St John Review (1983)

Lionheart Tours

invite you to Tour the Holyland in the spring of 1983 and visit your hospital in Jerusalem

Our tour departs on 9th April and will visit Ancient Jerusalem, Byzantine Avdat and Medieval Acre. Travel in the barren wilderness of the Negev Desert, see the unique natural phenomenon of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth. Visit Nazareth and Bethlehem, sail on the Sea of Galilee and relax at the end of the tour on Tel Aviv's sandy beaches. During your stay you will also visit the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem to have lunch with and meet the staff and witness the wonderful work they do in the service of mankind.

For brochure and further information contact:

Mrs Jean Taylor, Lionheart Tours, 66 Stamford Hill, London N16 6XS. Tel: 01-806 0991

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ST JOHN REVIEW

HAIL and FAREWELL

Bucks'

p.18

News from Sc ot iand - SJA Mus ic Ma k ers p.20

Overseas - National F rst A d Comp etiti on s p .21

News from Division / Centres p .2 2

EDITORIAL and ADVERTISEMENTS Ed ed a nd pr odu ced for the Order of St John by

Dr isco ll Prod uc ions, Wo od Cottage, High Corner, Butley, Nr W oo d bridge, S uffo k IP1 2 3QF. A dvertising rates on request.

Ph o ne: Orf

about t h e new chairman. I am a general practitioner in a group practice of five partners in England's oldest recorded town - Colchester. I ha ve been a m ember of St John for 21 years, and am now Co u nty Surge o n in Essex. I h a v e a s pe ci al interest in the Aeromedical Service, servi n g on the A d visory Pa ne l and also in Immediate Care Schemes - this last is an exte n sion of ones commitment to first aid. Another outside interest is in the work of the Royal College of General P r a ctitioners.

I see the Review as our news pap er a n d ho u se magazjne. It must contain details and photographs of all the m ultifari ou s a ctivities of St John, from divisional award ceremonies to the great Order occasions. But it should have, also, n ews and views from our headquarters both in Grosven o r Crescent and at t h e 'Ga te' - about what's going on. In my view, an d even more important, is its educational role What are the latest advances in flrst aid an d nursing, and on what lines are future devel o pments likely to lead? Absolutely vital are notes on cadet matters and reports on exercises - we all learn from these. Especially, I woul d like to see more reflections of t he nursing side of our work.

Remember though, the Review represents all aspects of St John, Order, Hospital, Association and Briga d e. Watkin has passed on to me an excellent an d im a ginative committee. We are blessed by an editor w ho se d edica ti o n and har d work are pulling the Review out of the financial do l drums But, and above all, there can be no Review without YOU b uying it, either as individu als or thro u gh your counties. P e ase have a monthly session, selecting topics f ro m th e curre n t iss ue t o disc u ss an d criticise. Write to us abo u t it. T h e R eview is for you, all of y o u in St John.

REVIEW BOARD

Mr Watkin Williams, who has been a mem ber of the St John Review Management Board for a little over 11 years an d c hairm an fo r the past 10, retired from the Board at the end of December and has been succeeded as chairman by D r Nor man Paros. T h e p r esent mem b ership of the Board is as follows:

Chairman:

Dr Norman L. Paros (County Surgeon, Essex) Vice-Chairman:

Mr R. S. B. Madeley (Directo r of Services)

Members:

Mr Frank Driscoll (Editor), Mr G erald Easton (Assistant Commissionerin-Chief), Lady Eliza beth Godsal (County Superin tendent, Berks), Lt. General Sir Peter H ud so n (Secretary-Ge neral of the Order), Dr Bernard Lucas (Dep u ty C hief Medical Officer, Associatio n), Mr Richard Radcl iffe (Director of Pu blic Affairs), Mr C olin R ees Jenkins (formerly C hief Comman d er's A d viser).

RESULTS

JUDGES: Men's team test: R. H. Percival of Maidstone. Women's team test: T. C. Taylor, of Marske-by-the-Sea. Individual tests: A. T. Glanvill, of Honiton; J. H. Baker, of Aylesbury; E. C. Fear, of Harrogate; and 1. MacIntyre, of Sale. MeD

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Grand Prior's Trophy

SECOND

SECOND

FOUR pm on Sunday September 26, Terminal 3 London Airport, fifteen Brigade members and the writer assembled at the QANT AS checking in desk. Their destination? Brisbane, for the XII Commonwealth Games which were scheduled to open four days later. A gruelling 28-hour flight lay ahead

The invitation to send a First Aid team to the Games originated during discussions between the Chief Commander and the Chief Commissioner in Australia during the former's visit there in early 1981. It was a logical follow-on from the UK participation at the previous Games in Edmonton four years before, and the invitation when it came a few weeks later was eagerly accepted From recommendations put forward by County Commissioners, and following a meticulous process of selection by the Commissioner-inChief, the team was agreed well in advance and consisted of six ambulance and nine nursing members - and please nobody ask me to explain the inbalance! Counties represented embraced the whole country, including Northern Ireland. Age and experience varied enormously, ranging from the mid-thirties (I guess) to eighteen Two members had never flown before and two had never left the country before. So this assorted company bundled into their Jumbojet on Sunday evening and emerged at 6am Tuesday morning at Brisbane, after refuelIing stops at Bahrein and Kuala Lumpur and an aircraft change at Singapore. Two nights without sleep (worth speaking of) tends to leave one looking anything but perky, so it was a somewhat jaded group who were greeted by a SJA Queensland welcoming party headed by Sister Beth Dawson and Lt-Colonel David Rossi (Chief Superintendent and District Superintendent Admin).

We were whisked off to their very fine new HQ for coffee and biscuits and there met a good cross section of the local SJA staff, including their Commissioner, Dr Geoffrey Gray, who gave us a warm greeting in a short homily from the dais in what was clearly their main lecture room. Here we also met our hosts who were to put us up for the next 12 days. Still feeling, and doubtless looking, very dishevelIed and with grit behind the eyes, our next stop was the Games HQ to complete the· process of accreditation, the main purpose of which was to equip us with a security pass that would afford us unimpeded entry to any Games venue for any event over the whole period. Alas , this involved being photographed, and the result was then suspended on a piece of string round our necks for nearly two weeks, living testimony of man's inability to sleep whilst incarcerated within a Jumbo displayed upon our bosoms for alI the world to see! Finally we were set free to adjourn to our hosts' homes and, speaking for myself, to collapse unconscious for four to five hours of blissful sleep.

The next day and a half were free of any commitments, and provided an invaluable opportunity to recover from jet-lag, to

Public duty Down Under

To Brisbane - to cover the Commonwealth Games by Group Captain JOHN SLESSOR, Secretary Overseas Relations

Incidence of cases requiring treatment were fairly low considering the numbers of spectators (up to 65,000 in QE II) and averaged something over 100 a day. Most of these fell into the category of trivialities, but there were some more serious cases including the odd heart-attack and some incidence of heat-exhaustion, mainly involving the more elderly spectators. A state of affairs in Queensland which perhaps seems strange to us is that SJA is forbidden by law to transport patients by road. This meant that vehicles from the statutory Ambulance Service, not under the direct control of SJ A, had to stand by to convey serious cases to hospital. This worked well most of the time but a few incipient situations arose where conflicting instructions to the ambulance crews could have resulted in unacceptable delays.

All that then remained was a final gathering at St John Headquarters of all SJA members who had been involved Grateful acknowledgements were made from all sides, amid celebratory drinks and buffet supper, the Commissioner then distributed commemorative medals to everyone. These originated from the Games organisers and were almost exact replicas of the bronze medal s presented to athletes. This will s urely

be a treasured memento of a truly memorable occasion and a unique experience for those fortunate enough to ha ve participated.

And so to the long flight home away from 'The Sunshine State' to the gloom of an English winter. This will be that more endurable after such a warm manifestation of international goodwill as was seen in Brisbane,

acquaint ourselves with our hosts and to see a bit of Brisbane and the local area. I was fortunate to be invited to a lunch-party at a house on the bank of the Brisbane River, whence we had a grand-stand view of the arrival of HRH Prince Philip on board HM Yacht Britannia, preceded by her escort of naval vessels from the RAN and RNZN; a fine sight.

On the Wednesday evening the Commissioner hosted a most enjoyable barbecue party, held in the garden 0 f the Military Hospital Officers Mes s. No coincidence that the Hospital CO happens to be Colonel Rossi! All the visiting SJA teams were invited and this was the perfect environment in which to meet each other, and almost all 'the home team', in an atmosphere of conviviality that barbecue parties invariably engender. A better kickoff to the proceedings would have been hard to imagine.

It was on the next day that the fun really began, with the opening ceremony performed by Prince Philip in the QE II Stadium at Nathan, about five miles out of Brisbane. Many readers will have seen this on TV; suffice it to say that it was a spectacle which can only be described in superlatives, beautifully staged under a cloudless sky but with an un seasonal wind of some 30 to 40 knots, which precluded the participation of the Army free-fall parachute team who were to have dropped into the arena. The display by 6,500 school children was a miracle of organisation and perhaps the 'piece de

resistan ce' was the 50-foot-high kangaroo Matilda, mounted apparently on a fork-lift truck, out of whose 'pouch' emerged a dozen Joey s, diminu t ive c hildren comp let e with kangaroo tai ls , who proceeded to bounce up and down on trampolines. An in sp ired bit of imagination It was at the opening ceremony that our First Aid duty began in earnest. The team was completely integrated wi th the lo ca l SJA, and with other teams from Canada, New Ze<iland and Papua New Guinea. All the rostering had been completed by Colonel Ro ssi before we arrived; very generously because out of the ten days of the Game everybody had at lea st four day s free. This enabled all the team to see a lot of the local beaches and other attractions; one adventurous nursing member even took herself on a day-trip night to the Barrier Reef, several hundred miles north of Brisbane. The duty itself was a masterpiece of simplicity; two members allocated to each stand, and occupying reserved spectators' seats while awaiting customers. This admirabl e arrangement meant that those on duty saw a great deal of the Games events as well. SJ A provided first aid cover for the QE II Stadium and also at another site known as the Chandler complex, a few miles away, where the sw imming and diving took place in a pool of magnificent proportions, plus weight -lifting, badminton and cycling. An excellent bus shuttle service between sites, and to the local railway stations, had been laid on so travelling to and fro was no problem.

Both at QE It and Chandler, SJA had mobile First Aid Posts which had been manufactured locally in the form of trailers and could be towed behind a car. Rather paradoxically no accommodation had been allocated within the permanent building s; understandably perhaps, priority had been given to the medical teams whose responsibility it was to keep the athletes in fighting trim. However these FA posts were most comprehensively equipped and were manned continuously by a full s ta ff, including Brigade Surgeons, for lon g periods . It was the policy that they hould be 0 manned at any time that the general public was pre ent, so allowing for the period the y were there before the events tarted, and for the time it took to get them away at the end, duty hours embraced an impressive time-scale. Not too bad at QE II where there was no nood-lighting, at Chandler some of the indoor events went on until lOpm and later, so it was nearer midnight before thos e on duty got home.

Another very pleasant socia l event took place on Wedne day October 6, a day on which all t he visiting FA teams were free of duty so that they were able to attend a lunch party hosted by Sister Beth Dawson. This was a most relaxed and informal occasion which took place in the 'Early Street' historical village restaurant, an early Queensland home sited in the picture que Eulalia gardens, originally established in 1890 Sister Dawson' s hospitality in organising this event was uni versa lly acclaimed as generous in the extreme, and it was greatly enjoyed.

And so this agreeable routine co ntinued until the climax of the whole event, the closing ceremony at which HM The Queen officiated. Once again a pectacular display was staged, largely performed by national dance teams from participating countries, but this time included the Army parachutist s. The general impression was one of ecstatic, colourful and ear-splitting chaos at the centre of which, in the final stages, was the Queen herself, driving round the track in her open Rolls Royce which was mobbed by a wildly cheering crowd of athletes; a really unforgettable spectacle.

First Aider of the Year Competition

IT WAS A new-style national final for the 6th St John Ambulance and Band Aid 'First Aider of the Year Competition' held at the Middlesex Hospital Medical School, London, on Nov 9. The 10 finalists, instead of following their written exam with, one after the other, first aid on a simulated casualty (which proved protracted and boring for the audience), thi year followed a more extended written exam with a true-or - false quiz, que tions po ed by film trips and slides, and then a short, dramatic incident to be dealt with. Th i ne\-\. style 0 f con test certa inly proved more accurate, more probing, and more informative and interesting for the audience.

On tage were ten chair for t he regional finalists and to the right of the stage an impo ing de k behind which sat the judge, Dr A. R. Maisey , our County Surgeon for Oxfordshire. He was flanked by the in st ig at0r of the evening's activities, Lt Cdr John Hammon Secretary Medical Dept, and the compere , Miss Angie Bray of LBC (Radio ). The cene resembled a courtroom with the 'jury' of ten on trial!

Mi Bray interviewed each contes tant as they came onto the stage to take part in the true / false quiz, the marks of which were added to their written te t. At this s tag e th e five with the lowest mark 'ere out (t he y were from Plymouth , Ipswich , Bath, Coventry and Bradford). And the re maining fiv e went on to the next round , in which they were hown film lip and slide of some grue orne accident. They

had to diagnose the injuries and suggest first aid treatment. Thi s section proved the downfall of three more of the finalists. The remaining two - Susan Lover a srudent nurse from London, and Robert Ireland, a police constable from Stockport - were led onto the stage seperately by Casualties Union instructor Brett Murden, but neither Susan nor Bob knew he was a simulation expert. Once on stage with Susan, down went Bren with an epileptic fit in one of the most dramatic performances I've ever seen When Susan had dealt with the 'casualty, Bob \.\'as put through the same routine. And it was from this final te t that the winner was chosen.

Henr y Cooper OBE , the longest reigning British Heavy, eight Champion, had kindly agreed to pre em the £500 first prize - to Susan Lover. Well done, Susan! Our commiserations to Bob Ireland , who put up uch a good fight, a our 'enery would say.

Su an, a Grand Prior's Badge holder of London's Coulsdon and Pur ley Divi ion, \ as the one finalist who nearly needed fir t aid herself before the end of Ih e conle I - lea ving the stage after her inrerview with Angie Bra y he tripped over a hidden microphone wire.

Ou r thank go to Johnson and Johnson Ltd (Band-Aid) for their pon or hip of this event, which is bound to have a very success ful fu ture with this new- tyle presentation. I'm certainly looking forward to the 1983 event.'

Richard Radcliffe 5

The author (right) presents a crystal plate, to mark the UK Brigade team's participation in coverage of the Commonwealth Games to Lt Col John Alwyn , Association President. on behalf of the Priory. (The Canberra Times )

Chaplain

The Revd Matthew Ne lson (Manchester)

Commander (Brother)

Arthur Albert Hammond, OBE (London SW)

Sir Rob ert Leslie Edward Lawrence (London SE)

Edward Arthur Millward, SEN (Bucks)

Dennis Henry Small, BDS, DPD (Salop)

Peter How ard Darby CBE, QFSM, FlFireE (Hens)

Maj William Kenneth Bingham Crawford (Somerset)

Arthur Richard Tozer (Nom)

Peter Harford Cave, MA, BM, BCh (Cambs)

Richard Stuart Biddulph Madeley (Bucks)

Commander (Sis ter)

Grani a Mae ve Rosaura The Marchioness of Normanby (N. Yorks)

Connie Miss Banks, ROSA (Lancs)

Sheila Catherine, Mis s Puckle, MBE, TO MA (London SW)

Mabel Mar y, Mi ss Young , SRN ( London NW)

Doris Ma y, Mrs Robin son (Lancs)

Officer (Brother)

Frank Tomlinson, QPM (Manchester)

Col Eric Coulthard, BDS, MSc (Hants)

Tom Nutter (Merse ys ide)

Marcus Ernest Bishop, MVO (London SE)

Br ian Pet er Har vey Orange (Hants)

Michael Ll oyd Kennedy (Cle ve land)

Maj Nichola s Sk er ran Lawson (Salop)

Revd Canon Donald Clifford Gray (Merseyside)

John Alexander Carter (Essex)

Col William Gaskell Wallace, OBE TO , ADC, DL (Leics)

Roben George Broad (Cheshire)

Raymond John Fowler (Surrey)

Michael George Paul Ke ll y, MVO (London SE)

John Morley, MB ChB (Derby) -

Da vid Frederick King (E ssex)

Roland Loye Duffell, FBIM, MPIM MITD, (Herts)

Joseph Charles Etherington BEM (Nottingh am )

Fred B own (Sa op)

Ralph Terence Ford, QFSM FIFireE (N. Yorks)

Brian Ie Gre s ley (Essex)

Nigel Stewart Elgood (Camb s )

William Anthony Lance , SRN (Herts)

William Gillespie (Wilts)

Julian Alexander Fownes Lut t rell (So mer se t)

Associate Officer (Brother)

H enry Russell, MB, BS DPH, FRSA (Newcastle upon Tyne)

Officer (Sister)

Joan Anne , Mis s Bryant (London NW)

Rachel Moyra, Lady Duncombe (Buck s)

Annie May, Mr s Swabey (Dorset)

Marie Gwendoline, Miss Owen (Manchester)

Ivy Elizabeth Mrs Dead man, SRN (Herts)

BellY Cochrane, Mi ss Charlton (Herts)

Franc es Mary Miss Smyth (Not t ingham)

Lily, Mrs Asplin (Staffs)

Ethel Ada, Miss Llo yd

Rose LiJian, Miss Bowkell (London N)

Ursula, Miss Harri son, SRN, SCM, HV (Surrey)

Joan Mary, Mr s Ranson (Bucks)

Mrs Pearce (Herts)

Gillean, Lad y Troughton (Oxon)

Dilk e, Mrs Farmer TO, SN, HV (Chesh

Rosemary, Mr s Drinkwater, MBE (Middx)

ORDER INVESTITURE

(Cambs)

(Derbys)

John Tucker (North Devon)

Wilson, MB, ChB (Co. Durham)

James Bird (Essex)

(Humberside)

Samuel Sims (Kent)

Denni s Richard Baldwin (Essex)

Frederick Ri c hard Tracey (Berks)

Sir Franci s John Vernon He reward Dashwood, Bt, MA (Bucks)

Geoffrey Talbot Birchall MB, BChir, LRCP LR CS (S. York s John Moses (Co. Durham)

Maurice Frank J ac k so n Es sex)

Stephen Robert Hall (Norfolk)

Sydney Thomp so n (Humb e rside)

Ri chard John Bates (Kent)

Alan George Hamblin g (Berks)

Da v id John Plummer (Hens)

Raymond Cumley, BSc (Derby)

Thoma s Anthon y Raine (Co. Durham)

Arthur Digby (Essex

Bryan Alfred Fow ler (Kent)

Ceci Wright (S. York s )

Alec William Taylor , MB, BS MRCGP (A von )

Raymond John Lunnon (Bucks)

Maurice William Bacon (Cleveland)

Roger Cook (Cornwa ll)

Geoffrey Harold Alvi s (Derbys)

Fre de rick

Charles Nieman (S. Humberside)

Surg Lt Cmdr John Gordon Williams (Devon)

Paul Francis (S. Devon)

Co lin Arthur Gal e (Dorset)

Philip Robinson (Co. Durham)

Ri c hard Leslie Pitt (Essex )

George Arthur Blake (Glos)

Roy Malcolm Le Page (Guernsey)

Peter Frederick Andrews (Hanfs)

Keith Wilson Giles, FRCS(Eng), FRCS(ED), MB, BS ( H ens)

John Henry Northard, OBE (Derbys)

Capt John Valentine Wilkindon, DSC, GM RN (Norfolk)

Colin R oy Greenwood (Manchester)

Donald John Macmillan (Cornwa ll )

R obert Wilkie Thompson MB BS (T y ne & Wear)

William Warren Wal o n (Camb )

Serving Si ter

Jean Patri cia, Mrs W r ight (London EC)

Millicent, Mrs Lo vegrove (Berk )

Frances Winifred May, Mrs Rogers (Buck)

Helen Mr s Firth (Cheshire)

Doris Gladys, Mrs Cobbold (E sex)

Mary Eileen, Mr Richard (Devon)

Daphne Violet Victoria, Mrs Abbott (Berks)

Lilli Elizabeth Maria, Mr Orlik (Buck s)

Ruth, Mrs Williams, SRN (Chesh ir e)

Eileen Dorothy, Mrs Tyrrell (Essex)

Jean Marilyn, Mrs Smith SRN, SCM (Dorset)

Consta nce Mary Mrs Ha yward (Devon)

Ina Mary Mrs Burne (Bucks)

Patricia, Mrs Gear (Kent)

Ruth, Mrs Daye (Cheshire)

Joan Mary, Mrs Clark (Essex)

Theresa Mary, Mrs Ain won h -Cotlo n (Dor et)

Leila Mary, Miss Sandford (Hants)

Pamela Ma y, Mrs Rhodes (Leicester)

Monica Mary, Mi ss Springall. QARNNS (Dorset)

Kat hle e n Joan , Mrs Willan SRN, SCM (Avo n)

Sylvia, Mrs Sach (E ssex

Edith Loui se Mi ss Steed (Glos)

Eileen Flor e nce Mrs Ma cCaig, SRN (N. Devon)

Ph y lli s D oreen Marjorie, Mrs Burton (Beds)

Joan Margaret, Mrs Pa ge (Bu cks)

Hilda Joyce Mrs Roe (Cambs)

Beatri ce Mary, Mrs Williams (Cornwall)

Mary Elaine, Mrs Jenkin s (Derbys)

Kathl ee n Joyce, Mrs D eaki n (Sal o p)

Helen Brenda Mr s Allison (M erseyside

Mary Elizabeth Miss S eve ns (Middx)

Joan, Mr s Pymont, SRN (Bucks)

Mrs N. L. Hill collected the Offic er (Brother) insignia awarded to her late husband. L eo nard

William Hill (Glo s

Esquire

The Secretary-Genera pl-esented C harle s Graham Oswin, of East Sussex, for reception as personal

Esquire 10 the Lord Pr io r

dreamt up by cadets. One of.my friends gested thi s one: Red sky at night, s hepherd .s house on fire! Get your Cadets to try thIS game and send me some original ideas.

Tree games

This game pack has been to make learning about trees fun, educatIOnal and informative. It consists of 12 sheets of card printed with packs of playing cards, and other games for young people 6 years of age. Available from: The EnVIronmental Resource Centre, Old Broughron School, Macdonald Road, Edinburgh EH7 4LD.

Price £1.25 (inc p&p). Discount on orders of three or more.

Books

ARE YOU planning to take your Cadets out on a visit this year? There have been a number of suggestions about to visit over the last few months In thIS column - why not try t hem and ask your Cadets to write to me about them?

This month I have received some information about a Group Visit Planning Pack for the Lake District. This collection of material s for group leader covers group accommodation, ideal for day visits, events and activities across the whole of the Lake District. Public transport, mountain and water sa fety, farm visits, reference and resource facilities are all included The pack is essential reading for all group .a nd is available from Youth and School Liaison Officers, National Park Visitors Centre, Brockhole, Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 ILJ Cheques for £2 .75 to be made out to LDSPB, price includes postage.

RSPCA

You may remember that I recently referred to the help that is available from the RSPCA. I have now received cop ie s of booklet s concerned with pets at holiday time, in circuses the RSPCA Study Centre and an of the order ot' service for Animal Welfare. These and other publications are ava il able from the RSPCA, The Causeway, Horsham Sussex RHl2 IHG Why not ask an RSPCA member to run an Animal Care course for your Cadets?

DIY First aid kit

I've heard about some young people who all carry a small home-produced first aid kit packed into discarded film ca sette holders. They can can rain stick ing plasters, needle and thread, a small finger bandage and a tube of antiseptic. Have your Cadets any ideas for their own miniature first aid kit?

Details to me, please -a Parker pen to the Cadet who submits the best idea. Cadet Chat badges to a ll who submit id eas The only rule - nothing must be inc lud ed in your kit which is no t in accordance with the first aid manual.

Games

My thanks this month to Jill Martin from Kent who sent me details of a proverb quiz (reproduced here) which was used at Dymchurch Camp in 1982. Cadets completed proverbs by using words f rom the list supplied. Here are some of the answers: Love is thicker than blood ; Don't keep all your love in one basket; Many candles make light bright; A rolling stone gathers no blood; Don't keep a dog and wife your elf! There were many more new versions of proverbs

Written by Kris Bax and Don Cole, How. to Succeed at an Interview and How to if you Don t is published by. E.P. PublJshing Ltd , East Ardsley, WakefIeld, W. Yorks, price £1.50, hardback £3.50.

This book is a guide ro successful preparation for job and interviews (and a brief surVival kit for unemployment).

Most people entering t he job market f? r the first time, and many who have In employment, receive little concr ete a.dvlce on how to approach a job applicatlOn and interview. Qualifications alone are no enough. People can let themselves down In any number of basic ways which even the fa ire st of interviewers ca nnot help but take into account. This book contains sound common se nse advice and guidance to help people present themselves in their best light. It contains the essentials of 'The Art of Interviewee -Mansh ip' In these days of high unemployment, even the best qualified and bes t presented candidates may find themselves out of work for long periods of time. How to occuPy that time usefully and stave off de pair and depression is the theme of the last section of the book.

Contributions If

Cadets from all parts of Merseyside who attended a proficiency subject weekend - but a 0 with lot of fun - at Barn ton Dale Conference Centre, Win·al, Sept 3 105. It wa organi ed by CSO(C) Mrs KcK ay with help from ASO(C) (R) Mr Crumpton.

