new ambulance station in Davis Street, Thorndon, after a major fundraising drive.[2]
A WFA officer was accidentally shot in the leg by police during an AOS exercise on 27 July 2002.[3]
On 8 September 2005 an ambulance belonging to the service was stolen during a call-out, the vehicle was found crashed on its side at nearby intersection.[4]
Thieves stole $5,000 worth of equipment and caused $15,000 damage to a WFA vehicle in November 2007.[5]
[edit] Operations
The service annually assists over 40,000 patients in the Wellington Region. The headquarters includes vehicle maintenance facilities, and a communications centre - one of three in the national network.[6] The Life Flight air ambulance service jointly owns an ambulance in Wellington with the WFA.[7]
[edit] Funding
The cost of running the service in 2006 was $10.8 M. 75% of this cost is met by the Ministry of Health and the Accident Compensation Corporation.[8][9] The remainder comes from donations and bequests from the public, proceeds from first aid training and supplies, and medical alarms.
[edit] Resources
As of 2007 the service has the following resources:[8]
- 8 ambulance stations
- 22 ambulances
- 3 4WD rescue vehicles
- 74 full-time paramedics
- 63 volunteer paramedics
[edit] References
- Beasley, A.W. (1995). Borne Free - Wellington Free Ambulance 1927-1994. Grantham House. ISBN 1869340477.
- ^ http://www.medals.org.uk/new-zealand/new-zealand031.htm. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Still Free After 80 Years. Northern Courier (2007-05-09). Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Ambulance officer shot in AOS exercise. New Zealand Herald (2002-07-30). Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Ambulance theft 'stupid'. New Zealand Herald (9 September 2005). Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Ambulance raided while on call out in Petone. Yahoo! Xtra News (7 November 2007). Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Wellington Free Ambulance. Community News. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ Operations Team & Service Partners. Life Flight. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ a b Annual Report. Wellington Free Ambulance (2006). Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- ^ How we help. Accident Compensation Corporation. Retrieved on 2007-10-11.
