Friday, 15 October 2010

NHS night riders

Getting vital supplies to hospitals is the key aim of the service Steve Parker-James spends his days as a policeman in Berkshire.

But at night and at weekends he pounds a very different beat - as a volunteer motorbike rider for the medical courier firm Serv (Service by Emergency Rider Volunteers).

The volunteer service, which is available in the south-east of England, offers a free out-of-hours service to a number of NHS hospitals and can be asked to carry anything urgently needed from baby milk to blood products and X-ray results.

Steve admits that in the four years he has helped at Serv, he has become an expert in all things medical.

Continue reading the main storyRelated storiesBaby milk delivered by motor bikeBiker charity offers NHS delivery "I can be asked to take anything," he said.

"It started off originally with us being asked to take blood. That was a steep learning curve for me. I thought blood was blood, but it is not - there are blood cells, plasma.

"Now we carry baby milk as well, which is donated to babies in the intensive care unit."

Steve said his two most unusual jobs had been getting a rabies vaccine for a hospital in Milton Keynes and getting frozen urine to a London ward for next-day testing.

All Serv volunteers are unpaid, receive no expenses whatsoever and give up a few nights throughout a month to be on call to respond to requests from hospitals.

'Humbling experience'

Prior to Serv, the only way hospitals, doctors and other medical establishments could transport supplies at night were by taxi, ambulance, police, courier or transfusion services vehicle, which were costly or a waste of resources.

"We will also carry X-rays, and medical discs as well as medical equipment - quite a broad spectrum, but not emergency deliveries such as organs," said Steve.

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