PRIORY CHURCH

III cadets from 16 divisions in London's Northern Area were enrolled in the Grand Priory Church in Clerkenwell on Oct 29probably the first time that such an enrolment has taken place there.

And a few days later, on Nov 5, 80 London members received their service awards at a ceremony also held in the church.

Among the awards was an 8th bar to N/M Lillian Barron, to mark her 55 years (yes, 55!) with the City of London 2N Nursing Division. Katie Pfister, a recent District Nursing Officer, received her 7th bar for 50 years' service.

PRESIDENTS GIVEN FACTS

The opportunity to hear the facts about Brigade life and the Brigade's relationship with the Association - was spelled out in London District HQ on Oct 30 John Bamford, now firmly in the saddle as London's new Commander, welcomed the 40 presidents and vice-presidents from Areas and Divisions and set the tone by telling them that success depended on the way they all 'pitched in'. Sitting in the front, as a visitor rather than a speaker, was the Chief President herself, Marj orie Countess of Brecknock, and next to her was one of London 's vice-presidents, Princess Helena Moutafian Also in the audience was visitor Errol Mathews, a Council member from Trinidad and Tobago.

Explaining the conference theme as about Cadets, John Gerrard, the Dept Comm, mentioned the recent MORl opinion poll conducted for National HQ which revealed that less than 1070 of the 2,500 interviewed were a ware of St John cadets or what they do! He thought that even the third of the presidents attending might not have any real concept of what cadets do to gain the Grand Prior's Badge or the Special Service Shield. (A question all our readers might like to ask themselves - Editor.) He used a good description of cadets as the 'seed corn of the future' and punched home how those in presidential positions could help improve recruiting, training and efficiency.

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

District Training Officer Vic Phillips wa s the right person to follow and he emphasised the importance of trying to get first aid taught in schools as a regular subject and asked presidents to use their influence in persuading head teachers to u se the clause in the 1944 Education Act which allows them to have the la st say in what their school's curriculum should be

The Deputy Commissioner, John Gerrard and Miss M. Telfer (Deputy Di st Supt), both s poke of the problems concerning the absorption of cadets into adult divisions. Mr Gerrard gave graphic examples of the declining numbers of the Brigade in London, which posed particular problems at a time when he demand for its services was increasing. The number of cadets who remained within St John

Ambulance when they became adu lt s was extremely low. Did they become di sillusioned? Were they not made particularly welcome? Wa sn't there enough planned activity?

How co uld we arrest this trend? Mr Gerrard thought that an increase in the number of quadrilateral divisions had advantages, but very careful planning and acceptance by all parties was essential. It was not easy to fit cadets into adu lt duties and thus widen their prac tica l St John Ambulance experience; some duties were not suitable for young people

Miss Telfer thought that adult divi sion s were not venturesome enough, and that humdrum training could not keep the in terest of the younger members. There wa s also the problem of location of meeting

The Ch ef Commander visits (Left) Southend Divisio ns, with the officers. As well as seeing the HQ, he work of the Divisions and meeting many of the members , Major Gen Peter Leu chars also inspected the sea -from first aid posts

And (below) during his visit to SJA Andover, Hampshire, duri ng October, he inspected th e HQ and th ree ambulances and presented awards - here A I M John Holland receives his Grand Prior certificate

AB U

BY THE EDITOR

places, with the attendant ri sks Lo young people making journeys, especially after dark.

Presidents could heJp to so lve many of the problems, firstly by u s ing their influence - if they were attached to cadet divisions - to per s uade the young people to move at the appropriate time to adult divisions; or if they were attac hed to adult divisions, to ensure that cadets were made welcome. Presidents co uld help in organising transport to and from meeting s and in developing parents' organisations.

The time for di sc uss ion was limited but several member s made co mment s, mainly concerning the need for better publicity for our cadet movement at national level; the lack of a proper welcome for cade ts by adult member s; the need for proper ceremonies for the transfer La adult divisions, involving th e presidents.

The Commander summari sed th e day's proceeding s emphasising t h e vital ne cess it y for improving recruiting and arresting the declin e in numbers. He referred to his aim of providin g at least one St John building in every London Borough, which would be the focal point for a ll St John Ambulance activities. H e spoke of the need for an organisation su ch as ours to pay s pecial attention to the deprived area, and that we had to ensu re also hat none of our yo un g members lacked opportunity to develop their Sl John Ambulance potential through shortage of finance. The President' Fund, which Prince ss Helena and h e had started, and which had received generous contributions both from presidents and fro m friends outside St John, had a lre ady done mu ch good. He hoped that support for the Fund, and it s objectives would continue.

THANKS

The Isle of Man 's SJA Commander, Chief Constable Frank W eedon ( right) receives an illuminated address of thanks from the island's hospital administration committee chairman, Arnold Callin, and Betty Han son, Brigade's service to the island's blood transfusion se rvi ce since 1948 The ro,ooo donation was recently received (Photo of M Examiner Group Newspapers)

Open

MOTOR

Members from throughout East Hampshire recently attended

'patient'

COME ON TESNI!

Nursing Cadet

Tesni Stafford, of Northumbria No 1

Area's Grainger Park Combined Cadet Division embarked on a fund raising scheme that was to leave many adults behind her and her St John fnends cheering her W on her way. Tesni StaHord had a go Tesni entered the Great North Run ahalf marathon from the centre of Tyne to South Shields, a distance of Just over 13 miles.

months of training, the great day arnved, last June 27, and with 20,000 she set off. The weather was fairly and St John members manning the aid statIOns the route were keenly looking for Tesm s St John vest and when it was spott.ed great cheers went up and spurred Tesm on her way.

Some 2 32 minutes and 19 seconds later, Tesm crossed the finishing line, to be greeted even more St John members who were kept busy assisting some of the comI?etltors to finish the run, but not our She came striding home to finish in posltlon 16488, and her division was £40 better off.

YOURS

POW FI RST AI D

Hyde,

Essex County Director Joe Bird tells me he and Mrs J. M. Clemance, Assistant DI,rector , were checking first aid certificates pnor to a First Aid at Work refresher course which was to start that day, Nov 3. of the candidates, Mr Arthur Yard, who lS Plant Engineer at the Ford Motor Company's Radiator Works at Basildon Essex, produced the appropriate document: He . t.hen on to produce his first certlflcate, whlch evoked much interest. It appears that during World War II Mr Yard, who was an engineer officer wit'h the Mercantile Marine, was taken prisoner when. his ship was sunk. He was eventually 10 the camp Marlag und Milag Nord, 10 GerI?any. As part of the recreational and educatIOnal activities, a first aid course (or courses) were organised by military doctors who were fellow prisoners. The course was run to then current St John syllabus and candidates were examined in prescribed form. The. certificates were drawn up by another pnsoner who was an artist. to say, Mr Yard values his POW certlficate beyond price. Needless also to say, he passed his 1983 examination !

THANKS

,foll owing extract is from the Spurs offiCial programme of November 6: Would you please convey my thanks to of the St John Ambulance Bngade at Spurs for the swift action my friend Robert Fuller collapsed dunn.g the Southampton game. This occurred in the East Stand Enclosure just before the start of the match which my other friend Paul Abel and myself did not see as we

SURREY RETIREMENTS

(Left) Mrs Christine Tremlett Surrey 's county dent since 1973, receives a farewell gift of a stereo recorder and radio from Lady Heald, (Right) The County Commissioner Mr H. C, (Cyril) Hygate (right) receives a farewell gift from the Commander, Dr A Hi cks, Mr Hygate who joined the Brigade as an A IM in 1939 became Commissioner 1978

accompanied Rob to hospital.

We are very grateful for the invaluable help and would like to pass on the message that Rob is well on the way to recovery.

Once again thanks to the members of St John Ambulance and thanks to the Spurs. l,ads for giving us great, entertammg football.

Adrian Walker, Brentwood, Essex

THE FIRST

The first motorised first aid post ever owned by St John in Guernsey took to the roads, recently, It is based on a Ford Transit ,and hou ses two stretcher trolleys, flfSt aid ,and resuscitation equipment, together wlth water and heating supplies.

The umt , by the Guernsey DIVISIOn with the help of a from the Ladies Licenced VIctuallers Auxiliaries, will be used to present mobile first aid post m the Island. This is a large, welleqUipped caravan which needs to be towed to the site of any duty. of the Guernsey Ambulance DIVISIOn have done most of the conversion themselves, with help from other and from local firms. Org,amsatlOns such as the Leo Club and Vanety Club have donated equipment, and at recent pre ss laun ch many people were Impressed that they offered to find more fmar:ce to help in the equipping and runmng of the unit.

(N. T.)

IN THE CAPE

I hear from Cornwall that Par's divisional nurSIng officer Miss Doreen Tippetts, who returned from a holiday in South Afnca, was asked to present certificates at a

newly-established nursing division in Gugeulethu, an African township near Cape Town.

After the presentations the divi si onal members entertained the guests (Miss Tippetts had been invited to go along by Cape Town Distric t Staff Officer Miss Grace Tiffin) to si nging accompanied by a band.

Members of the new division will work in the community, mainly among the elderly.

DETECTIVE

Nottinghamshire' s Sherwood Colliery D IS Percy Thrubron turned detective when he received a letter from a Mr Harry Whitfield of Bridport Dorset.

Mr Whitfield wanted to make arrangements for a donation to the Division from the estate of the late Dr H. Preston a former Divisional Surgeon but he also if Percy. could find the ex-Capt WhItfield's wartime driver.

Through hi s pit , Brigade and British Legion connections Percy tra ced the captain's driver, Dick Wortley, living only a few hundred yards from the pit. Now there has been a reunion as captain and dnver exchanged stories of driving in the desert and EI Alamein.

USEFUL HOBBIES

Anne McDougall, wife of the Chancellor of the Priory for Wales, has a number of hobbies which she puts to a practical use, 1 hear. Among them are cooking, gardening

and making

Various charities, including the institutions of the Order, have benefited from her activities.

For many years, Anne prepared Christmas fare for members of her own and her husband's families, but as these diminished in numbers, she conceived the idea of offering her 'goodies' to some of her friends - in exchange for donations to a charity of her own choice, As her 'clientele' extended so has her range of articles available. They now include Christmas pudding, made to a private family recipe, mincemeat, cakes of various kinds, and petit fours. Some of her friends ask for special consignments for celebrations other than Christmas.

Each year, the McDougalls raise a number of plants from seed and the surplus from their own requirements go to sales of one kind and another in aid of charity, Tomato plants are a particularly good !jne Any self-sown seedling or promising sucker from the numerous shrubs in their garden are potted off for similar disposal

A.nne's soft toys include teddy bears, golhwogs and wolves. Most of these are presented to charities for sale or raffle, the

sums raised being sometimes quite extraordinary. One teddy bear recently travelled to Jerusalem with Ruth Parks, matron of the Ophthalmic Hospital, to be raffled there at the centenary celebration. In all these activities Anne is actively helped and supported by her husband, Donald Their time and all the materials for the products are donated, so all the proceeds from sales go to charity. In 1981, Anne collected £175 which was donated to assist handicapped St John cadets in Wales to take part in activities which would otherwise be denied them. In 1982, the beneficiary is the Ophthalmic Hospital. By the end of the year, Anne hopes to have collected enough money to be able to present the hospital with a wheel chair.

York's Clifton Comb ined Di vi sion team which holds the world's record for the kiss-of-life': over 10 days (240 hours) they completed 224 029 inflations of resuscianne. They appeared on Roy Cast le' s BBC/TV The Record Brea kers programme on Dec 1. The team are 0 / 0 Kevin Harper N I Ms Kar8fl Thompson, and Deborah Bates A I Ms Steven Chappelow, John Richardson, and (reserve) John Seavers

Guernsey's new mobile first aid post See sto ry THE FIRST

Nurses at War

Captain Terence McCabe was one of several male nurses whose names appeared in the Falklands' honours list. Laurence Dopson has talked to Captain McCabe and other nurses about their experiences on active service in the South Atlantic.

This is their story.

CAPTAIN TERENCE McCABE nursed the Falklands' wounded of both sides in an old refrigeration plant at Ajax Bay. Cork walls constantly dropped dirt and the buildin g was surrounded by mud. ,

Captain McCabe, of 16 Field Ambulance, RAMC - where you have to be a parachutist as well as a nurse - was awarded the MBE in the Fa lklands' honour list. And 24 members of his ambulance team took part in the victory parade in London , joined b y six from 19 Field Ambulance, the other RAMC unit to serve in the campaign.

Earlier, the maroon bereted nurses of 19 Field Ambulance marched with their Parachute Regiment comrades when the Paras had their own victory parade in Aldershot.

Capta in McCabe, wh o trained in the RAMC, says 16 Field Ambulance and a Navy team provided a surgical facility and pre- and post-operative care at Ajax Ba y.

The term resuscitation is not used, he says, in a battle situation the aim is to maintain the patient to the same standard as he was brought in.

'The building was dark and dank and difficult to ventilate,' he says. 'It was terribly dirty: the cork walls dropped 9irt all the time and we were surrounded by mud out s ide which was constantly brought in on boot s. Once the bombardment started we had to compress our facilities into two room s.

'The operating theatre and the pre- and post-operative areas were together in a place about the size of a school gym, and the other ward, to which the patients were transferred, was slightly over half that size. We had three surgical tables working on a 24-hours on, 24-hours off basis, provided there was no pressure of work. If there was, everybody was on The nurses worked shifts of eight hours on, eight hours off: but again eve ryone turned out when there was a rush of casualties.

Patients came in dribs and drabs , he says - the biggest influx was 150 in one two-hour session, when the troopships Sir Galahad and Sir Tristram were bombed

'Nursing standards, as we understand them, can't really apply in wartime. Th e re was no opportunity to wash patient s, for instance . Because of the shortage of water we could only clean the affected parts.

'We gave basic maintenance care - things like feeding, pain relief dressings, attending to bowel habits - nothing else There was no opportunity to turn patIents over or do any of the other things you would in hospital.

Once their position was stabilised, which was generally in 24 hours, the patients were evacuated to the hospital ship Uganda.' 12

But despite the primitive cunditions, Captain McCabe says the success rate was satisfactory. 'Eight hundred wounded, Bri tish and Argentinian, were treated at Ajax and we lost only one in the comp le x.'

He says the co ld actually helped as it caused peripheral shu t down. Wounds were never closed, except wounds to the face; primary surgery removed the debri s and cut off bleeders. The wounds were then packed with gauze and delayed primar y sutures applied five days after.

' The missiles caused local trauma, and I have never see n so many burn s of frightening appearance which were not particularl y sev ere. He says flash burns blacken the skin but are not deep, although extremely painful.

'Most of the flash is stopped by clothing, so the hands and face were affected. Treatment was flimsy: bags were applied for burn s on the hand s, cream and exposure for the rest.

Captain David Leeming, SRN, who joined the Army in 1961 to nurse, ran a high dependency unit at the advanced surgical unit at Fitzroy sett lement. Conditions were less primitive than at Ajax: the unit was in a tent, stretchers were on s upports, the floor was plasticised canvas, like a tarpaulin, and with heaters the temperature was hospital - likethough the climate was very different from

It was not only the professional nur ses and the Navy trained medical assistants who stayed on the ward all day under bombardment, P&O staff volunteered - the woman who on luxury cruises mans the telephone exchange and laundry s taff - they all came forward. (There were P&O nurses on board , but they had to look the ship's crew: ordinary illn ess and aCCidents continue during a war.)

What are the la st in g impressions wh ich the nurses will remember from the Falklands war? St ran ge ly perhaps, humour comes fir st.

Captain Leeming's previous Army Nursing posting to Kenya.

His view of the extended role of the nurse in battle says much for the general team spirit.

'Often during a nursing s hift a nurse can put a cup of coffee down and grab sips during hi s work, but a doctor, who needs both hand s to get on with hi s job, can't. So if you ca n do a task which reli eves the doctor , it enables him to get half a cup of coffee before he starts again,' he says.

We were a team. The medical assistants might not ha ve the polished technique which I ha ve as a hospital SRN who is doing it all the time, but they were able to work with the minimum supervision, a nd , as we say in St John, "they were safe" (Back at the Herbert Ho spita l, Aldershot, where he runs the anticoagulant unit and is infection control officer, Captain Leeming is St John Ambulance Brigade area nursing officer for North East Hampshire.)

The male nurses and the medical assistants of the Army and the Navy also formed a team. The hospital at Ajax was nicknamed 'The Red and Green Life Machine', a reference to the colours of t he Paras and the Royal Marines, under who se command the naval medical and nursing teams operate on sho re

As senior nursing officer, Lieutenant Peter Wellings, ARRC, set up a hospital on the troopship Canberra. Now he is back as senior tutor at the other UK naval hospital, RNH Stonehouse, Plymouth.

Canberra was a hospital without the usual hospital t hings like sl ui ces. Ninety per cent of the patients were nursed on mattresses on the floor and war posed unique nur sing management problems. A staff of 15 SRNs, three physiotherapists, three laboratory technicians, one radiographer and 29 medical assistants on the morning of D-day, May 21, was reduced to eight SRNs and 28 others by the eve ning of the landin gs, and to five SRNs and four others by June 16. On D-day Canberra's hospital took all the casualties from the beach head, until a hospital was established ashore.

'It was not so much bravery as the nursing instinct,' is Lt Wellings' explanation of why during air raids hi s nurses lay on mattres ses on their patients to give double protection to the wounded men from flying glass.

He explains the arrangements for general nursing care: 'I wanted to have one nurse per patient, which worked most of the timea modified nursing process Those who were not working were sent below decks, where they were relatively safe - the wards, with all their glass, were the least safe place on the ship.'

On the lon g journey south the clvllLan volunteers and the naval personnel were trained to s uch a pitch that it a ll came automatically in the real thing 'Everyone was highl y motivated,' says Lt Wellings

'Fear is not a la st ing impre ss ion: it's somet hing that happen s which is forgotten, conveniently for a macho-male,' says Captain McCabe. 'I was impressed at the extent of the competence in the ir job of all my soldiers - they included 19-year-old medical assistants who had only just been trained.

'Tiredness I didn't notice. One got incredibly dirty. Although we managed a strip wash every day, clothing got grubby.

'But what I shall remember mo st was the

endurance and the humou r of the patient.' The humour behind the pain and the way the wounded men helped each other s also t h e abiding impre ssion of Fleet Chief Michael Budgen SRN, RMN. He recalls arranging the repatriation of Welsh Guard s men who were badly injured in the Sir Galahad and Sir Tristram. There were 0 many Jone s' they were given number s to distingui sh them 'I can't find Jones 47, ' sa id Fleet Chief Budge n. From among the burnt faces in front of him came the repl y: 'I'm not s urprised: we all look like blood y muppet s.

CONFERENCE: Surgeons and Nursing Officers

PRACTICAL issues of today featured prominently in the 32nd annual conference of Surgeons and Nursin g Officer s, held at London District HQ on October 31.

After the District Surgeon Dr Colin Dawson had welcomed the assembly of 150 people, who in cluded doctor and nursing officers from nearby counties, he introduced Lt Col Roberts, of th e RAMC, whose s ubj ect was 'The Falklands - Medical aspect

As the CO of the 16th Field Ambulance, which landed in the Falklands from the Queen Mary, he said all his unit had a stro ng St John connection becau e all the medical assistants are trained in first aid.

Apart from the unrealit y of travelling to war in a luxury liner (meal included moked sa lmon), the reality came with s tartling suddenne s when they were plunged into combat on land on which it wa dif f icult to walk or take vehicles. Everything hinged on the abi li ty of helicopters.

Col Roberts said he had three killed, including his second in command, and 18 wounded. His dramatic lecture was illustrated with s lide s.

After the applause had died awa y, he was followed by the Chief Nursing Officer of St John, Miss Rosemary Bailey , who spoke on the role of the professional in St John today.

In the present chang in g conditions and where doctors and nurses in St John have increased in numbers, it was time to question 'What is our purpose?' She was not ure that they were achieving their objective of etting standards and eeing them maintained.

'Who treats the ordinary casualty when he comes in?' she asked, and went on ' It is always the professional. We never give the ordinary member the c han ce to deal with it under our guida n ce, which is what we are there for.' Secondly, she thought the profe ss ional sho uld do more teaching by getting involved and participating in th e work of the divi s ion. Her third point wa evaluation, which made her question whether exam s told you anything about the competence of the mem ber taking partwhich she doubted. Her fourth point, and to some a very contentious one, was that

'more and more unauthorised and sophisticated equipment is getting into our ambulance s' and she plainly said to divisional surgeons 'if you authorise it, you are responsible for it. You are not in the Brigade to practise as doctors or nursesyour role is to advise.'

Miss Bailey added: 'We need to get this very clear, becau se one day am sure that we s hall find ourselves in litigation over first aid given. Where do you stand on thing outside the range of our role?' More pertinent question were posed: Are we teaching too much? What sta ndard do we want? Are we using professional people correctly?' And as a nurse usually gives up practical work earlier than a doctor, 'how can we help them keep up-to-date on nur i ng practice? '

Thi thought-pro voking talk caused much reaction, shaking of head s and questions, the first being , 'Can you elucidate?' Yes, said Miss Bailey, 'you are not pre ent a a GP but as a member of St John and are there to ad i e on treatment .' On a que s tion about treatment of a patient with ca rdia c arrest, Mi s Baile y replied: If you use your defibrillator, you are acting as a GP .' This prompted Dr Dawson to explain that in the London District cardiac unit there is profes ional equipment but alwa y with specialised staff, and that s uch equipment i not used by ordinary SJA people.

The di cussion thi lecture provoked la ted throughout lun c h , a f ilm on the London marathon, and until th e lec tu re by Dr Brian Lewis on the SJ A Aeromedi al Ser ice.

In a humorous style which contained much eriou matter, Dr Lewi thought St John should con ist of a multi-tiered tructure in which there wa in fact a paramed ica I service provided.

' If we do not use the most modern equipment available,' he aid, 'we hall 10 e our va lu e a nd our sta ndin g.' But he saw it u e being ke p t to 'a di c iplined force'. To many ' he ar-hea rs' he aid: ' It i de perately important that we don't turn St John into Dad's Army. We have to ge t young doctors and nurses of the right calibre to join u .'

The re verberations of such stimu lating lectures will no doubt continue for some time, causing self-questioning and reappraisal among all who are invoh ed with St John.

Can we help in recruiting ?

Terence McCabe : What shall remember most was the endurance and the humour of he patients .'

Walter Hoadley , PRO London

AVON: Thanks girls Chief county staff officer Maurice Fox raises his cap to (L to R) Kim White Pam Gingell and Jane Powell at a fashion show by Flair of Clifton

A series on improving your divisional meeting by NANCY SALE

THE BEGINNING of each year is the time when all St John Divisions should be looking ahead. With two new manuals having just been issued in most Divisions at least one Association course will already have been arranged or even started, and all members will be attending this. But the summer is coming and the summer is not a good time for courses because of holidays. It is an excellent time for training away from the Divisional headquarters. All in good time, working out of doors in the dark should be undertaken as a first-aider should be accustomed to working under all conditions, but if a proportion of the members are not used to working away from their headquarters, particularly out of doors, it would be best to start off while the evenings are light.

Even though these meetings will not be held for some months it is necessary to start planning for them right away, thinking of suitable venues and obtaining permission for their use. The sites will vary a great deal from Division to Division depending on whether the area is urban or fairly rural, the type of duties undertaken and the degree of Brigade involvement with Emergency Plans.

There will doubtles s be members with long experience of places where duties are regularly carried out , as soon as permission has been obtained, they should tour the bu ilding or site, however well known, looking not only at the main centre of activity, be it hall, games pitch or race track , but also at the entrance, kitchens, refreshment area, cloakrooms and toilets.

Notes should be made of possible spots for incidents to be staged, with their accompanying problems of access and disposal. Never mind if there has never been an accident in any particular spot. Members will be ready for it if one occurs in the future and, if the incident spots have been well chosen, it will give everyone good practice in working and making decisions under conditions less well known than those at the headquarters.

If public duties are undertaken where there are tiers of fixed seats, even if they tip up , every member should be given the opportunity of tackling the problems the y pose. How will it be best to reach quickly someone who has suffered a heart attack in the middle of a full row? How, if it is decided to move the casualty, is this to be done with the least strain to the casualty and least disturbance to the audience? If an evening is not available for such a practice, owing to the place being open to the public, could the members be prevailed upon to attend at some other time? To make the removal as realistic and difficult as possible the seats on either side of the casualty and those above and below should be filled, so it may be necessary to enlist the help of retired members, cadets and relatives.

A t the sites of agricultural shows and the

Start off the New Year with Nancy: PREPARATION

like, which are only occasionally used and which have few permanent facilities, it is still good sense to have an evening's work there , so that everyone becomes familiar with the lie of the land. If there are any area s, particularly of rough ground, which the ambulances would not be able to reach , stretcher bearing may be practised. Even if never required on public duties , long distance stretcher work might well have to be used at an emergency incident.

Besides those place s where public dutie s are carried out, conside r ation should be given to sites where an emergency incident might conceivably occur. It will at least give useful experience in working in unknown and possibly difficult surrounding s Fa c tory yards and buildings give splendid opportunities for interesting work. So, go over all the possible contacts of member s, presidents and other St John supporter s. Remember too that our St John Ambulance Association provides courses in industrial first aid for many firms.

Schools

Then there are schools of all sizes , with a variety of accommodation. Have an y members connections wi t h a particular school, done a dut y or given first aid in s truction? If so, ask here first, though the initial approach ha s o ften to be made through the Education Department. What about the headquarters of youth organisations, particularly Scou ts and Guides, who rely so much on St John for first aid instruction? Then there are Womens' Institute and British Legion halls, parish and village halls and community centres. If our members have given freely of their knowledge and time to do duty or give instruction at any premises, I do not feel it is too much to ask that those responsible should, in return, be asked to loan the premises to St John for one evening - some would probably even like to join in as minor casualties and crowd. Even where there has been no previous direct connection with St John people are often very helpful. Once you have decided how many

evenings away from your headquarters you want up to the end of the summer (possibly five or six to cover indoor and outdoor visits) decide where your first approaches are to be made and send off the necessary letters right away. Explain exactly what you would like to do, and mention two or three specific dates of which you hope one would be convenient.

Give also the time during which access would be required, allowing half an hour at least both before and after the actual meeting time to allow for preparation and clearing up. Also say it would be neces ary for a small group to visit in advance to do on the spot plannin g. If , like me , you are lucky enough to live near hilly or other open country, members might appreciate an evening or even a weekend afternoon out to tackle steep slopes , rough ground , five-barred gates, river s or ca n a ls and some of the boats on them. Even if t he public have access to the land you visit, the owners , such as the Forestr y Commi ion or National Tru t , s hould alway s be informed of what you intend [0 do I shall write about t he se ' away from headquar ter' meetin g in detail later , but booking s s hould go ahead now and the propo sed v is it s will be s omething for the member s to work toward s By the t ime of the fir t 'awa y' meetin g, member should be well up in both correct diagnosi s and acting a s casualtie , including representation of degre es of re s pon s i ve ne ss. These evenin gs away from headquart e rs with ca s ualtie s scattered o ver a fairly wide area will be excellent opportunitie to te s t members' ability to produ ce a reliable written report on ea c h ca sual ty . (Fir st Aid Manual p. 42) But ho we ver well a fir s t -aider ha s learnt and under s tood the variou s sign and symptoms s pecific to each injury and condition t here are s ome signs that need actuall y to be seen and / or felt. To simulate the s welling caused by bleeding under the s kin, thin foam rubber sheeting cut to variou s size s ma y be used: a lOins square of Y2i n thi c kn ess equal appro ximately one pint of blood so a definite amount of blood loss may be indicated by piece s of the foam laid on or round the bod y or limb. The manual now in c ludes blood lo ss s us tained a one of the mat ters for the report on the casualty , so a talk on blood lo ss by the Divisional Surgeon might be very helpful. It is difficult without elaborate make-up to produce an open wound that gives much idea of its depth and the best that can probably be done at a Divisional meeting, when speed is nece ssary, is to outline the area of the supposed wound with grease paint. This will at least give an indication of the size of the dressing required. Practise on estimating blood los s is very important, effecting decision s as to priority, but on a training evening it would be impossible to use a liquid in a realistic quantity without a very

unacceptable mess. As a visual aid a pint of slightly thinned red paint should be allowed to flow over a sheet of good quality, thick paper; when dry, the paper should be cut away leaving an area of about 3ft by 2ft to represent a pint of blood. Other pieces of paper treated the same way may be cut up and marked as parts of a pint. Members when estimating the blood loss with these visual aids should be told to allow for blood which may have soaked into dark clothing or dry ground, or be contained in swelling; also that all the signs and symptoms depicted by the casualty must be taken into account. Grease paint may be used to depict the size of a burn or scald and the whole area so marked must be cooled. Meetings away from headquarters should, wherever possible, include a burn or scald incident in the kitchen or tea bar, so that members will have to

discover ways of carrying out the cooling treatment under all sorts of circumstances. To produce the irregularity of fractures, any handyman should be able to whittle wood into appropriate shapes, with a thin projection at each end to take adhesive plaster or sellotape. Foam rubber should be used for swelling if appropriate.

Everything I have written this month is about preparation. Preparation by writing letters months ahead to book places to hold away meetings. Preparation of aids to make training more realistic and preparation of ' members so that they may successfully act as casualties for first aid and as patients for nursing care. Preparation, some long term, some short term, is essential for worthwhile Divisional meetings. In this preparation there should be full participation by all members. Let them all make suggesti.sns for places to

go out to, and let them all have a go at acting as casualties, including the use of the aids I have described, and let them become really quick at this. There is so little time at a meeting for all the instruction and practical work that should be done, tha t only a very few minutes should be taken up in the change over of casualties. Would it be an idea to aim at a maximum two minutes for this , pro vided the member concerned knew beforehand what was required? This entails planning each meeting individually at least a week before it is held. Planning and Preparat ion go hand in hand.

First aid is founded on the three P s: Preserving Life; Preventing the Conditioning Worsening; Promoting Recovery. Good Divisional meetings also require three Ps : Planning; Preparation; Participation.

What's new about the Manual?

SO WHAT'S new about the new manual? For those who took their exam before the war, and who feel t hey don 't need the new book becau se t hey sti ll have their original 'black book ', here are a few of the changes in t he ne w edition.

Cardiac massage: Yo u no w don't

Bucks cadet jubilee • review

400 CADETS and their officers paraded for inspection at the Bucks cadet jubilee review held at RAF Halton on a warm Septem ber Sunday afternoon. The inspection was made by the station's commanding officer, Group Capt M. Evans, accompanied by Lt Col R. Payne (he SJA Commander, the County Supt Mrs Jeanne Mercer and Deputy Commissioner W. H. Gibbs.

Ninety cadets were enrolled by CSO Miss Pauline Tullett and CSO Richard Fordham. Lt Col Payne received a cheque for £650 , which had been raised by the county's cadets for the St John Ophthalmic Hospital centenary appeal.

Later, there were stretcher races, a gymnastic display to music (as given at the Albert HaJJ Spectacular), and many exhibitions 0 f cadet activities staged in a hangar.

Lt

could be tOo lat e!

Collar bones: The t r iangul ar slin g comes back to replace t he sill y bracetreatment for fractur es ; bu t no-on e really used the old system, did the y?

Poisons: A new sec t ion a ppe a rs o n household poisons , and food po is on ing (which might be the same th ing?), together with advice on what to do if someone eats amani ta phalloide s. Oooh, nasty!

Anaphylactic shock: A nice new te rm to quote in competitions or to impres s your friends. All it means is an alle rgy

Aches: Backaches, headaches, ear ac he - every sort of ache including a pa in in the neck.

Bandages: An mpro ved sect i o n of dressings , and the St John sling whic h became the triangular sling has now become the elevation sling. Sounds like a new dance craze.

Reprinted from SJA Gu ernsey's [nfo r m al ion Bulletin.

Mrs Evans wife of the reviewing officer presenting prizes to the stretcher racers.

good crowd turned up for the afternoon

(Above) Inspecting officer Gp Capt M. Evans , followed by the chairman of Aylesbury Vale District Council, Lt Col V Band and CSO Tullett

Col Payne, with CSO Richard Fordham, presents certificates

World of Silence

WHEN you look around the world you find there are some people who seem to be the same as everyone else until they begin to talk, then you notice t hat they use their hands to make signs, or raise their voices unnecessarily. Their vo ices too may sound strange, or they may not respond in any way to sound. In other words, they are deaf. These people live in a 'world of silence'.

Try to imagine watching a television programme , particularly the news, with the sound turned off. If you find it impossible to understand what is being said or talked about, then you are beginning to understand the frustrations and problems of those who cannot hear

When you talk to deaf people, remember that they lip-read, so look towards them with the light on your face, open your mouth to speak clearly and use a firm voice. Talk slowly and do not shout. If they do not unders tand, try again patiently, or write down what you have to say.

Dealin g with deaf people who have been in volved in an accident, or who are ill, creates many problems. To know t he finger alphabet and a few signs will be useful and will also gain their confidence. It will be specially helpful if yo u know how to use signs for the following: worse; worry; police; ambulance; accident; medicine; tablets (or p ills); sick; hospital; cold; hot; hurt (or pain); doctor.

by P. M. WHITTAKER

Your next casualty may be a deaf person

the person su ffers from poor hearing, first check that he is wearing his hearing aid, or, if not, whether it is nearby. Deaf people get very worried if they think their hearing aid is lost or damaged, because it's their life-line. So try to find it and reassure them if you can. But do not fit the hearing aid unless you are sure that it isn't damaged and, still more important, that there are no injuries to the person's ears. And it would be unwise of you to try to fit it into hi s ear unless you have already been taught by a deaf person how to do this. Of course it is important that the casualty should, if possible, be able to hear what you are saying; but sometimes it is quicker and safer in an emergency to write down que tions about an accident or injury than to try to communicate b y speaking. Many deaf people are nervous and afraid of the unknown, so you must gain their confidence and assure them that all will be well. They will often look upon people who can hear normally as 'strangers', which makes them frightened of going to hospital, where sitting on a chair or lying on a trolley they see the faces of nurses or doctor lookin g down on them. It takes time to deal successfully with deaf people, e pecially when medical and nursing staf f are only LOO often very busy. But social worker are on call through the Police to act as interpreters for the deaf. Please do not be impatient with the deaf ; they may be difficult but they do

have a reason, a problem.

When you find an injured person who seems unable to hear, check whether the deafness results from the accident or whether he normally has a hearing loss. First of all, talk to him, and if he doesn't respond (he may be in a state of coma or drowsiness, of course) pinch him. If he is deaf he will usually point to his ears.

But a word of warning. A lot of deaf

people can 'read' the expressions on your face, so when you are dealing with an accident try to look calm. And don't say 'You'll be all right' with a worried look on your face. Also, some deaf people pretend to understand what you say when they don't, so make sure they do understand.

And look out for an SOS Talisman, which severely deaf people should wear. Check the Talisman for details of the type of hearing

aid worn and whether the patient has more than one type, and look to see whether any of these are on hi s person.

Remember that deafness is not a visible hancl.icap. And please do not treat a deaf patient as mentally handicapped, but as an ordinary person who just cannot hear. You may perhaps have been wondering how I under stand the deaf and their feelings. I am deaf.

I AM QUITE sure that we have a ll at some time or other made a comment that it would be both interesting and beneficial to attend an official function or event. It was by way of a follow up to such a remark that 1 found myself not only a spectator of an Industrial First Aid Competition but acting as Official Report er for the day, for the St John Ambulance Centre records.

The event was the revival of the St John Ambulance Annua Indu s trial First Aid Competition in Leeds, last held in 1976. The date, time and venue were Saturday , April 17, 1982 , commencing at 9 am in the Riley Smith Hall, Universit y of Leeds, b y kind permi sion of the L eeds Univer s ity Union.

My day began at 8 am when I was collected, with my equipment, which included a lightweight wheelchair, two cushion s a knee rug, t w o walking s tick s details about myself in ca se I were to fall by the way' and a spanner! (I remember the time when a nu t dropped off the wheel of my chair while in transit across Leeds City Station, and since my Guiding da ys I have believed in Being Prepared ,)

Once at the Riley Smith Hall I was treated as a V J.P" and before [had time to gather my wit s together [ found my s elf be ing wheeled to a small table in the main hall, down the side looking toward the' et and the trophies and plaques which were to be presented to the winner s at the end of the day. All the judges had a word with me and several St John Cadets (who obviously wore their uniforms with great pride) smiled in my direction and said a brief 'hello'.

At 9 a m the marshalling officer announced that all the teams had arrived and were in the isolation room, and 0 it was everyone to their posts Being pre ented with a programm e at la s t I was abl e to read the outline of the test which had been prepared by the examining doctors. Members and officers from the Fifth Halton Methodist Boys Brigade unit were volunteer casualties for the day, and at the end] felt t hat they too deserved a medal!

Eventually the casualtie were in po ition, the time-keeper rang his bell, and the vo lunt eer fire service team moved in to co mplet e a 'dummy run '. First aid equipment, spare clothing and other article were provided by the Centre and after checking the time to be allowed , and other points which would contribute toward mooth running, the first competitors were ushered in and t hen it was all 'go '.

Allowing time for the scene - a col ap e of crush barriers in a crowd - to be rep eated ly re-set, first aid stocks to be replenished and the marking steward to take the sheets to the enumerators, six team went through the ir paces, Particularly vivid

A DISABLED PERSON'S VIEW OF A COMPETITION

by Elizabeth Cowling

m y memory is the anguished cry of a bystander , I think he's going to die!'

At last it was time for a lunch-breaka delightful cadet brough mine to me All was quiet. Only two Brigade officers remained on duty at the St John publicity stand.

Gradually people meandered back again. I was determined that somehow I \\-ould mount (he s tairs to see the individual competitors in action, even though it was going to prove difficult. Little did I know what wa s in store for me! Scaffolding had been erected on the wall side of the stairs, leaving barely enough room to negotiate the steep open stair case. (Rumour had it that there was thought t o be an imminent partiaJ roof c ollapse the day before,) For one who sways from side to side like a robot during s uch an exercise (I am encased in a fulllength pinal support incorporating steels, rigid cross-over braces and straps) I began to have second thoughts. However, several St John members came to my re cue and e ventually complete with chair I found my self on the first noor.

Here were two scenes in separate rooms: the first wa the interior of a garage with a workbench set against the wall. A battery charger and othe r tools were on the top. A young man had been re-charging hi car batter y when the accident happened. The battery had overturned striking the man s foot and bringing him to the ground. Acid from the cells had splashed the fronEs of both trou er legs, and he received acid burns to both hin terminating at the shoe tops, There wa also bru sing in the area of the right in -step with a suspected under-lying fracture His wounds looked very red and raw and his foot was obviously painful. His face was pretty grey too , and although able to talk he wa badly shocked. First aid equipment was to hand. A bucket of water was in the corner of the garage and a telephone was in the vicinity

In the second room the scene was a field with a trainer's hut. A footballer was on the ground having lost balance after a practice kick. Hi right knee-cap was fra cured. As with the other casualties the simu lation was

so realistic that when I saw the lacerated right hand - from a broken bottle - I must admit that I felt quite squeamish! Fortunately the patient, although in great pain, was conscious and able to an swer questions intelligently.

After watching two competitors complete the individual tests it was a case of retracing m y steps. There is an old saying what goe s up must come down' and the 'what in this instance was me! How much simpler it would have been to either scramble down the scaffolding or slide down the banister I set off backwards, then sideways, and eventually forwards, very gingerly , one step at a time, a Brigade officer walking in front to give me confidence , and e ventuall y , in spite of my peculiar gait , I arrived much to my amazement and relief - the Brigade officer's too I should think - back on lerra fi rrna!

The hall, by this time, was quite crowded with those who had taken part in the competition and v isitors. ews travelled through the building that the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Patrick Crott y OBE , and the Lad y Mayoress , had arri ed, and while they watched the last indi idual competitors we in the hall relaxed and enjoyed a cup of tea. The Lord Mayor and his lad y joined us to watch the final team and once again there wa s quietne ss a s thi s group of young people carried out its emergenc y task

During the time allowed for the final ma r ks to be checked, tension gradually mounted, and there was an air of excitement as the official party mounted the platform The Centre chairman, Mr Gerry Vernon welcomed everyone and spoke of the aim of the first-aider to improve both his own standard and the quality of first ajd at his place of work. The President, Mr Gordon Tollefson , thanked everyone who had made the day possible; besides the 60 competitors reserves and representati es who had attended the event 75 St John Ambulance Association and Brigade members h a d been on duty in ariou \ ays. It had been a fir t cIa s competition and demon !ration of both knowledge and skills.

A for me I have many memorie including one of an enthu iastic young cadet who took it upon himself even though hi s job a a marking te\ ard was almo t a full time occupation, to keep a watchful eye on me As one who uffer from an abnormal and painful sideway curvature of the spine a hunched back and wri drop, to mention but three of m di abilities, I thank the member of the Leeds Centre for kindne and understanding in a cepting me, and fixing it' for me to become a roving reporter for the day.

MIXED TEAMS RULING

from Miss C. Williamson. Divisional Superintendent

I cannot be the only one to read with disbelief the 'Mixed Teams Ruling' tucked away in Around and About (Nov).

It may have escaped the notice of those at Grosvenor Crescent, but most Divisions these days are combined, if not quadrilateral, and all members of whatever sex are first-aiders. There are also many men and boys who undertake nursing duties. As with most Divisions, certainly in this county, the female members greatly outnumber their male colleagues and we have always had severe difficulty raising a predominantly male team. The same applies to our associated combined adult division

Why on earth can't we have a female first aid team or a male nursing team, if that's what the members prefer? It seems to me that there are some male chauvinists somewhere who feel afraid that, horror of horrors, a women's team could beat them Shocking!

I write wi t h some knowledge of competitions as my cadet team gained 3rd place in this year's Nationals , and our adults team twice reached Nationals. Under the new rules the adult team may well have to fold up.

Cannock, Staffs Carolyn Williamson

from Mr D. E Poole

The reasoning which led to the issue of Association Circular Al /230 can be understood by the statement in the second paragraph that the 1983 Grand Prior competitions are intended for teams which compri se four member s of the same sex It is, howe ve r, difficult in these enlightened da ys of sex equality to apprecia te the justifi cation for thi s intention.

It is said to be in fairness to all competitors', but it appears that i f three members of one sex form a team with a member of the opposite sex the reserve cannot take their place in the event of one of them being unfit, a s the reserve must also be of the sex of the minority member and can only take that member s place This obviously puts the team at a disadvantage.

This has, of course, necessitated the amendment to Brigade Regulations, Appendix E, and thus we have the Brigade on one hand encouraging i t s male members to take a nursing qualification but limiting their participation in a nursing competition. Would it not be more logical for the competition to establish the best team irrespective of the sex of the members?

Wolverhampton

from Mr R. T.

D.

E. Poole

With reference to the new rules for competition mixed teams, I can only say that I hope very much that these will be changed before the 1983 competitions

With the rule to be amended, it would mean that a team would be excluded from competing should a male member go sick when only a female reserve is allowed.

My little knowledge of the national competition rules must now read that the dominance of the sex is maintained by the reserve being of the se x into which competition the team has entered (ie, male reserve in male section , female reserve in female section).

Within my Special Centre I am a member of a very successful team which contains a female member (four males, one female) If we should have to change our reserve to a female, who can only replace our one female member, should one of the male members fall sick (as has happened) we shal l have to compete with a three handed team. However, as now with a male as r eserve, who can take the place of males or the female, there is no problem and the team can still go in with a spor ting chance.

Come on St John, please think again Thi s amendment is a backward step. Plea se don't take it.

Bradford-on-A v on R. T. Cooper

USE OF RADIO

from A. T Bowers. SEN. One Star Nurse

The letter from Mr Bareham (Nov Review) prompts me to make several comments.

Confiden t ial informat ion passed by radio is being transmitted by the wrong form of telecommunications, and open to monitoring by outsiders whether illegal or not; a prime example being Police tran smissions which have been the target of both criminal and nosey alike

for man y years The Brigade frequencies are al 0 availa bl e to outside listeners on an y normal VHF dom estic radio, a l t h oug h the li ste n er has to be 'interested' enough to find out where we are. The same applies to CB radio.

While the memb ers of the Bri ga d e attempt not only to provide and maintain their uniforms and equipment at a reasonable standard, t h e standards o f care (includin g effective transport) are being in crease d. Increased standards lead to increased financial burden, and the withholding of chea p er bu t just as effective systems has no defence.

Access to outside u sers i s a bonus, a nd not detrimental to the Brigade, as you will agree : a. Access to emergen cy monitors to ca ll for assistance - both in isolated and urban areas.

b Liaison with mar shal s of other organisations when they are on the same dut y (eg sponsore d walks).

c. Duties where members have to operate a first-aid post and ground cover without bene fit of Brigade ambulance or radios, but CB u se rs are onsite and will provide contact facilities.

d E x tended range and use of ba se stations, giving both field and headquarter s per so nnel communications when necessary, with the po ss ibility of messages b eing re layed to divisional headquarters in other towns, b y CB user s A link very useful in cases of emergency w hen telephones are ou t of order.

Finally , as mention ed be fo r e, no radio channel is comp letely c onfiden t ial unle ss sc ram bl er devices are fitted. Many sho ps offer for sale radios which co ntain a tuning range to cover most VHF mobile services, eithe r manual or electronic scan. Only necessary information is ever passed by radio, and a simple code for injuries could be devi se d as a national standard for the Brigade.

Northampton A. T. Bowers

NEW MANUAL

from Alfred T. Smith, Divisional Superintendan

Having placed an order w ith Headquarters Supplies Dept for new Manuals for all m y di visio nal members, I was pleased to have delivery today.

Briefly looking through a copy immediately on arrival to obtain first impressions of the n ew edi tio n I was initially very pleased, but being associated with th e print in g industry I was extremely surprised to find the printing of thi s manual has b een carried out in ITALY.

We are constantly being ur ged to BU Y BRITISH to ensure the employment of Briti sh subjec ts in British industries.

Being a director of a Midlands company of photo-lithographers, I am particularly c on cerned to see suc h a large printing order being carried out by foreign competitors.

I respectfully wish to know why this printing and bookbinding order was sent abroad. There are man y book publishing compa nie s in Britain quite capable of carrying out this work and bearing in mind the future reprints of our manual, I view with d ee p co ncern the decision to buy from 'foreign sources' this n ationa lly demanded fir st aid publication, prepared by our thr ee recognised first aid organisa tions.

I look forward to hearing your commen ts on this policy of purchasing from Italian printers rather than printers in Britain.

Leicester Alfred T. Smi th

TURN OUR ATTENTION

TO

from Norman F Nicholls, Corporal

As a dodderer of 51 years service with the Brigade, I would pomt out to DIS K. Black of Sheffield (Dec Review), a dodderer of 51 years old, he' s not read his book too well re metric and English measures in the new manual

Please turn to page 21, item 3, which states 4 - Scm or 1\12 to 2/1. I could quote another.

This book is printed for use in many countries and we must adopt the metric system here in Britain Some of the reintroductions, such as snake bite, frost bite , etc, make this obvious.

I am now retired and will have much more time to study thls flOe new book, which has co me a long way from the old little black 38th edit ion on w hich I first started in 1931.

I feel that now we s hould turn our attention to modifying the uniform Throwaway our tunics and buttons, and have zipper-type combat jackets or anoraks I feel th is could ev en help get more members.

In fact rather feel we have too many officers and not enough soldier s, and I am glad after 51 ye ars that I ' m still a soldier.

Oxford Cily Divis i on Norman F Nicholls

CARRY ON UNTIL I DIE

from Mr E. A Pottri ll, Ambul a nce Member

Since I have been a very active ambulance mem b er in the Bri gad e for 42 years, you may be tempted to ask how it s I ha ve received no promotion. I can suggest two reasons: (1) 1 d Id .n ot put all I!l y into one basket, but ha ve been active ly involved m two orgamsatJOns and happy to serve in the humbles t capacity in both ; (ii) maybe I was not, as they say, 'officer material'! .,

The message that I want to put across is that, SInce h el pm g others is a good Christian principle, we should do everyt hing po ssi ble to go out and 'preach the Gospel of St John' - not ju st in w hat we say but, st ill more important, in what we do. Gain as mu ch k no w ledge as you can by attending lectures. Gain experience by actually doing first aid. Give first aid instruction to anyone who is prepared to li ste n and learn. It is possible that none of this will ever gain yo u promotion, but that's not what really matters; you wi ll ha ve the satisfactio n of knowing you have helped someone in ti me of need

When I think of the f u ture, I feel that I wo uld hke to carryon doing first aid until I die, provi d ed that I'm fit and able to do it. I cannot imagine what I would do wit hout St John!

But I do think that a change in sty e of the adult uniform would be welcome; having done lots of pub li c duties I know how uncom fortable it is to work in. Try going into a foot ball crowd to get to a casualty, and by the time you get there you're n early one yo ur self! would like to be allowed to wear a cadet-sty le jacket, and a beret which is easily taken off and popped into your pocket. I have tried to mention this subj ect locally, without much success. Maybe I ca n ge t some support from readers.

Stratford, London E15 E. A. Pot/ri ll

FIRST AID AT WORK

from O H Nu rse

I was interested in the reply (Sept Review) about instructing for the HSE requirements now in force . I'm afraid I cannot see w hy a Register e d Nurse Tutor s hould be th e only nurse excu se d the f ull 2- da y co ur se, as very often a ll they teach is nursing, sel dom first ai d, let alone first aid at work. In fact most hospi tal nurses would be t he first to admit that they have little knowledge of pure f irst aid. I know they seldom understand our problems at th e place o f work, because it isn't in their training. Surely, t h erefo r e, an occupational he a lth nurse, who has also b ee n in SJA for man y yea r s, ha s suffi cient knowledge to teach first-aiders at work and only need s fa miliari sation of t he new package, as with doctors?

Also, having recently seen part of t h e new packag e on burn s and sca ld s, I cannot quite see how sta ndards will improve (unless ours ha ve b ee n much hi g her h an others in the past) It s eems to me that it is the wrong way round, A being treatment, B signs and symptoms, and C ca u ses, etc. Surely in order to tr ea t and dispose of properly , a correct di ag nosi s is necessary? In the new manual an aid to diagnosis is the area and depth of a burn, and it is not important that a firstaider uses t hi s as a guide as to whether to send someone to hospital. Yet this is C in th e p ackage (need only be mention e d if time permits).

do other occupational health nurses think ? O H. N urse " North of Eng land (Name and address supplied)

htl S91 Ronald Gordon of Moreton Division, who received the BEM in the Birthday Honours. It was presented to him by he Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside Wing Commander K. M. Stoddart President of the St John Council. Sgt Gordon, who joined the Claughton Ambulance Divi sion Birkenhead in 1958 became a Serving B rother in 1981 ( B e ow) Moreton cadet team who represented Wallasey in the annual cadet competition between them, Ham ilton Ontario (Canada), and Southwick, Sussex. 1982' s winner was Steyning Sussex) Ambulance Cadet Division

(Right) Wallasey membe rs raising fun ds for the cadets and he Ophthalm ic Hospi ta Merseyside

(from F. Blaine)

Above The Surgeon- in-Chief Dr J. C. Graham (Ieh). with County staff officers addressed the Merseyside one-day conference on new training

NEWS frolTl SCOTLAND

WAITING lists in Aberdeen hospitals have reached crisis levels with over 5,000 patients queuing for routine operations. The St John Nursing Home in Albyn Place is the only private hospital in the Grampian region and it is timely that just when demand is greatest it is undertaking extension of its premises, financed by a public appeal for £250,000. The new wards will provide an extra 14 beds. Consultants from various departments in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary perform operations 'for very reasonable fees' and the Home charges £50 a day for accommodation and nursing care, rates that are amongst the cheapest in the country. In a few deserving cases patients receive help in paying their

SJA MUSIC MAKERS

A band

""ithout instrul11ents

That first public performance. (Photo:

GUERNSEY'S new St John band has a number of achievements to its credit after only one year of existence - some more notable than others.

It was formed in November 1981 by AIM Shaun Stacey and Cadet Leader Simon Goss, and by Christmas it must have been the only 39-member band playing with just two instruments - one trumpet and one clarinet!

Rehearsals were held once a week, with members of the drum section practising with improvised drumsticks on table-tops in the headquarters! Attempts were started to raise money for the new instruments, or at least to buy more tables, and at the beginning of April a batch of new instruments arrived.

The funds for these were raised largely by the hard-working Cadet Parents and Friends Association in Guernsey, and just a week or so after they arrived in the island, the band gave a short performance to the Association and parents at a presentation evening.

Rehearsals started in earnest for their first public performance at the end of May. This was a popular open-air coffee morning and fete, and the band gave a very professional

20

(Photo:

fees. The relationship with the National Health Service is described by Dr Stanley Black, Medical Superintendent of the Home, as being complementary - 'We try to give a complementary service to the NHS by keeping the waiting lists down.'

A steering committee has been set up in

Ayr to es t a b lish a bran c h of Gla sgow -and South We s tern S t John A sso ci ation in the A yr di s tr ic t , wher e th e r e a re a number of member s of the Order w ho might even t u a lly form an Order Co mmit tee for A y rs hire.

Edinbur g h St John Ass o ciation r a ised ove r £2 , 140 at their fla g da y N.M B

4 T ea m To tal

52 143 332

50 119 289 43 128 282

36 120 1/2 280 1/2

45 109 1/2 264 1/1 H eywood

37 107 1/2 259

34 110 1/1 2581/2

Wom e n 1 No rth Ea t, C levela nd 37 27 1/2 52 1/2

2. L o nd on P o t al, Croydo n 40 25 1/2 52 1/2

3 Sco tl a nd , Glasgow 4 1 22 1/1 50 Y2

4 North W es t , Li ver pool 32 24 1/2 43 Y2

5. Wa e , Br id ge nd 28 27 43 1/2

6 Sou th We t, Sou th a mpt o n 31 28 43

7. M idl an d Stoke on Tren t 28 29 33 1/2

8 No rt hern I re land, Omag h 33 22 1/1 20

9. Ea ern, Chelmsford 30 27 1/2 6

Max M arks: 60 60 60

{A so see p.23}

demonstration in front of a large crowd le ss than two months after they'd unpacked their instruments for the first time.

Bandmaster Shaun Stacy visited the UK the same month to see the Black Knights Band at Shoreham-on-Sea and to mee t Rory Gillam, and no sooner had he returned than the band was in demand once more. This time it was to perform at the annual review of the Brigade in Guernsey, attended by the Commissioner-in-Chief, and then to play for the St John's Day parade and church service. This they did with commendable efficiency, and by this time the band had become the only one in the Channel Islands to operate with solely front-facing brass instruments.

There are now over 40 members: juniors, cadets and adults aged between 8 and 18, making up brass, woodwind, percussion and drum sections. The Guernsey band uses concert flutes, rather than the more usual military flutes, which gives them a wider repertoire, and is notable as the only band in the Channel Isles to use valve trombones. In less than twelve months Guernsey has

developed a S t John band of which it c an be ju s tly proud , and if you think it audaciou s of a ne w band to ac ce pt e ngagements just two months aft er re cei ving instrument s , just listen to t hi s. In Octob e r t he y had the nerve to play a t an annu a l mili t ary parade in Guern sey, a ttended by se nior island official s and organisation s, a long s ide the Royal Marines Band of the F lag Officer, Plymouth!

The Guernse y band ha s come a long way in just twelve month s , and is improving all the time. It is already working on the next project which is to form a bugle section. The players have work ed ex tremely hard, and being generally quit e young s how a great deal of promise for th e future

With the financial support of an active parents and friends association, and a 'band' of enthusiastic youngster s (sorry!), it shows what can be done with the limited resources of a small is land - a s long as the headquarters ha s good solid table-tops! After all, even the Royal Marines had to start somewhere.

Neil R. Tucker, PRO

OVERSEAS

Kedah, Malaysia

ON Se pt 4 19 82 St J o hn Ambulan ce of t h e

Mala ys ia Slat e o f K ed a h h e ld th ei r a nnu a l

nspection at Alor Set a r. Th ey we re in s pec ted by HRH Tuanku Haji Adbu l H a lim Shah

DK , KStJ the Sult a n of Ked a h, ac companied b y th e SJ A Malaysia , E n cik Z ainal Abidin bin Endot ,

102 228

99 222 1/2 2 1 93 189 1'1

of the hospital. (Photo: William Gordon)

Guernsey Press)

Part of the service and rescue display mounted by the Glenshee Mountain Rescue Team in the grounds of Scone Palace , Perthshire during last August.

Perthshire Advertiser)

Ne\Ns from Divisions/Centres

(Photo: Peter Jackson)

ove r a tho u sand b ranc h es of arteries and nerves (4). 14. Showing ext

e m e pa ll or c h aracteristic of severe blood los s (5). 17. Tooth b etwee n in ciso r a n d p re-mo l ar (6) 18. E liminate waste products of m etab oli sm f r om a Med iterra n ea n island (7). 21 Se lJ sin wro ngly p r odu cin g di sease (7). 23 In co n fusion I spoon su bstance in j u rio u s to h ealth (6) 25. Artery fou n d in pa tell a or talu s (5).27 Meat pa ste fo r th e h ea d (4) 28. Irritation of t h e skin from s titching (4).30 T ype

of g la nd w h ich may be in red co n e (9) 32. Gave medicine (5) 33 F ly s p re ad ing sl ee p ing sickness i s in teste s (6) 34. Narrowing o f an

a n atomical pa s sage (8).

Down

1. Clears disorder in the w h ite of t he eye (6). 2. Member of O rder found ed to t r eat sick a nd inj u red p il g ri ms in th e Ho l y La nd ( 11 ). 3

R e-mod el on e s fac ial feature (4) 4. Separa te fro m other s to avoid

spr ea d o f infec ti o u s d isea se (7). 6. Ray s emitted by rad ioactive a t oms

i n p roxi m a l p h alanges (5) 7. R odent sme ll ed w h e n a deceptio n is s u spected (3).8 Tw ist a r m in leg to feign illn ess to avo id work (8).9

Di sease w hi ch is co n ti nu in g an d prog re ssive (6). 15. Expectoratio n of bl o od f rom th e resp iratory tract (1 1). 16. Parasites t r ansm i tti ng

ty phu s fe ver and oth e r diseases (4). 19. Fo rm ed b y t h e m e n ta l

pr o tub e ran ce of t h e ma n dib l e (4 ).20 Joi n st ru ct ur e p r o du ce d fro m

g iant elm (8) 22 I n fect ion of wound b y pu s-fo rmin g o rgani s m s (6)

23 P e r son und e rgo in g m edi cal reatm e n t wit h fo rb ea ra n c e? (7) 24

I s land oc cupi ed b y th e K ni g h ts of St Jo h n fo r over 200 years (6).26

Opaqu e ring ro und o u te r pa rt of cornea in t he elderly (5) 29. Oneeye d g od o f Norse myt h o l ogy (4 ) 3 1 Expi re (3).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No. 12(82) A p r

of

Plalig nulI1 p e n will

a warded to th e sen d e r o Ihe fir s c orrectly comple ted Cross word No 1(83) opened on Feb Se nd 10 St J oh n R e v ew, Wood C Ollage, H igh Corner, B utley, Woodbridge, S uffo lk IPI2 3 QF. Winner Cro s sword No 11 : M s s A. S Bowler , 16 Cote Lan e All e rton Bra d f ord, W Yor k s A c r o ss : 1. T a p ; 3. Turco p o lier ; 9 . N erve root; 10 H· ea r t; 1 1. Inm a t e; 12. A · far ; 13 O va; 15 Sad d le r ; 17 O'cc 'p u t; 20 C ur ; 21. S el fis h; 22 T opical; 24 Rib; 26. M u ff ; 27 . T undra; 30 T o wel; 3 1. Op e ration; 32 Me dia s tinum

NITRONOX EQUIPMENT

NITRONOX has 2 unique and important features

THE FIRST IS A FACILITY FOR TWO HOSE CONNECTIONS THEREBY MAKING IT POSSIBLE FOR TWO PATIENTS TO BE TREATED AT THE SAME TIME. THE SECOND IS INSTANT GAS INHALATION THE MOMENT THE UNIT IS SWITCHED ON.

Nitronox* equipment for use with Entonox ** gas (50% Nitrous Oxide and 50% Oxygen) consists of the two stage regulation of the gas resulting in patient-controlled inspiration.

In the first stage the pressure in the cylinder is reduced to aproximately 120 p.s.i by means of a piston operated regulator The gas is then conducted to the second stage regulatOr (or demand) regulator by means of four feet of gas conduction hose secured at one end by quick release coupling and at the other by a knurled hand tightened ring

The second stage regulator is a diaphragm operated fail-safe downstream tilt valve requiring a maximum inhalation pressure of 2cm / wg. The mask connection is international

Rugged durable and dependable , Nitronox * is supplied with a heavy duty carrying case with shoulder strap (o n request) in the blue colour code of Entonox ** and conforms to all relevant British Standards.

SAFE PAIN CONTROL

Nitronox " equipment can be used safely by even an inexper ie nced first aider providing the pa tient controls the amount of gas inhaled.

Pain can be medically harmful and so the speedy provision to the patient of pain relief can be instrumental in assisting the patie nts eventual successful recovery

One of the most impo rtant values to the use of Nitronox * is that the gas acts as a pain -kille for only as long as the gas is being inhaled and therefore has no side effects to hamper or delay subsequent treatment because the effect quickly d is appears.

Users of Nitronox " need not be professionally qualified but fi rst aid know l edge is desirable. Certainly it should be clearly unde rstood th at the gas is a fairly powerful analgesic (pain killer) but it is not an anaesthetic (comple te deprivation of sensation) although patients tend to drows iness and may eve n lapse into unconcio us ne ss. It should also be clearly underst ood that th e gas is inhaled as the pat ent requires it through the demand valve and the patient should be the judge of how often it is inhaled. Therefore , only in exceptional circumstances (such as injury to hands ) shou ld the mask be held to th e patients face

The patient should be told to ensure " a good seal " - mask to face- for effective use and also informed tha it often takes two or three minutes before pain relief is obtained.

•

A long day's night

WHERE were you on New Year ' s Eve?

154 members of London District , including eight doctors and 16 nursing members, joined the 65 , 000 revellers in and around London s Trafalgar Square, taking with them 19 ambulances, seven mobile units, and plenty of patience and tact. All of which they needed. This arm y of skilled helpers , a present to the people of London, came under the control of the London Ambulance Service.

The evening of revelry went off as ex pected , with the medical teams dealing with the usual crop of minor incidents, including a fire in a car's engine put out by the prompt action of two of St John drivers. And then soon after Big Ben had tolled in the New Year, a part of the crowd making for home suddenly turned into a surging, panic-stricken stampede.

The result? Two women were trampled to death. Our members treated 502 cases, 141 of whom were taken to hospital. Another man died of an asthma attack elsewhere in the square.

London's Deputy Commissioner John Gerrard was in overall command of the duty, while the Commissioner, Derek Fenton, accompanied the Chief Commander and the Superintendent-in-Chief for an on-the-spot view of this London District duty, in which some of our members were involved from 6pm till 4am. A long day's night.

The Editor

COVER PICTURE by P. MARLOW

THERE is no need to outline to such a congregation as this the history of the Ancient Order under whose auspices we meet for worship today. Its long and complicated history has been written, and its outline at least is known to most of us here. Suffice it to say that the Order began in the 11 th Century with the creation of a hospice in Jerusalem for sick pilgrims from Europe who were visiting the holy places of Palestine.

So there are two links which join that faroff era with us today - the sacred place of Jerusalem, and the sacred cause of healing.

The eyes of the world in recent months have been on this city. On that we do not dwell today. Rather, we thi nk of its sacred associations - for Muslims, for their great mosque stands on the site where the Jewish temple once stood; for Jews, for it is the dearest place on earth, the centre of their worship for many centuries, 'built' as the Psalmi st said 'as a city that is at unity in

At the investiture held in the courtyard of the St John Ophthalm ic Hospital on Oct 5 1982 the Lo rd Pri or, Sir Maurice Dorman, invests John Wright. caretaker of St John's Gate , as Serving Brother

itself, for thither the tribes go up, even the tribes of the Lord; there is the seat of judgement, even the seat of the house of David. 0 pray for the peace of Jerusalem '; and for Christians, for there their Lord visited the temple as a boy; there he taug ht and outside its wall he died and rose. How right, then, that it was here that the Hospice was created the best part of 1,000 years ago, and how right that it is here that we meet this week. So much for the place. As to the cause of healing, our Order stands today, above all else, for the alleviation of suffering and for aid in cases of disaster and distress. It is this which brings us to Jerusalem this week, for, within the

The answer to spiritual blindness

Address given by the Most Reverend Th e Lord Coggan, PC, DD, Prelate of the Order of St John, at the Service of the Order held in St George's Cathedral, Jerusalem, on October 4 1982.

overall suffering of the world, blindness has a place of very special significance. Here th e Order has done, and is doing, some of it s finest work. Here in Jerusalem that work has its focal poin t in the great Ophthalmi c Hospital on the Nablus Road. For 100 year s that work of compassion has been going on not always on this site, and often beset b y great difficulties of war and lack of finance

Here research is carried out. Here nurses are trained. Here some 4,000 operations ar e performed every year and 35,000 out-patient s are seen. All this work, and much besid es, is done without distinction of race, class or creed. The one object is the relief of human suffering and the exercise of lo ving compassion. It is a noble work.

This is a cause worth ce lebrating Th e Centenary of the foundation of t he Hospital gives us all the opportunity to ensure that th e work is established on a firm financial basis.

Hence our appeal fo r five million pounds

The hope of the Great Officers of the Order of the Executive, and of all who have the welfare of the Hospital at heart is that before we return to the countries from which we have come, we shall be assured that our aim is fulfilled and the possibility of closure is banished once and for all.

What a curse - what a menace to human happiness - blindness is! That is why the Ophthalmic Hospital looks to us to give them the tools to use their skills to alleviate its cruelties and, so far as is possible, to eliminate its causes.

We are, of course, aware that there are many kinds of blindness other than the physical. I refer to mental, moral and spiritual blindness - dread realities of everyday life There is mental blindness, a kind of blockage which makes us imperviou s to arguments from the other side our

The Dean of St. George's Cathedral, Jerusalem the Very Reverend David Elliott, receiving the symbols of the Order during the service of commemoration and rededication held in the Cathedral on Oct 4 1982

mind is already made up, inflexible. This kind of blindness leads to the intransigence we see in long drawn-out strikes and in interracial and inter-national conflicts. Our world is, alas, full of examples. We have not far to look for some of them.

Then there is the blindness brought on by a materialistic approach to life and truth. The only things that matter, so it seeD?-s. to many are the things that can be quantlfled in of money or material possessions or position in society. That blindness is symbolised by the story of the two men who stood before a great work of Art. One was awe-struck by its beauty Said the other: 'I don't see anything in it. To which the first replied: 'Don't you wish you could?' I well rememb er sitting at dinner one night not so long ago, next to a lady, obviously of ample means, and describing to her the work being done by a woman gynaecologist in Pakistan, near the Afghan border. The conditio ns there are primitive, the work exceedingly hard. 'What a soul-destroying job!' said my friend. I gasped. 'This kind of life,' I said, lookin g round at our luxurious table, 'is far

ON BEHALF of all our readers we most warmly congratulate the following five m embers of the St John family whom Her Maje sty has been pleased to honour at the New Year in recognition of their outstanding ser vices to the Order of St John and its Founda tions:

OBE:

Captain M. G. Hutchinson

Command er E. A. Morrison, RN (Ret)

MBE:

D. J. Griffith

BEM:

Miss D. V. Dudman

Mrs P. H. Roderick

Captain Maurice Hutchinson joined the Brigade in 1965 as Deputy Comrrtissioner for the West Riding of Yorkshire, of which he sub sequently became Commander StJA and Commissioner until the reorganisation of coun ties took place in 1973. In the latter year he was appoiI?-ted the first Commander of the ne w co unt y of South & West Yorkshire, ta king over a huge urban area with a Brigade m embership of more than 6,000 - second onl y to that of Greater London. During his eigh years as Commander his energy and exper tise were an inspiration to all, and he ach ieved an outstanding development of the As sociation'S Industrial Training as well as ob taining a much needed new county HQ. In such matters his professional experience and generosity as a solicitor saved the Order large sums of money in legal fees. Since his retiremen t in 1981 he has, by remaining a member of the St John Council for South & Yorkshire, continued to give very actIve Support to the work of St John in the county

Commander Edwin Morrison has been actively involved in the work of the Order

more liable to be soul-destroying than hers'. Materialism blinds.

Spiritual blindness is a dread reality. Did you listen to the Second Lesson? -

'So they arrived at Bethsaida where a blind man was brought to Jesus, with the earnest request that He should touch him.

Jesus took the blind man's hand and led him outside the village. Then He moistened his eyes with saliva and, putting His hands on him, asked, "Can you see at all?" The man looked up and said, "I can see people. They look like trees - only they are walking about".

Then Jesus put His hands on his eyes once more and his sight came into focus, and he recovered and saw everything sharp and clear.'

The first thing that blind man saw was the face of Jesus. To us who are Christians that is the most beautiful thing in the world. To miss that sight is to be blind in the most terrible sense. To see Him, and to serve Him, is to get life, here and hereafter, into the only proportions t hat make sense. To see Him and to serve Him is to reign.

NEW YEAR HONOURS

for 57 years. Promoted to Knight of Justice in 1944, he is now the senior Knight of Justice serving on C hapter-General, of which he became a member in 1948. He was Assistant Director of Ceremonies from 1960 to 1975 and has also served on some of the most important committees of the Order , including the Statutes Review Committee of 1975. On retiring from the Roya l Navy he became a member of the St John Council for Hampshire in 1960, was County Director from 1964 to 1972 and also became the co unty 's first Commander StJA from 1969 until his retirement in 1978 He became Chairman of the St John Council for Hampshire in 1977 and is still actively fulfilling that appointment.

Mr David Griffith, who for the past five years has been Brigade Commissioner for the county of Clwyd in the Priory for Vales, has ea rn ed universal admiration and respect for his contri bution to the well-being of t he community in C1wyd over a period of nearly half a century, both through his work for the Order of St John and in his professional career as a Police Officer and by his lifelong service to the Welsh Wesleyan Church.

Besides having been for many years Secretary of the St John Council for Clwyd h e has for well over 30 years been an active member of the Brigade in a number of different appointments which have reached their climax in the inspira tion that he gives to a ll Brigade members in the county by his personality and leadership as Commissioner.

Miss Dorothy Dudman joined St John

John Masefield, in his poem The Everlasting Mercy, tells the story of Saul Kane, the village rake, whose life had been one long disaster. His course was arrested by a Quaker woman who, speaking to him of Christ, said: 'He waits until you knock'. It was a word from God that reached Saul Kane and turned him round in his tracks.

Then Masefield makes Saul Kane say: ' a glory of the lighted mind

'He

Ambulance in 1963 as Dri ver of the Headquarters Staff Car, and for the past 19 years until her retirement last summer she set a wonderful example by her service to successive Chief Commanders and Commissioners-in -Chief, not only in driving the staff car throughout the United Kingdom and once on a tour of BAOR, but also in performing countless ancillary duties such as t aking staff and guests to and from airports at any hour, deli vering stores and mail within the Greater London area and - nor least! - catering most tastefully for senior staff 'wo rking lunches '. Living in a flat on rhe premises, she was on call for virtually 24 hours a da y and earned the affection and respect of all who worked at St John Ambulance HQ by her cheerful readiness to perform any task, great or small, ar almost any hour

Mrs Phyllis Roderick was appointed a Dame of Grace of the Order in 1972, in recognition of her many years' outstanding service to the Priory for Wales, in which she is currently a member of Priory Chapter a well as representing the St John Council for Mid Glamorgan on the Association Committee. She also served in the Brigade for 35 years before her retirement from the active list, her most important appointment having been that of District Staff Officer for Cadets. She is still Dis t rict Vice-President (Nursing Cadets) for Mid Glamorgan and has been organising secretary of the Cynon Valley St John Ball ever since its inception 22 years ago. Her St John acti ities, remarkable though they are form only a part of the lifelong and consuming interest in youth work and the well-being of children which she continues to maintain with unabated zeal.

TALL SHIPS

WHAT A wonderful spectacle - Tall

Ships. Those of us who live near the sea often gaze at the marvellou s sight of squarerigged ships which sail from port to port for pleasure. In their heyday, these ships only sailed for profit, but as with other outmoded but attractive means of transpor t we are reliving the past by rejuvenating interest in them, usually for plea s ure purpose s. In this modern world, square-rigged vessels which may be known as 'ships, barques, barquentine s, brig s and brigantines, etc, are few in number and expensive to operate. Many national governments have for some years used these vessels for naval training of their young people , while other groups and association s have al s o obtained similar craft and used them for 'adven t ure training' on a low cost basis. Sail training at present uses all types of craft from 30 foot waterline length upwards, with sa iling rigs based upon one to four masts. With the increased interest in sail training, many more types of ves sel are being used, including sloops, cutters, yawls, ketches, schooners and topsail schooners such as the 'Sir Winston Churchill'.

The Sail Training Association which is

28

OUT and ABOU1with ST JOHN

(including the USA, Poland, Ireland and the USSR) meet together, it is inevitable that some form of friendly, organised competitIOn should take place. As organised racing costs money extra to normal ship running costs, it becomes advantageous to obtain the benefit of a sponso.r. In this country, the Sail Training Association has obtained the active sponsorship of Cutty Sark Whisky. During the series of races, the Tall Ships visit various ports and are entertained on a lavish scale, with up to 2,000,000 visitors expected to view the assembled gathering.

The last of the 1982 series of races started at Falmouth in July, and returned to Southampton via Spain during August for the presentation of prizes and other social events organi se d for them by Southampton City Council. Planning for such an event may take as much as two year, and if done correctly it will encompass many organisations including our own. As a local sailing club Flag Officer I was invited [0 join the organi ation for the Southampton event and I became part of the 'Fleet Control'

Southampton was ho s t [0 so me 1, 650 crew members and officers from the 70 ships, so me of which did not take part in the race but joined the 'family' at the finish. During their stay in Southampton, events which included a sw imming gala, mini-marathon, disco 's, VISitS and a firework display , were stage d for the visitors.

by ASO David Guy, PRO Hampshire Central Area

ba sed near HMS Victory at Portsmouth is one of the organisations in Bri t ain which runs 'training ships'; in fact they operate both t he Sir Winston Churchill and the Malcolm Miller. The objective is ' to provide young peo p le with an outlet for their spirit of adventure and an opportunity to de velop a sense of responsibility, selfdiscipline and, above all, an ability to work as a team, which will help them throughout their lives. The emphasis is on a social experience and no attempt is made to produce yachtsmen and, still less, professional seamen.' Training cruises cater for adults only, boys only, girls only, or for mixed crews and may last from 7 to 14 days depending upon the time of year. For 1983, full cost charges may range from £115 for 7 days in February to £370 for 14 days in the summer holidays. To those contemplating a cruise it may be of interest to know that a reduction in personal costs may be achieved by application to various bodies such as Local Authorities, employers and the St John for grant aid or sponsorship. Last year's trainees have paid out of their own pockets between nothing and £140.

When so many sail training organisations from this country and all over the world

With so much activity and so many 'bodies', it became nece ssa ry for the Central Area of SJA Hamp s hire [0 arrange first aid cover both inside and ou tside the Docks, plus extra cove r along the shore during the 'Parade of Sail' on th e las t day.

During the s ix day event, up to 62 members and seven ambulance s were used per day, with 1,800 hours of public dut y being recorded while assisting 83 casualties. The event did have its pleasures and these included visits in off peak times to many of the visiting s hips.

In an organisation such as ours, with a large youth membership, the need for outward bound and adventure training is always in evidence (see Cadet Chat, October 1982). Sail Training is one of the very popular forms of adventure training and in Southampton recently we witnessed a gathering of young and not so young St John members from all over the British Isles and Guernsey as they joined the Sir Winston Churchill for a 14-day training cruise.

As in previou s years, the trainees arrived at Southampton on the day before joining the ship and were collected from the airport and various stations by ASO Ted Carr and taken to the Southampton HQ where ASO Rita Carr and her ladies provided the meals.

Overnight sleeping accommodation for the male members was provided within the HQ but the ladies faired rather better in the homes of local member s During Sunday

lunch, the trainees' la s t meal on dry land before the cruise, t hey were joined at the Southampton HQ by the c hairman of the Sail Training Association, the captain of the Sir Winston Churchill, SJA Assistant C-in-C Gerald Easton, our new Cadet Ad vis or y Officer Leo Budd and the Hamp s hi re Commissioner Bob Harri s. After the lunch, t he assembled co mpany celebrated t he 18th birthday of Amanda Po s nett from Melton Mowbray.

At 1330 hour s, on Sunday October 24 our gallant band of 36 St John trainees, plu s 3 outsiders together with visitors, arri ve d at the shi p to be welcomed by the Captain M. Kemmis-Betty, who had just arranged for the St John flag to be hoisted at the starboard yard. Once aboard, the trainees were split into their three watches - Fore, Main and Mizzen, introduced to their Watch Officers and Watch Leaders and set to work while the visitors inspected the ship. One part of their initial training will remain in my memory for some time, and that is t he determination which showed on t he faces of the trainees as they climbed the rigging, in the rain, only minutes after joining the ship. This process of getting to know the ship, their duties and the permanent crew, plus standing watch and sleeping with occasional bou ts of eating and drinking, took the remainder of the time until they sailed at 1030 hours on the following day. Other St John members included a Watch Officer from Wales (D. Mansel-Lewis), two Watch Leaders, Paul Ingham from London and Paul Whitehouse from Berkshire, plus a supernumerary in the form of Donald Lumbley from Derbyshire.

The cruise, which totalled 872 miles with about 20070 under motor, went south'from Southampton, through the Alderney Race and into St Peter Port, Guernsey. After a crowded one-day visit they set off again on a south-westerly heading to pass inshore of Ushant to Camaret, which is adjacent to the

THE YARDARM The St John flag is broken out aboard the Sir Winston Churchill

port of Bre st. After only one day in France they were off again, this time around Ushant and across the Engli s h Channel to Fowey in Cornwall, arriving on October 31 in time for a good 'run ashore '. The following da y, in late afternoon, they were off again into t he Channel on various easterly headings ra t her lik e a drunken man to finally arrive back in France at Ouistreham, a sma ll port near Le H avre

The final leg back to Port s mouth took j u st

one day but also left one day for cleaning a nd stowing s hip plus a party prior to di sembark ing on the morning of Saturday November 6.

From the friendships made and the interest created, it took a long time and many damp eyes before 'our lot finally disembarked from the hip to return home, most vowed that they would be back again in the future, with some of the more experienced acting as Watch Leaders.

SOUTH OF FRANCE

MY HUSBAND and I left home at 0815 on Friday July 23 1982 and joined t he Sunscene coach at Nottingham travelling via London (where we recei ved first aid replacements) to Dover, crossing by ferry to Calais and then driving across France to arrive at Mar Estang, on the Mediterranean coast near Perpignan, at 1500 on Saturday July 24. We were met by the two Welsh St John ladies who had manned the post before us. They were extremely kind and helpful, taking us on a conducted tour of the camp facilities to finish up at the First Aid Centre, where we were given useful information regarding the French doctors , ambulance service, weaver fish (which we d never heard of let alone treated) and shown the equipment and supplies we were to use. It soon became apparent that this was no ordinary run of the mill first aid duty - we were to be Dr Nur e / Mentor all rolled into

one and a lot of our time was spent in giving advice on ways to avoid heat exhau tion, s unburn, prickly heat, etc. Sunburn was our chief concern, accounting for one quarter of our time It had been ery hot and the burn s had to be seen to be belie ed. We used over a litre of oily calamine. This was closely followed b y cuts and abrasions, sore throats, coughs, cold and ear infec t ion. Although organised through Sun sce ne , we were in the true tradition of St John 'o n call' to all- on and off the siteand we treated 155 of their camper to 648 others. We had two 'fixed' surgeries0900 to 1200 and 1500 to 1800 and although thi ounds rea onable we rare had a meal without being called to deal with some crisis or the o t her The ame thing happened at ni g ht - we fo und it u ele s to turn in until af ter the Bar turned out (at midnight) a our tent \ as very c lo e to the

THE BRASS Assistant C-in-C Gerald Easton and Captain Mike Kemmis-Betty inspecting the Sir Winston Churchill

THE BRAWN SJA trainees boarding at Southampton

roadway used by the army of drinkers who marched along singing and shouting. Often we were awoken to the national anthem of some other country. We were of course on call at nights as well, very often being awoken very gently by either one of the Sunscene staff or a security guard say ing Mr (or Mrs) St John, sorry but However, it was not all work. We had been told by the Briti sh Consul that one of us had to be on site ALL the time, so apart from a few trips in to Canet (generally to replenish supplies of medicines, etc) and once to Perpignan our fun took place on the site. We had several swims in the excellent swimming pool and managed to get to a few barbeques.

The name of the site Mar Estang is Catalan for lake by the sea, and it is a beautiful lake which is now a nature reserve. The site itself has a barf restaurant/take away/ supermarket! bazaar /fruit and vegetable shop/newsagents toys/launderette (which also sold block s of ice for the coldbox) plus swimming pool, tennis courts, disco area, mobile bank, and volley ball area. It consists of some 5,000 tents and mobile homes and each travel firm has its own site with reception area and toilet blocks On Fridays a market arrives which sells

30

jewellery, sweets, leather goods, scent, clothing wine, trinkets, etc.

We found li ttle difficulty with the language, mainly due to our excellent Sunscene couriers, who were very fluent and would come to our aid immediately.

The two doctors who attended were charming: Dr Jean Pierre Artigues spoke English very well and Dr Valls spoke it a little. We were surprised to be sold ether over the counter, when we wanted surgical spirit. One day we were both busy attending a patient apiece in the Medical Centre when a gentleman burst in asking where the doctor was - he spoke in rapid French and it took a little while before we realised he wasn't seeking treatment but selling. We tried to get free samples of this marvellous self-sticking bandage which is waterproof, needs no scissors to cut it, contains antiseptic and rolls off without sticking to the patient. We even tually purchased six to

D of

E adventure

THE photograph on the next page s hows six nursing cadets of Worsborough Division (S & W Yorkshire) at the presentation ceremony of D of E awards at Barnsley Town Hall. The cadets are (I to r): Della

Of the 803 people treated at the Mar Estang h o iday centre during two weeks by SJA s Mr & Mrs Holdham 43 were French, 7 German 5 Dut ch and 2 Span sh - the rest were English

try and found that they did in fact stay on in and were excellent for smal l areas like fingers or toes, but difficult to apply elsewhere, as the bandage had a thin layer of paper either side of it which tended to get in the way.

The campers were in the main very surprised to find a St John First Aid post on site and delighted we were 'Eng li sh speaki ng' too. They were all very appreciative and generous with donations, severa l emptying their pockets of French co ins on their last day in camp. We met some super families and spent a pleasant evening with one German couple. Many ca lled to say thank yo u on their last day. While on site we had two dramas on the beach opposite. The first was a terrible tragedy with three bather s drowned at sea and six missing - with ambulances, fire engines, police cars, inflatable dinghie s and a helicopter taking part. The second wa a 'Western style' shoot o ut when the police were chasing some miscreant who wa s armed - he got away and tried to commandeer a car at gunpoint but was shot down. A police car preceded the ambulance and one followed it.

Another tragedy was a coach crash in the early hours of the morning when 44 ch ildr en and 9 adu lts lo st their live s. Thi s meant that diversions had to be made and coac he s were arriving later than s cheduled.

Our return journey was uneventful until we arrived at Calais. We had been taken on a super 45-minute conducted tour of Paris in the early morning when the street were empty so that we could see all the buildings easi ly. Owing to a minor accident at a road junction we had a delayed journey and arrived at Calais only 15 minutes before the ferry was due to sail, so we missed that one, couldn't get on the next, but eventua ll y got on one to Folkestone (instead of Dover), this being a lon ger crossing and coach run home. However, we eventually arrived at Nottingham at 11 pm absolutely worn out but stimulated beyond belief. Would we go again? Definitely yes, and we would encourage other members to volunteer for this duty.

Finally our grateful t hank s to Colin, the Sunscene Area Manager, and his staff Damien, Paul , John, Martin, Michelle and Jill for all their help, support and friendship.

Mrs M. I. Ho Idh am, CSO Lines

Will help Cadets moving to adults

Hutchinson, Michella Davies, Anita Wood, Marie Tweed, Catherine Yoxall and Ann Green. Ann and Marie received their s ilver award, while the rest received the bronze In addition, the following also received the

D of E girls

Six delighted nursing cadets from S & W Yorks Worsbrough Division at Barnsley Town Hall to collect their D of E awards

silver award: Jack Flatters, Jan Nixon (both former cadets and now adult members), Andrew Feely, Patrick Webber and Shaun Whitehead, all ambulance cadets. The ceremony was arranged under the au s pices of the Local Education Authority and the re st of the D of E recipients were from schools of the LEA The total number was for ty-nine. That means that St John Ambulance contributed over twenty-two per cent of the awards. Two more divisional officers (N) have almost completed work for the si lv er and two are commencing work for the gold (direct), with four more for the bronze.

The girls in the silver grade did the newly revised Exploration' work in the expedition section. Even so they walked 28 miles , almost the mileage required for that grade. Ann Green and Marie Twe ed car ried out a study in genealogy of a family in the Hope Valley of Derbyshire - the Eyre family. They traced the family back to the 18th century from gravestones. Some / 1

important facts were revealed. The young age of some in the 1700s and early 1800s which appeared on gravestones was indicative of the infant mortality rate of that era, which in turn reflects the state of health se rvice that existed then! Two war memorials bore names of the members of the Eyre family who died in both World Wars. Finally, they were lucky enough to locate a hou se hold with three generations of Eyres! The eldest - 82 years of ageremarked of his grandfather being employed as the collector of taxes, becau se he was the only person of the locality who could read! A very fascinating and interesting study, which I enjoyed reading as did the assessor.

The five male s ilver recipients did the actual 'expedit ion '. They too did their work from South Yorkshire and into Derb yshire, covering the White Peak. A small fraction of their route just encroached on the Dark Peak, which s really 'go ld' country. An important feature of expedition work is the

Happy Clevedon

preparation,

Nimejen marchers but I have heard of

happen and I would think that the majority completed the distance without mishap. Bli sters only appear because of poor footwear or inadequate training. 0 doubt some of the marchers would have been D of E people, so I am sure they would not have experienced anything like blisters. The upper age limi t for the Grand Prior's certificate is twenty-one and this is a good way of bridging the gap for cadets who transfer to adult divisions. The Duke o f Edinburgh's Award upper age limit is twenty-five and so this too is a way of bridging the gap from cadet-to-adult division. This problem of how to retain members who have come from cadet divisions always crops up at conferences I would suggest - embark upon the Duke of Edinburgh's award scheme.

Clayron Freeman ASO (AIC)

ATTENTION NURSES

In July 1983 the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting and four National Boards will take over the work of nine existing bodies. These nine bodies are presently responsible for the education and training, registration and professional conduct of all qualified nurses, midwives and health visitors in the UK.

Decisions made by the new bodies will make a significant contribution to improving standards of health care in the United Kingdom.

Royal Ball raffle winners

The draw, which was held on December 8, resulted in the following winners

1st prize. A Talbot Samba car. J Tyler, 16 Victoria Road, Great Malvern, Worcs.

2nd prize. A San Francisco holiday. Mr George Coppen, c / o D. J. Higgins, 157 Horn Lane, Essex.

3rd prize. A set of custom made golf clubs Mrs B. A. Weids, 40 Coleridge Vale Road South Clevedon, Avon.

4th prize. A quartz carriage clock. Mr Billy MacDonald, c / o 10 Upper Brook Street, London WI.

5th prize. A ladies' quartz wrist watch. Mario Felik, 10 Upper Brook St reet London WI.

6th prize. A portable black & white TV set. R. J. Preston, 2 St Albans Close Windsor , Berks.

7th prize. A case of Laurent Perrier champagne. M. E. Barber, The Grapes, Willow Street, Congleton, Cheshire.

8th prize. A case of Haig whisky. Alison Watts, 25 Magna Close, Yeovil, Somerset. 9th prize. £40 of Thresher's off licence vouchers. David White, Greenham House, Isleworth, Middx.

10th prize. A portable 'Sharp' cassette recorder. Mrs E. Rogers, 10 Peel Street, Stockton, Cleveland.

11th prize. A portable 'Sharp' cassette recorder. E. Le Gresley, Beaumont, Jersey.

12th prize. A Perrior Jouet champagne pack. R. S. Harding, 1 St Vincents Road, Stone, Staffs.

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

If you are presently registered with one of the existing bodies, you will automatically be registered with the new. At the moment, however, details are being collected to form an electoral roll This roll will be used next year when the members of the new bodies are elected by the pro fession.

If you wish to be included on the electoral roll contact the UKCC at 110 Euston Road, London NWI 2DQ, telephone: 01-3800717.

BIG BANDAGE

I hear that 13 cadets of Twickenham and Whitton Combined Cadet Division took part in a sponsored bandaging session during November to raise funds for equipment. This was the first of this type of event to be held in London's South Western Area and proved a great success. 878 bandages were applied in an hour.

Now how exactly are you doing it?' asks the Chief Commande r, Major·Gen Pe ter Leuchars (right) while visiting Lymington Cadet Di vision recently. (Left) Three of a kind

TO LONDON

Margaret Penn, N I M oj SI Annes-an-Sea Division, writes:

LAST September I escorted Mrs Sheila Whiteside, a disabled anist , to London for the day as she was showing four of her pictures at the Foot and Mouth Artists exhibition, which was to be opened by Terry Wogan, at London's Guild Hall.

Our journey started at S.30am from Blackpool's Crichton House for the disabled to catch our train from Blackpool North station. At the station we were escorted by a porter to our carriage to find that the usual consideration of removing a table to accommodate a disabled traveller'S wheelchair had not been carried out. So we had to travel as best we could as far as Preston, where it needed a chief engineer, Mr McLaughlan, to deal with our problem, which he did in a first class compartment, so the rest of our journey to Euston was in super comfort.

On arrival in the 'big city' we were met on the platform by D I Supt Harry Stevens, of

ABOUT

BY THE EDITOR

329 St Pancras Division, who transported us to the Guild Hall.

After the exhibition had been officially declared open, Terry Wogan found time to chat with all the exhibiting artists, during which Sheila presented him with a miniature which she had painted specially for the occasion. And of course many messages and requests were handed to Terry for inclusion in his programme

A lavish lunch was provided at 'The City Yacht', many new friends were made and lots of snapshots were taken. The day passed very quickly and at Spm Harry arrived to transport us back to Euston for the 6.0S Intercity to Blackpool. But, alas, once again BR's communications had failed us and noone had provided facilities for a wheelchair on the train Harry found a BR man who soon arranged us comfortably for our homeward journey

At 9.S0 we were back at Blackpool North station, after a memorable day , lovely weather, wonderful company, and a very comfortable journey there and back. The only worrying factor for future travel f or the totally disabled is the poor prov ision of public facilities.

CENTRAL HANTS

While in Southampton to see St John members join the Sail Training Ship 'Sir Winston Churchill', the Assis t ant C-in-C Gerald Easton officially accepted on behalf of Central Area of Hampshire, a PnuePac resuscitator from Dr David Smith , chairman of Esso Chemicals Ltd. This resuscitator will be used , when not on transport or public duties, for trainin g SJ ambulance crews in Central Area.

CHEQUE

Richard Radcl ffe , Director of Public Affairs (right), receives a cheque for £600 from Mrs Cooper, Maidenhead Division, with Dr L. Kader. Berks Commissioner Mrs Cooper and her husband organised sponsored events w th the cadets to raise the money or the Ophthalmic Hospital appeal. Well done !Photo : The Ma denhead Advertiser)

THANKS

Ted Culling , of W lts S & W Association Centre (Ieh) re c eives an a udio visual teaching pr o· gramme on rescue and resus c itation om drown ng from Dere k Stirling and Ian Smith of Sal isbury College of Art SJA with Winterslow cadets as actors wor k ed with th e college t o make the programm e

MAGIC

320 children , aged 8 to 11 , from 20 inner c ity primary schools w ere invited to a Magic Show a Sotheby' s (the fine arts auctioneers) during November - (right) here th ey ar e arriv ng - to be entertained by The Great Kovari ', the well - known conjurer This was to introduce a 2 - day auction of conjuring tricks and apparatu s. Just in case anyone was spirited away at the magic show three very down- to - earth Norbury nursing members (below) were i nvited by Mr B Theobald of Sotheby s who is on SJA London's SW Area staff. The show was great

After some 18 months of fund-raising, plus generous donations from friends, associations and industry, the Eastleigh and Chandlers Ford Division of Hants Central Area has obtained a new mobile first aid unit.

This is the 7th caravan type first aid unit to be dedicated in Hampshire and at the official ceremony the County Commissioner Bob Harris praised the efforts of the Division in obtaining the unit which replaces an old ambulance.

MIDNIGHT OIL

I hear that Devon's East Area Commissioner Terry GlanviU of Honiton has been burning the midnight oil on an open university course at Exeter University - he can now add BA to the letters after his name.

Congratulations, Terry - who is probably the only practising GP in Devon (hope the A recent county gettogether of officers and members at Kelston Hall , Queensferry, Clwyd, organised by Deputy Commissioner E. R. Eaton (front row,

Clwyd

4AM AWARD!

and

overnight

Mrs Upton began the day with the presentation (Photo: Stone Newsletter) patients are OK) who has managed to successfully complete such a cour se Terry is, of course, also Mayor of Honiton co unt y chairman of t he Royal British Legion our Area Commissioner whew! Don't know how he does it. He's been burning that oil till 3 in the morning, he tells me.

ONLY WOMAN ?

Is Mrs D. Edwards, of Humberside, SJA's first woman deputy county com mi ss ion er?

She was appointed in June 1981 , if anyone needs the exac date to be a ble t o an swe r that question

Mrs Edwards joined SJA in 1942 , wit h the Hull Eastern Nursing Cadet Division, later transferring to Hull's Newland Nursing Division. In 1950 she became an officer of Hull's Haworth N/C Division , beco ming its superintendent two years later. Then she passed through the CSO grades to become

(Above) At a recent reception by the Lt· Governor of the Isle of Man and his wife: (I to r) Eric Stitcher (former vice president Londo n Dist ), Mrs Renee Stitcher, Rear Admiral Roy er Dick (former C - in-C), Derek Fento n (Commissioner London Dist) and Mrs Fento n

assistant county superinten dent in 1973 and Northern Area commissioner in 1974. She was made a Commander of the Order in 19 79 a nd invested MBE in 1980.

Mrs Edwards, who is now acting as PRO has been a tireless worker for St Joh n (courses, committees and wo rkin g parties), is actively assisted by her husband, who is an auxiliary member.

A 3-day county potential officers training course, on the guide-lines recently introduced by Headquarters, was held in Hull during the autumn. 35 potential NCOs and officers took part.

The new County Director of Humbers ide is Dr Gordon Cameron, late County Surgeon, who joined SJA in 1952 The new County Surgeon is Dr Kevin McGuane, who was Southern Area Surgeon.

HOME DEFENCE COURSES

County/District headquarters have been informed of forthcoming vacancies at the Home Defence College at Easingwold, N Yorkshire, as follows:

Nurs ing members of Framlingham Division , Suffolk, formed a guard of hon our in the sunshine for the wedding of NfM Gwen Friend to Don Payne Best wi shes Mr & Mrs Payn e

Course 83 125: June 20-231983 (Loca l Authority Chief Executi ves' Sem inar Aim: T o prepare c hief executive of Local Authorities in co mpany with officers of comparable rank for their Hom e Defence duties and re s ponsib ili ti es. One vacancy for a Commander or Co mmi ssio ner

Course 83129: 18-22 1983 (Na tional H ealth Serv ce officers in th e Wartime H eal th Service)

Aim: To help prepare NHS officers, in co mpan y with other government officers, to discharge their resp onsibilities n the wanime He al th Service. One vacanc y for a Surgeon.

Course 83 / 30: July 25-29 1983 (Ge n era H ome Defence)

Aim: To fit o f f ce rs to as sis t in lh e d eve lo p ment a nd execu ti on of Ho me Defen ce. One vacancy for a Staff Officer.

Bridgnorth nursing cadets

Course

Officers

(Environmental

St John Ambulance HQ key dates

THOSE THINKING of travelling to London for a visit with cadets might find it worthwhile to make time to see the London Toy and Model Museum at 23 Craven Hill, London, W.2, which is open every day except Monday. Group rates for parties are available. Normal prices are children 50p and adults £1.50. Contact 01 2627905 for further information Hobby crafts

Three books published by E. P. Publishing would be of interest to cadets completing crafts and hobbies sections of the Proficiency Badge scheme. The titles are The Art of Applique, by Marie-Janine Solvit; Painting on Glass, by Didier Carpentier and Joel Bachelot; and Toys from Tims, by Jean-Paul Mouvier and Christaine Neuville. Each book costs £2.45 and contains many examples of completed projects.

While on the subject of books, many of you will know of the Ladybird series of books which cover a wide range of subjects relevant to cadet training. What may be new to many is that se veral of the books have also been adapted as film strips. Full details are available from Ladybird Books Ltd, Loughborough, Leicestershire. The film strips are also available as slide sets f rom Slide Centre Ltd, 143 Chatham Road London, SW 11 6SR.

Cadet Spectacular

As you know I asked for contributions from cadets towards a competition for the best account of the Cadet Spectacular. I have decided to publi s h the two accounts that I received and both Sarah and Ruth will be sent a Parker pen for their efforts.

From Sarah Symons , 12, Wadebridge Nursing Cadet Division, Cornwall: On October 8 two coach-loads of cadets from all over Cornwall travelled up to London for the Cadet Spectacular. I was lucky enough to be one of them.

The cadets from my division met at t he Ambulance Hall at about 6am and clambered int'o the ambulances (among the luggage), and then when everythi ng had been packed we set off for Bodmin, where we were to meet the buses.

The buses were a little late but that didn' t bother anyone While we were waiting one of the men from our division kept eating bits

and pieces which made a few of us feel quite sick. However, he said he would travel better on a full stomach.

Eventually the buses arrived and we all piled on the second one , which was to take us to Slough. Hardly anyone slept for the first couple of hours but after stopping at a Service Station about a quarter of us nodded off.

As I said , there were two coaches and t he other one was going to Windsor. When we arri v ed at Slough we were given coffee and biscuits by cadets who had waited up for us.

At 3.30 in the night Mrs Tregaskes and Miss Day got up and made drinking chocolate , which they brought around to u s. They hoped we would go to sleep and the majority o f u s did but a few s tayed awake all night.

On the Saturday we split into two groups, those who were taking part in the Spectacular and those w ho were not. The latter went on a trip around London, visiting all the famous spots like Tra f algar Square and Hyde Park

Meanwhile we were at the Albert Hall practising fo r the two performances. Thi s turned out to be a little chaotic. However it was not long before most of the wrinkles had been smoothed out and we had something which was worth showing to t he public.

Cadets from all o v er the country came to the Albe r t Hall and took part in all kinds of things from a PT display to the 1812 Paper

Gloucestershire

Bag Overture. You may have heard of th e 1812 Overture of Tchaikovsky, but the 181 2 Paper Bag Overture may strike you a s being rather peculiar - as it was. It was given th is name because the choir blew up some p a p er bags and burst them during the performan ce. This was meant to represent cannon-fir e bu t it didn't occur in quite the right place during the afternoon performance

There was a group of cadets fro m Northern Ireland who performed t wo traditional Irish dances, which were very gay and dainty.

The guest stars were Bill Pertw ee and Is a St Clair Bill Pertwee wa s the old kni g ht in The Tale of an Old Knight of St John . Thi s involved cadets from Manchester a c ting out some scenes from the Hi st or y of th e Ord er , which was to help those t akin g thi s s ubj ect for their Grand Prior Award.

Isla St Clair sa ng a s ong and led o n e of the sing-songs Quit e a few of th e s on gs involved actions so the c hoir obli ge d by doing the actions.

Prince ss Anne arr iv ed for t h e eve n ing performance and one o f th e cor p o r a ls fr om our di v is ion Da v id Rill s tone , was lu cky enough t o be e lec ted for t h e gua rd of honour and sa t in he R oya Box.

The onl y thin g I d is lik e d ab o u t o ur t ime at the Albert Hall w a s th a t it ee m ed li ke eve nin g a ll day H owev e r, a lot of h a rd work went in t o producin g th e s h o w w hi c h was a great su cc es s

The ne x t day we we n to Win dsor a nd saIl the castle , bu t unfor unat e ly we co uld n O[ go inside. We went a round th e g ro un d and bough t s ou venir s. The j ourne y b ac k see m ed t o be m uch shorter than th e trip up It had b een a ver y e njo yabl e weekend and I was sad w he n it was over. How eve r I reali se h ow m u ch work must ha ve go n e in t o o rga ni si n g it and I would lik e to th a nk ev er yo n e w h o helpe d LO m a ke it s uch a gr e at s u ccess.

From Ruth Ea sley , Corporal, No rt onRadstock Nursing Cadet Di visi on , A von : On the Frid ay e ve nin g we a ll m a d e ou r wa y to the Avon HQ , Bristol , w h e r e we we r e to stay the nigh t. W e wer e full of a n t ic pa ti on and excit e ment. Our uni fo rm s were hu ng neatl y and tidily in pol y thene ba gs, rea d y for the journey to London When eve r yo n e h ad And C h elt e nh am Am bul ance Cadet Div sion's Davi d Ro b ert s an d Murr ay St ep h ens , winners o f the Novi c es Comp e ti o n set a b out trea t ing a pati e nt 's injur y (p hotos: C he tenham N e ws p ap ers Ltd)

arrived our officer , Miss Tredw e

We

agreed

r yo n e wa it e d i n anti c ip a tion fo r th e co a c h o ar ri ve W h e n i t d id a rri ve, 15 minu tes lat e, s lee p y eyed and ti re d we c la mb e r e d a b o ar d a n d set off fo r L o nd o n

Wh e n we eve n t u a ll y reac h e d L o nd o n we a ll sta rt ed to h ave seco n d t h oug hts abo u h e d ay. F o r non e o f u s h a d rea li sed j u st how e normou s was th e Alb e rt H a ll. Bu t t h e re was n o tu rnin g b ac k n ow O ur c h a n ce was t here a nd we too k i t. ] c an 't re all y d e c rib e m y th o u g h t as I e nt e r e d t h a t hu ge buildin

Of the Cadet Novices Bedmaking Compe ti on 1982 - Sergeant Gillian Risborough and N C Katr ina Nash put the finishing touches to the bed under the watchfu l eye of Area Nurs ng O ffi cer Mrs H. Atkinson

(Below) And South Ashford Juniors Ginette Skitt and Anita' Jenkins won the No 3 Area annual bedmaking competition.

from Ashford?

WITH 142,000 Charities fighting for £1,064 million of annual voluntary donations, fundraising in Britain is becoming increasingly difficult, For this reason alone it is worth trying to make the most of what you get.

In many cases it is worth asking for covenanted donations. A lot of people are wary of covenants due to images of getting involved in tons of paper work, maybe even calling in the solicitor and accountant , let alone the tax man.

Well, covenants do need some paper work, but an individual's donation of £25 a year

for four years will be

to your

How to get MONEY from the tax-man

So what is a covenant and how does it our advantage but for the moment I will only work? describe the NET covenant. However, do

A Deed of Covenant is a contract under contact me if yo u want information about

be remembered that you wIll hav e seal which has the effect of transferring from the second and third. to make an adj ustment if the ba ic rate of one person to another the legal title of Illustrated are examples of Deed s of tax changes from 30%. It hould also be income. The donor is legally entitled to Covenants to be completed by individuals remembered that it i not worth a king for nothing in return. In other words you cannot and companie s Any local printer should be a covenant from someone who doe s not pa y covenant 'subscriptions' or an annual able to print these very cheaply and t hey are In come Tax. membership fee because these signify in easy to fill in. However, it i worth encouraging tho e many cases that the donor is getting who pay a high level of lax For in tance, Net covenant 'f h h 50 m something in return. A covenant must consist 1 you ave a upporter w 0 pay " 0 tax of annual payments and must be for more This is the most usual type. It provides an and not the ba sic rale of 30% it works a an nual pa yme n t AFTER deduction of f 11 Th h' I' b kid d than three years - so when asking for a 0 ows. e canty calms ac t 1e lan ar covenant the most effective one is for four rate of 30% and lhe donor can claim back years. Specimen De eds of Convenants for (left) the remaining 20% him elf - lhi mean he There are three types of covenant: a NET indiv iduals and (right) limited companies can afford to give more. So if a donor payin g

Sp.ecimen (non-specific) NET deed for use by Individuals Specimen NET deed for me by limited comllanies

Deed of Covenant Full

Re&lSlered name o the charilY or HEREBY COVENANT with (hereinafter called the 'Charity') that for a period of four years from the day of 19

dol. or si,ftift,lhi, d dor during my lire (whiche ve r period shall be the shorter) I will pay annually /quanerly /momhl y. to the Charity out or my

50% tax gives you a covenant for annual payment of £28 it costs him in ACTUAL terms £20 and we receive £40. We can never claim back more than the standard rate and this is often forgotten. Once an individual pays more than the standard rate he (or she) can claim tax relI ef on the dIfference and we claim t he 30%. So for wea lthy supporters it is wort h informing them that they can give greater payments at no additional cost to them se lves. The maximum annua l gross payme nt for a covenant is £3,000 - over this amount no tax is recoverable and therefore there are no advantages.

Having clarified (I hope) the advantages of forming covenants how do you claim back the tax?

Rather than describing how to gross up the annual payments of a covenant, contact your local Inland Revenue Office who will supply, free of charge, their 'grossing-up' tax table, which makes the operation much easierfor you will need the grossed-up figures for any returns you make.

Hopefully, you can administer your own covenants and deal directly with the Inland Revenue C laims Branch, Charity Division, or you could hand it all over to your accountant.

For claims of recovery of tax from a Deed

ON JANUARY 8 1947 , a not very ta ll and very uncertain young man of some fifteen years and a few months walked t hrough the gates of Cam bridge Barracks in Woolwich to begin his militar y career as a musician in the Band of the Royal Artillery. At that moment, 1157886 Boy Be at D R , had no real idea of what the f uture held for him. All he did know, as he stoo d in the 12 or more inches of snow (it was one of the worsl wint ers in Jiving memor y) and viewed the stark features of the ageing barrack, was that the nine yea rs he had promi ed to erve' wi th the colour' eemed in pro pect like two lifetimes.

When your father is an army bandmaster and your whole life ha s been connected with the army and mu sic, there is really no other career to choo e but military music. However, h ere was Beat s ur veying the frozen sce ne , WIth perhaps a few thoughts about his state of mind in actually volunteering and committing himself irrevocably to nine years of army service.

Completed

He need not hav e conce rned him se lf in 1956 he had successfully (and mo st completed tho se nine year the RA Band (Woolwich), playing clannet , violin and saxophone, and wa a st udent bandmaster at the Royal MIlItary School of Music Kneller Hall committed to a full caree; in the Arm/ Three years later, in the spring of 1959, havl11 .g successfully completed the g:uelItng course of instruction, he was on hIS way to Cyprus, wearing the uniform of Black Wat c h, having been appOtnted Bandma s te r of that fine historic reg im ent. The ensuing six took him with the band lO Italy, Greece,

of Covenant you s hould get form R235A. The claims for re covery of tax must be accompanied by:

1) Certificates of deduction of Income Tax - signed by the Covenantors.

2) The original Deeds of Covenant

You can obtain the forms from:

The Inland Revenue, Cla im s Bran ch, Charity Divi sio n Magdalen Hou se, Trinity Road, Bootie, Mer seys ide L69 9BB. Tel: 051-992 8711

It is also necessary at the beginning of each covenant to fill in and send to the covenantor a form called RI85(AP). This is a certificate of deduction of income tax as mentioned above.

If you receive a covenant for more than £130 a year it is necessary to fill in the R185(AP) ANNUALLY rather than just at the start of the covenant.

Keep a register of covenants together with all details so that this informa tion is easi ly available. And keep the R 185(AP) in a safe place because each one is needed to support a claim for recovery of tax. These forms are available at your local Inland Revenue Office.

When you fill in the claim for recovery of income tax you will have to send detailed

MUSIC

Baton • In knapsack

Lt Col. Duncan Beat , MVO , OStJ , ARCM, psmstarted as a 15 -year-old band boy

Iran, Germany, USA and Canada, and Denmark.

Then, in 1965, came a posting away from the Black Watch to Aberdeen in the north east of Scotland, where band boys of the four Highland regiments were trained. Here Bandmaster Duncan Beat became responsible for this training for three year. It also presented a relatively quiet period during which he could study for the neces ary 'p m ' (the advanced certificate of music) to qualify for further promotion

Promotion came in 1968 when Captain Beat took up his appointment as Director of Music, Royal Army Ordnance Corps. Permanently based in Blackdown, near A ld ers hot, the RAOC band existed to se rve t he musical needs of its Corp, wherever its various units may be serving. Consequent ly, the band was to be seen in

accounts of your income and expenditure , so e nsure that you have the latest figure s readily available

J hope this doe s n't sou nd a s complicated as you thought at the beginning. You only have to fill in a few forms and the financial rewards are high, so it is well worthwhile. There are, as 1 mentioned earlier, other types of covenants and 1 can easily supply full detail s upon request. There is an excellent publication giving full detail s of covenants called 'T he Craigmyle Guide to Charitable Giving and Taxation which costs £9.50, available from: Craigmyle & Co Ltd. The Grove, Harpenden, Hertford s hire. I thoroughly recommend you obtain a copy. Please t hink about using covenants. If, for instance, you have £5,000 of donations a year and ask your donors to make covenants instead, the annual sum of £5,000 become s £7,142.86, which will certainly make a difference to your accounts! It should be noted, however, that all the above details do not apply in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and Scotland Full details for these places can be obtained from me at HQ, Grosvenor Crescent. (Specimen rorms reprinted by kind permission or Craigmyle & Co Ltd.)

Richard Radcliffe Director of

Pubfic Affairs

such exotic places as Singapore, Malaya, Hong Kong, and the not-so-exotic locations of the Midlands of England and the north of Scotland. Howe ver, a very happy six years was spent with a very happy Corps and Band , before the next move of Duncan Beat's career was made. August 1974 found him dre ssed in a scarlet tunic an d bear skin and appearing with the Band of the Scots Guards as their Director of Music in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Horse Guards Parade , and in the many varied ven ues in which that world famous band displays its renowned skills and colourful uniform.

President

He came into contact with St John Ambulance during its cent enary year, and as a result of his work in connection with the South'rvark Corps of Drum s was created an Officer Brother of the Order of St John. Since then he has accepted the office of Band President of the Southwark Corps of Drums and continues to act as an ad iser. Un f ortunately his present occupation denies him t he time he would like to devote to the band , but soon Duncan Beat will be moving on again and may find more time in which to see his frien ds in Southyvark.

The final appointment in a career panning some thirty-six years was last De ember, when Major Duncan Beat moved to the Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall, a Chief Instructor and As i tant In pector of Arm Band with the rank of lieutenant olone!. Would 1157 86 Boy Beat, D R , have believed he had a Kneller Hall director baton in hi knap ack? I doubt it. Mark Gilfam

Urinary

Some practical advice on a widespread problem which

I ncontinence

MARGARET BODINGTON

MANY FAMILIES have some if not total responsibility for older relatives. The older these dependants are the greater the chance of them suffering from urinary incontinence or loss of bladder control.

The number of families wi.th really elderly relatives will increase. In 1977 there were 9.4 million people in Great Britain over the age of 65. This figure is not expec ted to rise dramatically but it is forecast that there will be a large increase in the numbers of the very old. Indeed it has been suggested tha t there will be a 50 per cent increase in the over 85s by the year 2000. There are already half a million in this age group.

A random sample of 62 to 90 year olds in a Scottish city, reported on in 1976, showed that at least slight urinary incontinence affected 25 per cent of males and 42 per cent of females. A review of data from surveys of incontinence in old age in the United Kingdom, also published in 1976, stated that a third of the people admitted to geriatric units were referred because of incontinence. It is a problem of massive proportions which could be cured or coped with more readily if the public were knowledgeable on the subject.

Society and especially the victims of urinary incontinence do not Jjke to discuss it. Quite recently I was permitted to advise a previously exceptionally fit man in his late eighties, who was literally reduced to tears by slight urinary incontinence about which he had been too inhibited to consult his doctor. He only confided in me because he knew I was a nurse and he had known me a long time. He agreed to go to his doctor and is now cured. There is a lot of incontinence, admittedly mostly minor, being coped with in secret and not very happily. Recent studies suggest that one person in every four is incontinent at the end of life. The greater our age the more likely we are to suffer this affliction, to a greater or lesser degree. If the subject were more openly discussed and medical and nursing knowledge about it disseminated, there would be more and speedier cures, and more skilful dealing with the practical problems involved, and less distress to the afflicted and those who care for them.

Urinary incontinence is a condition in which voluntary control over emptying the bladder is impaired or lost. It can be very mild, such as a small leak of urine occurring as a result of increased abdominal pressure when laughing, coughing or sneezing. It can be overflow from a full bladder which cannot be emptied because of some blockage and results in a continuous slight leakage of urine. It can be caused by too short a warning of the urge to pass water. Reflex incontinence is the automatic emptying of the bladder with no

5. Dealing constructively and

Mrs Margaret Bodington SRN RCNT FBIM, is Assistant County Nursing Officer SJA Suffolk

sensation such as occurs after some spinal injuries. Incontinence can be due to mental impairment. Lastly, there is post-micturition dribbling which occurs after passing a fairly normal quantity of urine.

s rarely :;cussed sympathetically with the psychological needs of the victim and other members ofthe family. When the first 'accident' occurs it causes great shock not only because of astonishment but probably disgust too. Continence is one of the first accomplishments that is praised and valued by parents, thus in an adult, the inability to contro body functions results in' feelings of guilt, shame and anticipation of censure by others. Most of us in full health have experienced at sometime an urgent desire to pass water when no suitable opportunity is available and remember how worried we wer e. How much worse for some frail elderly person to actually be incontinent.

Incontinence may be due to one of various causes or several minor ones. It should always be referred to the doctor who may well be able to treat and cure it. For instance, sometimes even a mild urinary infection, easily remedied, will cause incontinence. However, there are several simple, safe measures which the sufferer or his family could carry to cure or alleviate the symptoms such as:

1. Making sure there are no environmental difficulties. The time between feeling the need to urinate and micturation can be very short in some elderly persons If help with this function is needed it should be readily available. Often regular two hourly toileting will cure incontinence. Sufferers who are mobile and can attend to themselves should be near a lavatory or commode. Bed height and chair design should make rising easy without assistance. Clothing should be designed to assist speedy preparation for micturition.

2. Ensuring adequate overall fluid intake to relieve irritation of the bladder. The evening intake may be reduced to keep night toileting requirements to a minimum, as aged kidneys may make as much urine at night as in the day.

3. Relieving any constipation by diet and if necessary laxatives.

4. Getting the person up and dressed if possible and encouraging mobility and pleasurable, stimulating occupation

5. The sufferer and anyone involved in helping with the problem will need much kindness and understanding. The y should be told that most incontinence is temporary and can be dealt with by various aids. They should be told thai even if it is permanent it is possible to still Jjve at home as the sophistication of the latest appliances, draw sheets, etc, make it a practical possibility. There is material assistance available throu gh doctors and district nurses as weJJ as a fund of good advice. It will be very difficult to convince those concerned that, provided the practicalities are dealt with, in time most people get used to the problem. I spent many years working for severely physically handicapped persons of all ages. I can remember the re-action of hithe rto continent patients when incurable , permanent urinary incontinence struck them. Many of them who had previously been intelligent welladjusted persons leading a wide life became acutely depressed, refusing to mix with others or make their usual visits to public places such as concert halls. Their acute mortification nearly destroyed them. However, after three to six months, they usually became nearl y immune to their predicament. Partly becau se they, or others if they themselves were not abl e, helped by the wealth of aids for coping with the problem, had worked out a suitable routine to minimise if not entirely prevent smell, soiled clothing or bedding and sore skin. Urinary incontinence is like many of life's problems: not so bad once you know the facts and how to tackle them.

WHAT IS A LITTER?

AT A meeting of staff officers (cadets) in Kent in October 1981, our CSO(C) Mr C. Smith informed us of a Cadet Spectacular being planned at the Albert Hall in 1982. Kent, like all other Counties, was asked to make a contribution towards this special event. We had quite a lot of suggestions which included using the Furley stretcher and litter We would race one way, and pick up a casualty on the way back. Then it was suggeste d that the litter shou ld be made portable; an obtacle course

(Not the sort caused by louts)

could be laid out, something on the lines of the Naval Gun Run in the Royal Tournament. The Furley stretcher and litter would be dismantled at obstacles, the patient remaining on the stretcher passed over a wall, and the whole unit re-assembled on the other side. The ftrst job was to get all the measuremen ts of a litter. One superintendent had a Jjtter in his garden and produced three drawings of it This was a help, but the problem was - how to make it portable but safe for cadets to use.

ASHFORD LITTER

(Le ft) An illustrat ion of 1901 showing how to use the litter. With ts legs locked in the down position the stretcher can be removed. (Right) An improved Ashford litter with protection covers for patient

KENT'S CADET LITTER

(Left) Kent's litte dismantled. and (right) cadets giving it a run. It 's hoped t will be used in some way for fund raising Ha ve you any ideas?

Then the wheels had to be made 3 inches less in diameter, to make it cadet height. After working it all out on paper the stretchers and litters then had to be made.

The day came to try them out. This was at our Cadet Rally in June 1982. All went well, and they proved very popular with the cadets. Then the blow fell! Mr Smith told us that the litters would not be used at the Albert Hall. What a disappointment after all our efforts! So it was decided to use them at our Kent

Training Weekend at Dyrnchurch. It is now hoped that Divi sions in Kent will use them in some ways for fund raising, but if another Cadet Spectacular is planned, perhaps we may be luckier next time! A cart

Most members of St John know what a Furiey stretcher is but what is a litter? It is a cart that carries a tretcher. (See illustration.) The oldest unit in the Brigade is still in Kent.

Nevv HQ for

To replace building destroyed by fire three years ago

THE sun shone brightly on December 11 for the dedication service and official opening of Westbury (Wilts) Quadrilateral Division's new headquarters. The fine Master Link building, the outcome of an appea1launched three years ago by the late Div / Supt Will Taylor, replaces the wooden building which was broken into and destroyed by fire on April 27 1979.

The Division, which obviously felt very satisfied now that the long haul of obtaining their new 'home' was over, paraded to be inspected by the County Commissioner, Lt Col R. B Robinson, KStJ.

Among the 70 people present were the SJA Commander Wilts, Major-Gen C. W. B. Purdon, the chairman of the St John Council, Mr R. J. Arundell, representatives from County and Area Staff and other Divisions, as well as local firms organisations and people who had

Canon Moxon, flanked by the Commissioner and Chairman of Council and in front of members and guests dedicates the new HQ which Westbury Division has been able to pay for completely thanks to the success of the 3-year appeal.

(Photo : Wiltshire Times)

responded so well to the appeal.

Div Supt F. H. Smith formally handed the documents, vesting the property in t he Order, to the Commissioner. The dedication service was conducted by Canon Charles Moxon, OStJ, of Salisbury Cathedral and a Sub Chaplain of the Order. Col Robinson

Sir John Furley (after whom the stretcher was named) was a remarkable and adventurous character who had much to do with the Order's activities and promoted the work of the International Red Cross on battlefields and in England, also in organising equipment. The Furley stretcher commemorates his name to this day and the Headquarters at Ashford, Kent, is also named after him.

W. H. Jarvis ASO(AC) No.2 Area, Kent

then formerly opened the building.

Unfortunately the Divi ion 's VicePresident, Miss Grace Sturmer, who was recovering from injurie aused by a ar crash, was unable to be there. All pre ent signed a get-well card which em to her.

Staff Sgt D 1. Davey, PRO

NEWS from SCOTLAND

1982 WAS a year of achievement in the Priory of Scotland Funds for the extension of the St John Nursing Home in Aberdeen were successfull y raised and Sir Maitland Mackie, chairman of the Order Committee, received a knighthood in the Birthday Honours List. In Glasgow the Langside Home, threatened with homelessness by the expiry of the lease, has been assured of new premises by the enthusiastic and generou s response of the large St John Association and their friends to an appeal lodged by the Order Committee in Glasgow. At Prior y Headquarters in Edinburgh new memorial gates and railings were dedicated in March , and in the autumn a new gas central heating system was installed and some necessar y maintenance was done to the ex terio r o f the building, which was also re-painted The Si r Andrew Murray Holiday Home at Strathyre was made still more attractive by the addi t ion of a games room opened by Miss Rodne y

Murra y, OBE, in May. Attendance at the Festi v al of St John at Stirling in Jun e was ver y good despite the weather. In O c tober the Priory was represented at t he Cen t enar y Celebra ions of the Hospital in Jeru s alem, to which it made anoth e r practi cal gift in th e form of further laundr y equipmen t.

Preparations for publication of 'T h e Knigh ts o f St John ' dealing with the hi s tor y of the Order in Scotland, were brought to a successful conclusion; and in Nov e mber good relations with the St A n drew s Ambulance A ssociation were re co g ni sed when he Secretary of th e Prior y o f Sco land wa s made an honorar y member o f hat Asso ciation

1982 was also, however, a year o f lo ss. Death took from us Mr Herber t Green w ho v irtuall y founded the Order and it s Association in Glasgow ; Mrs Ha y o f Sea on ; Mrs Boyd And e rson , and Mr s Ed i th Henderson, all Dame s of t he O r der; M is s

r ldw id e inte rest.

Bu il in No r the rn Ir ela nd th e br ea kthr o u g h a c hi eved b y th e F re e a nce r co nce pt is th e d es ig n of a s im p e s ys tem to fit a s tandard ca r w ith ou t

co mpr o mi s ing he ve h icle s pe r fo rman ce or affec t ing it s co ns tr uc ti o n in a ny way. It co n s sts of a ba se f ra me, a s wing in g ar m for a w hee lc hair, and a s im p e elec t r ca l co nt ro s ys te m It ca n be f itt ed easi ly o e ith e r th e drive r

o r pa sse nge r s ide, me rely a s an acce ss ory op ti o n F u rt he rm ore, once F reela nce r is re move d , t he car re turn s to its origi na l s pecif ication , thu s

a ll ow in g it to be sold a s a s tandard m otor ca r T he Fre el a nce r s ys te m can

th en be in s ta ll ed in a re pl aceme nt ca r

Transport

for the Disabled

INTER STYL E, of M o re to n-in-M a rs h , G los, has a fres h a pproa ch to tod ay's m o to ring probl e ms. T he t o ug h , tw o-part

s tee l fra me , we ll fini s hed fi br eg la ss p ane l and in te ri o r , p ut a n exc itin g bo d y on read il y ava il a bl e Min i co mp o nent Th e Simpli cit y of c on s tru c t io n ma ke thi s a n id eal car fo r ma nu facture in de ve lo pin g co untri es Th e new Hu s tler H a rri e r has a ra ise d r oof, g v ng a n int e ri o r heIgh t of 4 5 " (l350mm ). In s te a d o f th e ha c h bac k , t he wid e side-hing ed rea r d oor, op e nin g to within 14 /1 o f th e g rou n d allow s eas y acc ess for th e wh ee lcha ir -bo und or eve n mo to rbik es, s h o ppin g tro ll eys, law n mow e rs, d isco s a kit pri ce of £ 1,9 95 p lus VAT, t hi s supr e me ly p rac ti ca l addIt Ion to th e ra nge offer s limitl ess p oss ibiliti es as a n a mbu lan ce, 8-se at pe rso nn e l carri e r servi ce van ta x inv a lid ca r or ca mper. " ,

NelNs from Divisions/Centre s

OBITUARY

A laser beam cures ulcers

Frequently to heal a h ae morrhagic ulcer the patient had to be submitted to major surgery, to take away part of the stomach. For this the patient had to remain hospitalised for two weeks. But now, in a certain hospital in London, doctors are using a treatment of ten minutes with a laser beam which 't o present date has given good results in nine cases out of every ten' according to an artic le in the Daily Telegraph.

This treatment consists of the application of a controlled amount of energy which heats up the tissues to such a degree that the blood vessels are sealed so that haemorrhage is stopped. Dr Stephen Brown, who developed the technique, says that 'the treatment is especially useful in the cases of persons of advanced age and those of weak constitution who, as well as having ulcers, s uf fer f rom other infirmitie s and, cons equen t ly, co uld not resist major surgery of the abdomen.'

Overdose of aluminium

Dr Armand Lione, a pharmacologist of Toron to, says that aluminium in the foods we eat and from the utensils we use to cook them sometimes contributes to upsets in our health. He states that a quantity of aluminium as small as two or three milligrams reaching the brain can alter its normal functioning and contribute to a certain class of senility. Lione says t hat, on average, North Americans ingest approximately 22 milligrams of aluminium

daily and that the greater part of this is eliminated by way of the kidneys. But, he observes, the efficiency of the kidneys be gins to diminish after thirty yea r s of age as a consequence of which a certain amount of aluminium begin s to accumulate in t he body.

The foodstuffs which contain aluminium are the prepared mixtures commercia ll y available for pastry and cake -makin g, self-

raising flour , pancake mixtures and prepared dough These products contain as fermenting agent, sodi um phosphates of a luminiu m A luminium can be present as sulp hated salts of the metal in some pickles s uch as pickled gherkins. The doctor declares t h at uten sils made of aluminium, especially if they are used to prepare or store acid foods such as tomatoes, can increase the amount of a lum inium consumed.

Larking - about caused deaths

About SO persons were on a rope-bridge h anging over one of the cascades, Sete Q u edas in Braz il when the bridge collapsed and precipitated to their deaths, in the rapid current of the Ri ver P ara na , at lea st 40 tourists A member of the rescue team stated:

'There had been people who were foolingabout and rocking the rope-bridge. The cables s napp ed in the middle of the walk-way and the people dropped, one by one as thei r grip failed, int o th e torrent.'

The factors which contributed to thi s disaster were h e practical-joking, the overloading of a gangway not int ended for so many persons at the same time and, to some extent, negligence in periodi c examination and maintenance.

of the nursing care for non-ambulatory patients (9). 11 Frolic fo r an early ri ser (4). 12. Voice in laryngeal toxicosis (4). 13. Pla nt supposed to induce a pleasant langour when eaten (S). 15 A great force in North America (7). 16. Excretory organ (4). 20. Pathogeni c micro-organism (4). 22. Specia l sense from arts graduate with 9 Acro (7). 2S Ligaments attaching the uterus to the anterior wall of the pelv is (S). 27. Bo y wi th a North A frican grass (4). 28. Upper ri bs and lower part of the pelvis (4). 30. Re sting phase of the cardiac cycle (9). 31. Measure of illumination or a much-visited Egyptian town (5). 32 Consume in breathing (3) 33. Cramp (6.S).

Down

1. Battle ground of the Templars an d Hospitallers (4.4). 2. Gland producing digestive juices (8).3. Unrestricted type of fracture (4).4. Infectious di sease dangerous to foetus during early pregnancy (7). 5 Outside disorder becoming wearisome (7) 6. Play for time for protection of injured finger (S). 7. A pie to use for a soporific dru g (6). 8. Assimilate foo d (6). 14. Broken pane at the back of the ne ck (4). 17. Misfortunes (4). 18 Lack of appetite (8). 19. Major part of the brain (8). 21. Infectious disease in which Koplik's spots are diagnostic (7). 22. Lens aiding both near and distant vision (7). 23 Bed for a very small charge (6).24. Founder of he International Re d Cross (6). 26. Reference point against which other facts are compare d (S). 29. Additional sign (4).

REVIEW CROSSWORD No 2 (83) by A. A Potter SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 1 (83) Across: 1. Sphenoid; 5. Sacrum; 10. Lysis; 11. Occipital; 12. Rail ; 13. Ra-mi; 14. Ashen; 17. Canine; 18. Ex-crete; 21. Illness; 23. Poison ; 2S. A·or·ta; 27. Pate; 28. Itc h ; 30 Endocrine; 32. Dosed; 33. Tsetse ; 34. Stenosis.

Down: 1. Sclera; 2. Hospitaller; 3 No se; 4. Iso late; 6. Al pha; 7. Across

FIRE CREWS IN SAUDI ARABIA

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Our Client, a Major U .S. Corporation, needs staff now for their contract at The International Airport Jeddah. CREW CHIEF(S) with command experience and a minimum of three years to include time spent at an international airport.

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Vacancies for FIRE PREVENTION OFFICER and more SENIOR POSITIONS may be available for candidates with the right experience.

The above positions , on bachelor status, offer an attractiv e, tax free salary, free food and accommodation and in addition travel allowanc e for UK leav e.

InterManagement

Please r ep ly to: Ellie Harrod Int e rM anage m en t Co n s ultant

M 'ENS & WOMENS

SECONDHAND POLICE UNIFORMS in as new condition

TROUSERS £8.00 SKIRTS £8.00

TUNICS £10.00

GREATCOATS £13.50

GANNEX COATS £13.50 NEW WHITE SHIRTS £6.00 (with epaulettes and two front pockets)

BLACK COMMANDO PULLOVERS (with elbow & shoulder patches)

36" to 40" chest £12.00

MANY HUNDREDS ALREADY SUPPLIED TO THE BRIGADE

Rat; 8. Malinger; 9. Active; 15. Haemoptysis; 16. Lice; J9 . Chin; 20.

(11).7. Eccentric Ligament;

..t Pilcher-Greene has cu stomi sed a wide range of v ehicle s for ambulatory t ransport

Basic models includ e Mercedes 3 10, the Bed ford eF , Dodg e 50 and Ford Transit, in conversion or coa c h- bu ilt variants With interior op tion s to spe cification.

Fac tory appro v ed 4-wheel drive ambulances on Land Rove r and Ran ge Ro ver c hassis ' .' comp ete th e range

ontents

Our No tice Board p.49

T alking Pain!:, The Professionals? p.50

M icro technology comes to SJA W. Midlands p.50

A town ca led Grays p 52

Out and About by Nancy Sa le p.54

Fi

A round and About, by the Editor p.56

Cadet Chat p.60

Lady of Avenel p.61

The Lymphatic System, by E M. Fennemore p.62

SJA Mus ic Makers p.63

A ll aboard for First Aid p.64

Books p.65

Readers' Views p.66

Cover competition resu lts p.67

News fro m Scotland - Wa es p.68

News from Divisions/Centres p 70

ITO R A

PILCHER· GREENE

A D VERTIS EMENTS

Edited and prod u ced for the Orde r of St John by Driscoll Productions, Wood Cottage, High Corner, Butley, N Woodbridge, Suffolk P12 30F. Advertising rates on request.

Ph one: Orford (STD 039 45) 548. Ed tor: Frank Driscoll. Printe d Origination by: M o narch Origination Limited, Hadleigh Road, IPSW Ch, S uffol k. Te (047 3) 219 11 8 (3 ines)

d by:

from the Chief Commander

OVER the years several Counties have used professional advisers to help raise funds for specific projects. We do not advise this, as their charges are apt to be on the high side, but it may be the best solution for Counties which have been quite unable to attract competent volunteers and do not wish to take on a paid fund raiser of their own

These people only advise and the appeal comes from St John direct. The other form of professional fund raising used in some Counties is to allow a commercial firm to seek support in our name coupled with the supply of some service such as the provision of a Year Book, Quarterly news sheet, etc. The firm makes its profits from the sale of the advertising space. It has long been realised that this is a far from satisfactory arrangement but it was felt that it was a matter for decision by individual Counties.

Latterly, we have run into serious problems with this type of operation and I am convinced that to continue to allow outside organisations to raise money in our name poses an unacceptable risk. There are four main objections:

(1) The person approached thinks the caller is a member of St John Ambulance and that if he makes a contribution the money will come to us In fact, only a small proportion of it does, in some cases as little as 20 070.

(2) A person approached, having made a contribution however small or having taken some advertising space, considers that he has done his bit for St John and is unlikely to give further support.

(3) If the person approached is unwilling to make a contribution, the telephone salesman often applies excessive pressure. In a number of cases we have had complaints of actual rudeness, and this implies that many will have become unsympathetic to St John even though they have not bothered to make a formaJ complaint.

(4) Some of the clauses in the small print may be totally unacceptable but not immediately obvious to the uninitiated.

I feel very strongly that our name and reputation are so important to us that we should under no circumstances again risk exposing them to outside agencies. This includes firms who offer to produce the diaries, Year Books, news sheets, etc, mentioned above, and also those offering to organise lotteries, competitions, install 'one-arm bandits' or any other fund raising scheme in our name.

I would ask you, therefore, to issue appropriate instructions throughout your County forbidding any organisation o r member of SI John Ambulance to enter into any form of fund raising agreement with outside agencies without prior approvaJ in writing from the Public Affairs Department at this Headquarters.

I hope, too, that you will do everything you can to wind up existing contracts. Where this cannot be done, would you please let the Public Affairs Depa r tment have full details.

CHAMBER'S dictionary defines first aid as 'the treatment of the sick or wounded person before the arrival of a doctor'. The new Manual reiterates the previous edition: 'First aid is the skilled application of accepted principles of treatment on the occurrence of injury or sudden illness, using facilities or materials available to you at the time. It is the approved method of treating a casualty until placed, if necessary, in the care of a doctor or removed to hospital.'

Further on, the Manual continues under the heading Responsibility the trained first -aider should give immediate, appropriate and adequate treatment bearing in mind that some casualties will require more urgent treatment than others.'

It is necessary to be reminded of these definitions because of the long -standing division of opinion in the Brigade on the role of the first-aider. Should he or she be trained only within the limits set out in the Manual? Or should the training be extended, in these days of heightened technology and public expectation, to 'second-aid' or a paramedical role? And what is the place of the doctor and nurse who are members of the Brigade.

This controversy resurfaced at the 32nd London District Conference for Surgeons and Nursing officers, quoted in the January Review.

The Chief Nursing Officer, Miss Rosemary Bailey, is reported defending the ordinary member of St John in that the 'professionals' do not let them get on with it; they should stand back, and doctors and nurses should act more as teachers and advisers Yet General Regulation 107 states very clearly that the Surgeon has the entire charge and control of the station on public duties so far as all medical matters are concerned. He will give such instructions to the officer-in-charge as are, in his opinion, necessary for the medical treatment of casualties. If a Nursing Officer is on duty she will ass is t the Surgeon in supervising treatment of casua l ties, and in the absence of the Surgeon be responsible for all medical cases.

In summarising, therefore, the firstaider's task on public duties is first aid, but when the casualty has the opportunity of a further medical or nursing opinion then this should be sought.

The Chief Nursing Officer is further

quoted 'more and more unauthorised and sophisticated equipment is getting into our ambulances.' This is true. Maybe the much awaited Public Duties Handbook will give guidance on this problem. (Ed: Now available - See p.69 Books).

Certainly Surgeons and Nursing Officers mu st be responsible for the adequate training of all personnel who might crew our ambulances and be more selective about allowing such equipment. But there have to be exceptional circumstances. One example is on ambulances used for the Aeromedical Services which have to be equipped to the same standard as air ambulances. And to what standard sho uld St John ambulances be equipped when they take over fro m National Health Service veh icles as they did in the West Midlands for 17 days not so long ago? In Trafalgar Square, on New Year's Eve , there was much necessary sophisticated equipment, manned by St John members of all ranks and grades!

Further in the report, Dr Brian Lewis, Commissioner for Kent, a consultant anaesthetist and a very experienced 'Intensive Care' aeromedical attendant, says that he considers St John shou ld have a multi-tiered structure, in which, in fact, a paramedical service is provided. There is a ground swell for his viewpoint even among ordinary members and certainly among lay Area and County Staff. This idea is also thought of as a possible solution to the loss of so many of the younger members of St John Ambulance, who leave because of the 'boredom factor'. The active younger member can learn fir st aid, revise it and rehearse it only for so many years. Would another dimension, encourage them not to leave?

Headquarter s is very firm on this controversy, as is the Medical Board. First aid is first aid, nothing more and nothing less . And many members, probably the majority, will and do agree with them.

But professionals? We are all professionals if we are trained and reach the required standard at whatever level, from young cadet to Commander.

Are we giving the public the cover they should expect or denying them that right? Or is Headquarters right?

The controversy will continue; so will St John Ambulance Brigade. N.L.P.

AMBULANCE MEMBER Dav e Lewi s wouldn't describe him se lf a a computer boffin. lndeed his job is far from the field of electronics. Bu t, in common wit h thou and of others, Dave has developed an intere st in home co mputin g', and he can now mix hi two hobbie s, for he has written for the Brigade not one but two computer programmes - which have stood a marathon test.

Dave reckons it took some 40 hours to perfect the programmes, but they can mee t all divisional , and even county requiremen ts It fell to Solihull Tran sport Division to organise the ambulance, first aid and medical requirements for the 1982 City of Birmingham marathon. This is one of two major marathons run in the city each year, attracting around 5,000 runners. It starts at Birmingham city centre and f ini shes at th e National Exhibition Centre. Because parts of the course are travelled twice it was necessary for h e Brigade to cover 19 mil es of road, with ni ne major first aid station s and 13 minor relief stations. In all, eight ambulances and two mobile units wer e employed, with one cardiac unit being stationed centrally. In addition, St John had to undertake to rep atr iate ho se runner s retiring from the event, for which three Brigade minibu ses were used.

Aerial tower

Temporary headquarters were established at Sheldon fire station, located at the hub of the activity, its tower providing u seful elevation for the two radio aerials. A GPO land line was installed for the day D / Supt Phil Kinsey, of Solihull Transport Division, had the daunting task of controlling the movement of 14 vehicles and receiving radio messages from 31 points around the course. More than 150 member s from two Areas within West Midland s County - Solihull Area together with Birmingham and Sutton Area - were on th e duty The national communication team from the Scouts provided 14 radio sets on their UHF channel. The job of keeping track of events was simplified by utilizing for the

first time the most modern technology - two mi cro comp uter s.

Each computer was linked to a colour TV set acting as a visual display unit (VDU), a printer which fa ithfull y printed out each entr y, and a cassette recorder, making a tape recording of the day's events.

One system was used to contro l the ambulance s, while the other recorded in formation on the minibuses and retiring runner s. For the benefit of those intere ted, th e computer system used for the ambulances was the BBC micro, the programme was 18.2K with a furt h er 9K for data storage. The second computer had a 10K programme with t o 16K extra data st orage added. Two dot matrix printers were used.

Ambulance control

On the Ambulance control YOU, the first d isplay s ho wed the group status 0 f all the a m.bulances in use. Two further displays whIch cou ld be called within half-a-second were (1) s ho wing the last 25 movements and t he times for each ambulance, and (2) the a ct ual cases dealt with by the ambulance c rews. Becau se all this information was also recorded on magnetic tape, it was possible t o leave the organisers with a printout of all t he cases involved, which by the end of the d ay resulted in more t h en 180 ambulance movements.

The. use of a colour TV, though it c omplicates writing of the programme, e nables maxImum c lari ty to be obtained at a glance. For instance, red for an ambulance t o an incident; green when available, etc.

This. second computer, used for controllmg the mini-buses could well have b een the busiest but, in event, less than 100 people required transport to the finish. As a. runner retired, his race number and 10 catlOn was radioed to control and entries on the computer. It was therefore p OSSIble, at a gl a.nce, to see how many ru nners were awaltmg collection at each site a nd how long they had been there. The h rogra':lme specially highlighted those who ad waited for more than ten minutes and th ?se who had waited more than twenty m mutes. It was therefore possible to direct

(Above) The control desk and visual dis ply unit (Right) The state of 14 vehicles at 13.07 on Sept 19

the mini-buses not only to where large groups may have been assembled, but also to where runners had been waiting the longest for collection. If information on t he whereabouts of any runner was required , provided he had either been treated or transported by St John Ambulance, then simply by entering the runner's race number into the computer, instant information was obtainable on him.

This technology has finally put an end to the confusion that occurs at the end of any event incorporating a large number of participants. As Phil Kinsey put it on the day: 'If we've seen him, we know where he is!

The now defunct map and pinboard were kept in the background to be brought out in the unlikely event of mains failure The entire status could rapidly be recalled from the print out and when power was restored the magnetic tape record could be fed back into the computers.

The keeping of such records and displays would require an army of clerks, but only four personnel were needed at the control desk, including the radio operator and message recorder. Clearly, not all radio and

telephone reports required entry into the computer, so the records clerk still had his seat! The only refinement Dave Lewis has in mind is to record on tape all radio messages.

The total cost of the equipment on the control desk was £2,100, £400 for each micro-computer, £400 for each printer and less than £100 for the cassette recorders and say £400 for the televisions. As usual in Brigade circles, much of the expense was spared by begging and borrowing. Dave Lewis reckons he can train an operator in fust 15 minutes!

West Midlands County now has a programme for controlling 15 vehicles and recording 300 cases. The only requirement on location is mains power.

West Midlands SJA Commander, Mr A. J. Sunderland, who visited the control centre on the day of the marathon, praised the enterprise of his members.

Here again is an example of how the variety of talents possessed by Brigade members can, given the chance and encouragement combine to improve its capabilities. And to create greater intere t for them in the organi ation' acti vi tie.

Eddie

s daughter Gai

See story A SMALL MIRACLE? (Photo: The Chorley Guardian) divisional newsletter, especially when it is a very bright production, issued bi-monthly and is free (but £1 a year by post). Such I received from Lancashire's Chorley Jubilee Quadripartite Division -a cumbersome name but a division I wanted to know more about. I got in touch with its 'working president', David Rothwell, who's duties range from counsellor to typist, chairman to

chauffeur, friend to maths teacher. And PRO, I might add, for it was he who sent me the copy of the newsletter, and caused me to write this. And incidentally, caused you to be reading it. r asked him to get the Division's Supt, Mrs Gail Roberts, to summarise the growth of this obviously unusual and (to me) very stimulating SJA unit.

Winner o the first prize (a new Talbot Samba) in the December St John Ball raff e Mrs Joyce Tyler, a Malvern member, receives the car in London from Henry Cooper. Mrs Tyler who regularly enters raffles but has never won before owns a 'J' registered Triumph

Gail writes:

Initially two cadet divisions were in existence until, in 1981, they were joined to form Chorley Combined Cadet Division

During t hat year the cadets increased in number, with many reaching the 14-16 age group. This age group tended to lose interest when told that, on reaching the age of 16, they must transfer to a separate di vision, leaving behind all the ir friends.

'Thus discussion began in an attempt to so lve this problem. It was suggested by Area Staff that a Quad Division be formed, incorporating a Youth Section with an upper age limit of 25. Hence, in January 1982 Chorley Jubilee Quadripartite Division was born.

'This Divi sion proved to be very popular with all age groups - in fact numbe rs doubled wit hin six months. However, such an increase in numbers demanded an in crease in supervision and instruction, and several SJA Gloucester's HQ was reopened in December aher a £50,000 ebuild which included a completely new interior and exterio r preservation work (Leh) Aher the opening by the Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Rev John Yates, the party whi ch also ncluded the Mayor and senior members of the Order and Brigade mad e a tour of inspection which included first aid demonstrations. (Belowl Cadet Joanna Hold er, 13, of Stroud, receivin g the Order 's Certificate of Honour from the Chancellor, Earl St Aldwyn , for saving the life of a girl, by pushing her out of the path of a runaw ay motorcycle, at a scramble duty. Joanne herself suffered a serious eg injury. Photos: Glos Newspapers)

members of the Adult Division volunteered their services. Indeed, after a short period several adults requested transfers to the Quad Division to further their work on a more formal basis.

'However, some of these adults had already passed the ripe old age of 25, and further discus sions were held to solve this dilemma. The culmination of these talk s was T HAN KS yet a further development of Chorley Quad Division. Membership was opened to all age groups!

These changes opened up opportunities for many new ventures. For instance, games and a t uck shop have become regular weekly feature s, while other soc ial activities ha ve grow n over the per iod. [n particular, a completely different approac h was a dopted at the open nigh t. A fter the formal part 0 f the evening (enrolment ceremony and presentation of awards), we decided to s ubs titute an hour of mu sica l entertainment for the mor e u ual demonstrations. This diversion proved to be a great s u ccess, not only with members of the Division and their parents and friend, but al 0 with the lar ge number of Area a nd County Staff, orne of whom had trave ll ed considerable di tances to attend t he even t. The streng th of the Di vis ion is now 84 cadets and 23 adu lt s.

1 must quote the president, David Roth well, again: I ha ve been astounded by the wealth of goodwill that exists within the St John organisation and my life has certa inl y been enriched even during the relatively short association with St John.'

From 1981 to 19 83. In that period a town in Lancashire seems to have solved the problem of people being conscious of their age, whether it be 16, 25 or 70, while in St John Ambulance. Ha s there been a small miracle in Chorley?

The St John Cheltenham rally for caravans and tents is to be held Friday July 22 to 25 at the Cheltenham Racecourse, Prestbury Park. The long weekend will include a disco ! barn dance! barbecue, children's events, stretcher obstacle race and a coach trip. The charge for the weekend is £8 per unit, excluding the coach trip. Details are available and application form (please send SAE) from Mrs C. Syer, 6 King William Drive, Char lton Park, Cheltenham, Glos GL53 7RP.

Sussex appeal success

AT THE instigation of the Commi sioner for Susse , iVlr K. G. Bolton, and together with the Pre s ident of the Council, The Marquess of Abergavenny, and the late Lord Rupert Nevill, who was chairman of the St John Council, an appeal was launched to provide ambulances and modern equipment to ensure that the be t possible treatment would be available to the public at the many du ties we cover.

The St John Council appeal for monies to up-date St John ambulance in Sussex ha s now come to a close with the sum of £350,000.

John Ambulance in Sussex now has available 33 fullyeqUIpped ambulances, many of which are four-wheel drive and capable of travelling over very rough terrain , in snow and icy conditions. These will be increased in the near future by a further four vehicles. In addition, we now have a radio control unit for larger duties and disasters, as well as a publicity unit for recrui t ing exhibition work at the various shows in the county. There is much to be done and our everyday needs are still with u Our smce.re thanks are due to very many people - members, t he general publIc and companies in Sussex - for their very generous help.

The Secretary -General of the Order, Sir Peter Hudson (right). presents a vellum vote of thanks to Mr Alan Burrough CBE, retired chairman of James Burrough, who make Beefeaters gin, in recognition of the many donations made through the years to the St John Ophthalmic Hospital

CARAVAN RALLY

(Left ) 22 cadets of Horsham cadet divisions were enrolled by the Area Commissioner , Mr B R. T Sharp at the Holy Trin ty Church at a special service during October Following the

Programme planning in Cadet Divisions

by lAIN ARMSTRONG, DID Sheffield

POINTS TO PONDER

Question - Do we really need to plan programmes and doesn't programme planning take up too much time?

Answer - Yes we do. And no it doesn t.

PLANNING ahead helps us to achieve our aims. It is a means of ensuring that our time is well spent. Programmes should be capable of adaptation and alteration. They should never be allowed to fall into a set routine or to become stereotyped. They must be interesting and exciting - for the benefit of the youngsters and for you. Tying bandages in a dusty corner week after week will convince anyone with a little intelligence that this is not for them and another cadet will be lost.

If you can advertise a programme that is interesting, exciting and adventurous you will find recruitment very much easier. (You may also find that adult help is easier to obtain).

A final point for you to ponder. I have said that planning helps us to attain our aims, but have you ever sat down and thought what are the aims of a St John Cadet Division? The regulations state a number of 'aims', but if you have a member in your Division for five years and at the age of sixteen he decides not to promote to the adult division and leaves the Brigade, have you not attained your aims and thus failed?

I would be very interested to hear your views on the 'aims of a St John Cadet Division'.

BRAIN STORM

A very good way to help you to get started in planning a programme is to commence with a central theme and branch outwards with any ideas focused on that theme.

The example below shows that by starting with the theme of 'FIRE' you can develop a night's programme or in fact a full month's programme

Don't be afraid of suggesting ideas which at first seem elaborat e - it is nearly always possible to scale down ideas and thu s mak e them practical.

It may be possible to devise a monthly project on a theme and split the Division into small groups to work on a section of the theme At the end of the month each group presents their work to the whole Division This may involve first aid display s , po s ter s or written work, etc. Why no t invite parents along for th e evening?

Why don't you try and select a theme and work outwards wi t h ideas?

r would very much like to use other officers idea s in this section.

TRAINING - Burns and Scalds

Split into equal teams of approximately t hree. Give each 0RS>1 AlP group pens, .-r-r00:fl)(Z rulers and \1''1:) Itpapers. Using 1 the 'Essentials o f First Aid' book, each group has to des ign a tea ching chart to show the general public how to deal with burn s or dangers of fir e in the home

OR HOW ABOUT?

-a first aid or nursing competition about burn s and scald s.

-a quiz about the emergency services.

- a full scale exercise when the place at whi c h you meet ca tc he s fire. You have several casualties (they need not all be burn s and scalds), so why not invite your local scout group or another division to be patients?

-a visit to the local fire station.

- getting your division on a 'Fire Prevention cour se - your local station may be able to help - carry out s urvey 'How safe is your home from fire? '

WHERE TO GET IT!

Here are a fe w addre s ses that you may find of u s e: RoSP A, Canon House, The Priory Queen sw a y , Birmingha m B46BS.

Fire Protection A ssociation , Aldermary House, Queen Street, London EC4N ITJ

Your local Fire Station can normall y be found in the phone book - no 999 c alls, please!

The Health Education Coun c il, 78 Ne w O xford Str e et , London WCIA lAH.

You will be able to obtain a number o f tea c hing material s, s uch a s film s, wallchart s , po st ers and booklets / leafle ts , from the s e people

HOW DO YOU DO IT?

How do you plan programmes for your division? Would you like to share your ideas? Is there anything that you would like to be included in this section? If so write to Jim, 57 Morgan Crescent, Theydon Bois, Epping, Essex CM16 7DU.

IDEAS

Staying with a theme of 'FIRE', below are a number of ideas you could work a programme around. (You may find that the games are too young for your older cadets - so why not get them to organise the games - and put your feet up).

C!5:i)

Games Fire! - Leader calls out words of command. Members react accordingly. Fire Drill - Line up members in fours. Panic - Panic. Smoke - Crawl on floor.

999 - Mime dialling

Relay gameWho turned the light off?

Split into teams of 4, 5 or 6. Each team has one box of matches and a candle. Turn out most of the ligh ts. Each member of the teams takes it in turn to light and blowout the candle safely.

She is a haunted vessel

IN 1934 there lay in the harbour of Bridlington a s hip known a a brigantine Her name wa s ' Lady of Avenel '. I mysel f we nt to see her each year on my holidays.

Chatting t o the harbour master one day, I remark e d that I had never seen an yone on board . No you won t , he said , she is a haun t ed vessel.'

Whether she was haunted or not, let me tell you the story and we'll leave the rest to your imagination.

A pr osperous businessman of Leeds , by nam e Mr Jackson, of furniture fame , had for many years w a nted to own a ship of his Own. After a long search he found his heart's de sire lying almo s t derelict at Leith in Sc ot land.

He bought her and sent her to Looe in Cornwall for fitting out and repairs. While at Looe the night watchman who was on duty on board had lit his freshly trimmed oil lamp s when suddenly they went out, and the cabIn door slowly opened - but there was no-one there.

This happening was so eerie that the old watchman refused to stay on board another day or night. The ship sailed to Bridlington SOOn after, where the crew was signed on.

'Lady' remained at Bridlington for some time, and again, one midday while everyone was ashore, a young sailor who had remained on board to finish some work suddenly heard a lady's footsteps on deck. Knowing valuable gear was lying around, he went on deck to

see who was there. But the neares t person in sight was at the far end of the jett y a good few minutes walk away.

The following night as the ship s crew sat down to their evening meal, they suddenly heard a woman's voice. No one could explain thi incident as the nearest woman would be in the town.

While the bosun was ashore that night , he was suddenly taken ill and died in Bridlington hospital. This was George Musselwhite, a Bridlington man.

No explanation could be offered regarding these incidents, but every man on board swore that he had heard the woman's voice.

Later, by chance, it was found that the Lady of Avenel had been used in the slave trade, carrying its unfortunate victims from one country to another. Maybe it was some poor creature's spirit still haunting the ship.

No -one on board during their sta y saw the Lo c h es s Mon s ter, but he y did see three porpoises s w imming in line, and it was qu i te po s ible that a man drinking too much of Nel s on s blood would have s worn that he had seen the monster itself.

Late r the ship returned to Bridlin gt on where the crew was paid off , as Mr Jackson had died and the s hip was sold to a lady owner.

The ship then sailed to Southamp t on where the Lady of A venel got into the hand s of a rascall y skipper who began selling off valuable parts of her. Finally , she finished up in Hermes Bay, Poole, Dorset , where she became a total wreck and eventuall y sank in the bay in 1939

To this day her binnacle , suppor t ed by three porpoises , and made by B. J. J. Wilson & Son, Sunderland , stands in Poole Maritime Museum The figure of the Lad y', in blue flowing robes, hung outside a hip' s chandler s shop in Poole , but the last time I went to see it I was told it had been so ld for £300 to a museum in Sweden

I was very sorry to hear this because I think it should have been returned to the Harbour Museum, Bridlington , to be among the other things from fine ships of that era.

Later the 'Lady' put to sea and sailed do w n he Ea s t Coa st , thr o ugh the Strait s o f Do ver, on to the Irish Sea , through the Ca ledonian Canal and in t o Loch ess. The fir s t s eagoin g sailin g ship t o do so for man y y ear s

A/Sgt Major N. Frost, of S. Yorks,

E. M. FENNEMORE, SCM, ARCA writes on

The Lymphatic System THE

WHAT IS this water? In a simp le form one sees it most clearly in the fluid that gathers under a blister or a burn, that affects only the surface of the skin, and the tears, formed by the fluid that protects the eyes. The fact is that every single cell in the body is bathed in tissue fluid, and it is th is that gathers around the injured cells under a blister.

The blood circulation is there to supp ly every cell in the body with nourishment and oxygen, and to remove waste products. This is done at cell le vel with a network of capillaries. These are part of an unbroken circulation of blood vessels, carrying blood from the heart, round the body and back to the heart.

From the heart the blood circulates through the lung s to be re-oxygenated and to get rid of the carbon dioxide, it is then returned to the heart to be pumped round the body again.

At the capillary level blood plasma

diffuses through the walls of the blood capillaries as tiss ue fluid, from which the cells absorb nutr ients and oxygen. Waste products pass out from the cells, including carbon dioxide and excess fluid from the process of oxidation in the production of energy.

Lymph is formed from this tissue fluid which bathes all the cells of the body, hence the Lymphatic System which forms the drainage system of all the body tissues. In fact, all our body cells live in a pond, the water of which must be continuously changed.

Lymph is very like blood plasma, a clear, pale fluid , but it contains less protein material, is alkaline in reaction, and contains Lymphocytes, and a few Leucocyres, which, in the case of infection, ingest the invading bacteria.

As the pressure in the tissue spaces rises the fluid passes into the minute Lymph Capillaries, which are blind-ended like the

BODY'S WATER DRAINAGE SYSTEM

hairlike roots of a plant, so that in this way the system is quite unlike the complete circuit of the blood circulation.

Lymph is gathered from two sources, from all the body tissues and from the Lacreals in the minute villi in the mucous membr ane lining of the intestine. In the centre of each villus is a tiny lymphatic vessel, a lacteal,in to which the digested fat from the intestine is absorbed. This fluid is called Chyle and is di ffe rent from the lymph gathered up from the rest of the bod y. Chyle look s milkly after the digestion of a meal containing fat , and is collected into the lower end of the thora cic duct, which is called the cisterna chyli. From all over the body the lymph capillaries unite to form larg er vessels lik e those of the blood circulation. The lymph atic vesse ls are very well supp lied with va lv es 10 prevent the back flow of the fluid, as are veins, and this gives them a be ade d appearance. The numerou s valves are vital

as there is no heart to pump the fluid along, as there is in the blood circulation. There is only the osmotic pressure of the body 's tissue fluids and the movements of the body An indication of the necessity for plenty of exercise.

All the lymph vessels eventually converge into two large ducts, the thoracic duct and the lymphatic duct.

The thoracic duct is the largest one. It carries the drained-off and filtered lymph from both legs, the pelvic and abdominal cavities, and the chyle from the intestine, into the cisterna chyli of the duct.

Also the left side of the thorax, the left side of the head and neck and the left arm, drain off into the same duct. It is about 15 ins long, and starts off as the cisterna chyli sac at the base, which lies in front of the upper lumbar vertebrae. The duct lie s to the right of the abdominal aorta, lying deep in the epigastrium. It passes up in front of the left side of the thoracic vertebrae, and piercing the diaphragm it ends in joining the left subclavian vein in the root of the neck.

The lymphatic duct, to the right, empties into the right subclavian vein, in the root of the neck. This duct receives all the lymph drained from the right side of the head and neck, the right arm, and the right side of the

thorax.

The left and right subc lavian veins then join the superior vena cava which enters the right atrium of the heart. Thus the lymph is returned to the blood stream.

There are places in the body where the lymph flows through groups of sma ll lymphatic glands or nodes. These act as filters, purifying the lymph. The main groups of small glands lie in the neck, the sides and back of the head, and under the arms where they are both superficial and deep' lying. More deeply buried groups are found around the heart, the base of the lungs and around the abdomen. There are also one or two gland s strategica ll y placed along the legs and arms.

Vary in size

The glands or nodes vary in size up to that of an almond, and are composed of fibrous and muscular tissue, and glandular s ubstance. An outer fibrous capsule covers the gland and from this, processes of muscular and fibrous tissue pass into the gland forming partitions. The glandular tissue contains numerous Lymphocytes and t he formation of these is an important function of the nodes. Arteries and vei ns enter and leave them at the hilum. The afferent lymph vessels enter the nodes in two

SJA MUSIC MAKERS: Committee decisions

THE FEDERATION of St John Ambulance Brigade Bands held their national committee meeting at London District HQ on January 81983. All members of the committee were present, including our guest speaker for the day Lt Col Duncan Beat.

The topic of training was brought up and at great length. The committee was mformed of the courses which had already taken and covering a very wide range of subjects. The cost of travelling to these courses was discussed and it was thought that they could be run on a regional basis rather than a national one. This would considerably reduce the cost to the bands. It was decided the area reps shou ld consult the bands In their areas and find out what help was needed and report back to the chairman. again the certificate of competance was discussed. So far only eight bands out a total of some 24 in the UK have been Inspected. A fact which national HQ is not very happy about, so a letter is being sent to and County Commissioners remmdmg them that bands which wish to in public must have a current certificate. It was also suggested that before in national events they h?uld be Inspected to ensure that everything on target'. It was decided that Lt Col Beat Shoukld , When possible, visit these bands to c ec progress.

fa The of the AGM was set Apn116, at London Dlstnct HQ. Details to be sent out by the chairman.

The No.2 band for the 1983 St John's Day parade was discussed on the basis of their and location, and St Audries ba::g Of Somerset was chosen. The No. 1

The wIll be the B.F.R. Corps of Drums.

To band ch.osen for this year's Royal urnament IS the Sussex Knights from

or three places, and the efferent lea ve at the hilum.

As the lymph flow s through the nodes the lymphocytes inside them liquefy and destroy damaging material, and dead body cells that have been affected by infection Toxins, bacteria, and unwanted particles are dealt with. Antibodies and antitoxins are produced in the nodes, and t he se help to prevent infection.

Lymphocytes are produced in the lymph tissue of the nodes from Lymphoblasts. They are also produced in the lymphoid tissue of the adenoids, tonsils, sp le en, and appendix, and also in the Peyers patches in the mucous membrane lining of t he int estine. The latter become involved in typhoid fever. Lymphocytes proliferate in chronic illness and surround the bacteria, but sometimes the organisms are so virulent that they can cause an abscess in the lymphati c gland or node itself, destro ying it.

There is no relationship between these glands of the lymphat ic system, and the secreting glands proper; they are essentially the important part of the lymph f iltering system in the water drainage system of the bod y.

(Reprinled from Ambulance Bulletin the mag a z ine o The Electricity Supply Ambulan ce Cenlre).

I MUSICAL SOCIETY I

Southwick.

A presentation of a silver plate was made by Roly Gillam, on behalf of the Federation to Lt Colonel Duncan Beat in of hi s efforts with the stage band at the Cadet Spectacular at the Royal Albert Hall. Thanks go to the Southwark League of Friends for the superb food, and to London Di strict HQ for the use of their building.

Wanted

Low pitched bugles, contact M. Bowmer , 2 Mount Street. Barnsley.

Sussex Knights have a very merry Christmas

Once again t he Sussex Knights band was in great demand over the Christmas period to play at many local events. It was a hectic time indeed , culminating in their annual carol concert in the Parish Church, which was atrended by about 200 people enjoying a good sing-along to get them into the Christmas spirit.

Another bandmaster honoured by the Order

At the investiture held on February 17 in London, Divisional Transport Officer Roland Gillam of the Southwick band was invested as a Serving Brother in the Order. He has been associated with the Brigade , in and out of uniform, since 1941, and in addition to running the band for the last ten years he is responsible for the Division's fleet of four vehicles and also organises public duties.

Mark Gillam

THE ORDER of Sr John Musical Society held a candlelight carol service Music for Christmas', with the choir of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, at St John's, Smith Square, London SWI on December 15 - in the presence of their president, HRH Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. h!ghly successful evening of music, which Included Benja min Britten s Ceremony of Carols, was seen on BBC2 TV just before Christmas, coinciding with the release of the choir's record and cassette. Among the guests for the evening, which was generously sponsored by a t/ West Bank, who gave a small reception during the interval, were The Lord Mayor of Westminster and the Lady Mayoress, Cllr and Mrs T. Whipham, the Lord Prior, Sir Maurice Dorman , Sir Kenneth Cork (chairman) and Lady Cork, Lady Caccia (chairman, Ladies Guild), and Tat / West director , Mr Charles Green. Among [he full capacity audience of 600 were the Hospitaller and Lady Miller, the Secretary General and Lady Hudson, Sir Gilbert and Lady Inglefield, the Chief Commander MajorGen Peter Leuchars and Mr Leuchar Cdr Edwin Morrison (who received the OBE in the New Year honours list) Profe or Mellowe (Council) and Mr Mellowe It i hoped that this will become an annual or biannual event, so please bear thi in mind reader , when planning to visit London next Christmas.

The Society 's next concert will be at The Barbican on April 24, 'with Placido Domingo , Luciana Serra and Thoma Allen singing with The Engli h Chamber Orchestra. Details of the e con err are available from the Society s Secretar St John' Gate, London ECl M 4DA.

s.

PRACTICAL fir st aid and rescue training took a realistic turn recently at the Central Sussex Area training day. The da y, organised by the Central Area staff, took place by courtesy of Sealink on board the SS Caledonian Princess, whIch has been berthed for some time at Newhaven awaiting a buyer. The day was. attende.d 19 officers and NCOs f rom divIsIons wlthll1 the area in addition to the staff who organised and ran the event.

The objectives of the da y were to demonstrate rea list ic first aid incidents that could be easily arranged for raining sessions yet provide an intere st ing challenge to improve members' efficiency. Also .to provide training in removing from difficult situations, thus emphaslsll1g the importance of proper patient handling; the use of Neil Robertson and scoop stretchers; an opportunity to work together in mixed teams from various divisions, and to develop leadership.

The objectives were achieved by staging a number of independent incidents in various parts of the sh ip including the engine-room and the roof of the wheelhouse. Evacuating patients from the different meant u s ing rope s in addition to other equIpment,

with

ALL ABOARD FOR FIRST AID

which added another training technique.

The incidents staged were:

Engine Room: Patient who has received an electrical shock on the sWItchgear ga ller y; injuries were loss of breathi.ng and fractured leg. Patient who susta ll1ed a fractured spine by falling across metal struc tures, also fractured collar bone.

Patient sustained a fractured leg when falling across a similar st ructure.

Wheelhouse Roof: Patient fe ll from mam mast ladder and sustained fractured spine, also struck another person who sustained a fractured collar bone. Patient inside the wheelhouse at chart table collapsed and was uncon scious. In addition, patients transferred from ship to a waltll1g ambulance by using only crew gangway at various gradients.

Another patient, a stowaway, was found unconsciou s in the ventilation equipment housing on the boat deck.

It should be stressed that the use of the ship as a location was because it provided the type ot' envIronment we wanted rather

than how to deal with an incident on a ship,

B R. Sharp, Central Area Commi sioner , com mented : As a participant, was very pleased at the amount of enjoyment as well as knowledge that wa acquired from thl training day. I feel that the organi ers had thoroughly whet the appetite of all whC1 took part, and everyone is eager to do more of this type of training. We were thrown in at the deep end and expected to deal with casualties s tr ewn around in awkward positions (for example , in the engineroom and on upper deck ), and then to remove them to safer surro und ings by using scoop and Neil Robert son st retcher s, and also rope type chair lift s: By the end of the day takIDg part was well acquainted WIth and handling casualties in difficult Situat IOns. Generally, Divisions do not get t,he opportunity to have this type of exerCISe training in their practi ce sess ion s, so 1 felt a great deal was learnt.

Mrs Jean Payton, D IS

Bool(s

THE QUALITY OF MERCY: THE LIVES OF SIR JAMES AND LADY CANTLIE by Mrs Jean Stewart. Published by George Allen & Unwin at £9.95

A n ew biography, published this month, dea ls with the life of one of the early fIgures of the Ambulance movement. For nearly fifty years, between 1878 and 1926, Sir James Cantlie KBE, VD, MB, FRCS, was involved in promoting knowledge of first a.id. an author of first aid textbook s, as a diVISional and district surgeon for the Brigade, as a committee member of the Association, but perhaps above all, as an ou.tstanding teacher and instructor of the subject he helped to create. Like so many of the early le aders of the St John Ambulance, Cantlie's intere t developed from a chance introduction. Through his friend Dr Mitchell Bruce, a fellow medical student at Aberdeen University, he helped compile the very fir [ Association textbook Aids Jar Cases oj Injuries and Sudden Illness, whose principal author, Surgeon-Major Peter Shepherd, died in the Zulu War. He collaborated on subsequent edition and largely re-wrote the fifth edition of First Aid (0 Ihe Injured to accompany the new A sociation yl labus in 1905. As Honorary Surgeon for the St John Gate Nursing Division and later Chief Surgeon of No.1 Oi trict, Cantlie in tructed countless Brigade classes and through hi work for the Association reached civilian everywhere. Those he taught ranged from a class held at the Admiralty to classe for up to 500 students at the Regent Street Polytechnic Centre at the outbreak of World War One.

His reputation for first aid in truction wa r eflected in every a pect of the work and life of Sir James and Lady Cantlie, for [he Briti sh Red Cro s a well a St John Ambulance. In 1884 he wa in volved in establishing the Volunteer Hospital Corp (late r to become the RAMC), in founding the College of Ambulance, in hi work as a surgeon at C harin g Cro s Ho pital , for the VAD movement, and in his work with tropical disease in South East A ia.

This biography, written by their granddaughter, is a welcome addition to the early hi story of the Ambulance movement. It reca lls the achievement of a couple, \ ho by their in struct ion and example, helped esta blish a tradition of ambulance "vork that survives to this day.

The book is available through the Mu eum shop at St John' s Gate.

EMERGENCY CARE (3rd edition) by Grant, Murray & Bergernon. Published by Brady at £11.50 ($20.20) and obtainable from Prentice-Hall International, 66 Wood Lane End, Hemel Hempstead, Herts HP2 4RG (soft Covers).

Thi s wel!-produced paperback, in large format, IS a textbook for the growing of EMT's (Emergency Medical TechniCians) in N. America. It repre ent procedures accepted as standard practice In the USA.

EMT's date from that country's Highways Safety Act of 1966 by which the Department of Transportation wa charged with e tablishing an Emergency Medical Standard, to be funded by states - by local communities, and to upgrade prehospital emergency care. There is growing pressure in the UK for a similar enactment, the impetus coming mainly from BASICS (the Briti h A ociation of Immediate Care Schemes) staffed by committed general practitioners mainly, but also by consultants in training and from the recently organised A ociation of EMT' here.

In the USA EMT's have been graded into three tiers. Ba ic EMT, at whom this book under re iew is aimed, EMT-AA, (Ambulance, Advanced) and EMT-P (Paramedics).

'Emergency Care' i well produced and de igned, each chapter beginning wirh a definition of objective and skill and then

followed by details of the nece s sary techniques required and of equipment to be used. Some of the chapter headings will indicate the wide scope of this book. 'Ba ic Life Support - CPR; Bleeding and Shock; Internal Injuries; Medical Emergencie; Paediatric Emergencies; Disa rer Management.' There are excellent appendices on advanced care and a thorough index. Scan sheets, for re i ion end e\er)' chapter.

This is an interesting and valuable textbook for EMT's in rhis country and for the more advanced H ambulance personnel. It is OT a book on fir t aid and this review does not authorise it to be 0 consulted. (The 4th Edition 1anual is excellent for our need ). It should be of interest to teachers of fir t aid , advancing their knowledge and maybe raising the standard of the content of their in truction. NL.P

SJA Medical Conference 1983

at Nottingham University April 15-1 7

Frioay, April 15 8.15pm Group Meeting: r John Ambulance A ociation, St John mbulance Brigade Surgeons, St John Ambu lance Brigade ur e ,and ew Fir t Aid Films

Saturday, April 16 Session 1: Medicine during the Falkland Crisis

A Surgical View: Surgeon Commander R. LEICESTER, FRCS Ed RN

A Nur ing View: Superintendent Nursing Officer JUUA MASSEY, QAR NS

A Paramedical View: Lieutenant (MS) A. PIGGFORD, RN

The Treatment of Burn s: Surgeon Comma nder C. W. C HAPMAN, FRCS

RN

Demon tration of Equipment

Se sion 2: St John Ambulance Seminars

First Aid at Work by Dr B. G. B. LUCAS, Deputy Ch ief Medical Officer, JAA

4th Edition Joint Fir t Aid lanual bv Dr P. A. B. RAFFLE, Chief Iedi -al Offi er SJAA

The New ursing 1anual by R. E. BAILEY, Chief ur ing Officer SJAB

The ew Public Duty Handbook by Dr J. C. GRAHAM urgeon-in-Chief. SJAB

Sunday, April 17 Session 3: Loss and Grief

The Reverend Peter Speck, Royal Free Ho pital

Miss M. A. evelle, Senior Tutor, The Integrated Nur ing / Degree Cour e , Bartholomew' Ho pital Keynote add ress by The Lord Perr of Walton, ID D LLD FRCP, of the Open Uni\'er ity.

(Full derails and bookings /rom rlie Medical Dept, al HQ)

Volunteer Ambulance Corps which Sir Ja

NEW MANUAL

from Christopher Dorling, of Dorling Kindersley Ltd

I was interested to read the letter from Alfred T. Smith (Jan) concerning the printing of the new Manual. Readers may not all know that the design and production of the Manual is handled by Dorling Kindersley Limited (a London based and very BRITISH company!) on behalf of St John, th e British Red Cross Society and St Andrew's and with the full cooperation and support of these three bodies. Dorling Kindersley additionally publish the trade edition of the Manual, and in my capacity as a Director of this company I was involved in the d ecision to place the 1982 print order with the famous Mondadori plant in Verona, Italy

Deci sio ns of this sort are s eldom simple, but had we been satisfied that , given the various constrictions of the cost, schedule, quality and continuity, a British supplier could have done an equal or even nearly equal job, then undoubtedly we would have chosen BRITISH The deci sion was reached after careful study of tenders from a shortlist of s even suppliers, five being British, and I have no doubt that at the time, and bearing in mind the best interests of the three Societies, the c hoice of Mondadori was correct.

We all have to learn to live in a competitive world, more so today than ever before , and it is not by pretending that competition does not exist that British will prosper. The new Manual does not have to remain in Italy. Our buying policy is under constant review, and I believe that Britain can and should win back this printing. Perhaps the alarm that your correspondent and others in the British printing industry evidently now feel will s pur them and their colleagues to make s ure that it does.

London WC2 Christopher Darling

WHO WAS NEIL ROBERTSON?

from L. J. Brightman

I am r ying to obtain some information regarding the design and history of the Neil Robertson stretcher. Local libraries have little information and apparently t here is little known of this stretcher or Neil Robertson at our own library and museum

Please can anyone answer t he following questions: Who was Neil Robertson?

What was his profession?

When and why did he design t his stretcher?

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

StanJord-le-Hope

A MATTER OF URGENCY

from Pat Cameron Watts, Divisional Officer (Nursing)

L. 1 Brightman

During 1982 it became increasingly evident that 'things aint wot they u sed to be' - getting worser, as one of our cadets put it. Not only are many of our young people having to face a jobless future but also they are under increasing stress at home when one or both parents are unemployed, older sibli ngs and family friends are made redundant or facing crippling financial problems. With the resilience of youth and the wo nderful optimism of the young they are an example to us older St Johnners to do everything we can to help and sustain them. They are our future.

However, the ques t ion of money always rears its ugly head and I am sure our Division is not alone in facing heavy expenditure for transport, building maintenance and equipment. These moneys can be raised - always relying on the generosity of our members and friends.

It is not easy therefore to inform an eager teenager that when he goes into an adult di vision the total cost of his new uniform is in the region of £100. No matter whether we may be able to supply secondhand items, the fact remains that our newest member must start hi s career in S t John in worn, possibly shabby uniform or turn to his family for a loan.

It is a matter of some urgency in my opinion that the powers that be examine t he question printed in the letter TURN OUR ATTENTION TO (Review Jan 1983) and rethink the adult uniforms. A cadet - style jacket, worn over the regulation sweater or s hirt and tie, with a beret, would be equally smart, distinctive and above all cost les s and be washable.

It may be felt that nursing officers' suits are smart and impressive - but the cost to many is prohibitive. Why not do away with this de sign reminiscent of the armed services and police and dress our nur s ing officers in the equally smart but feminine black dresses worn with their overcoats? Again - washable, comparitive ly cheap and alway s comfortable and elegant.

Is it not possible that a less authoritarian and formidable para· military image could not only enhance our recruiting efforts amon g the young but also keep our member s in fresh, sma r t an d comfortable uniform?

We must move with the times - we must not impair Our recruitment because of financial considerations. Above all we mu st not forget that the yo ung people we are endeavouring to recru it want to 'belong' - but not to Dad 's Army.

Eastleigh & Chandlers Ford Div, Hanls Pat Cameron Wa lls

BRECKNOCK COURSE from Christine Holmes Area Superintendent (N)

Janet Tasker and Area Supt Ch ri stine Ho lmes during th e Bre cknock course at Andover Munday Club

Having recently completed a very s ucce ssful Brecknock Cou rse for the Andover Munday Club, it occurred to me that other Areas may well be unaware of this very useful co urse

The course consists of five sessions, three teaching basic nur si ng skills and the other two essential first aid procedures. These session s can, however, be adapted to meet the ne e d s of the particular group you are teaching. All students who attend four of the five session s are entitled to a very nice attendance voucher. In our experien ce students endeavour to attend all of the sessions.

Thi s course was designed by the Chief President, Marjorie , Countess of Brecknock, DBE, when she was Superintendent-inChief and details of the syllabus, together with attendance vouchers, can be obtained from her at Wherwell Priory, Wherwell, Nr Andover, Hampshire.

Andover

USE OF CB RADIOS

from T. R. Harper

C. Hol mes

I read with interest the views on CB radio and would like to add my thoughts to the issue.

It would seem to be a division on the use of CBs, with the majori ty of members at grass roots in favour of CBs and the Commissioners Conference (Nov Review) against their use. With due respect, it is the members of Divisions who actually use radios on Brigade duty most of the time.

It wObdd seem that the major objections to CBs is the confidentiality when discussing a patient's condition. This could

easily be overcome by the use of a simple code, a sys tem u se d by GPs using the TAMERS system under the auspices of the South Glamorgan Health Authority (Nov Review). In practice, thi s would not become a problem as patient s' name s do not need to be used. In the event of a life-saving sit uation I would advocate plain language anyway, in order to save time.

The advantages of CBs far outwe ig h any disadvantages. Some advantages are:

They are relatively c heap to buy and a Division could buy so me 12 CBs (depending on type and quality) for the price of two Brigade frequency sets. With so many sets a Divi sion could then cover a duty far more efficiently. Newer and less experienced members would feel more confident if they could summon experienced assistance at the flick of a switch. (We are not all large Divisions with ample member s and on many occasions we have to stretch our resources almost to breaking point.)

Very often the organisers of an event have their own CBs and if an incident occurs out of sig ht of a first-aider, the organisers would have the facility to call the first-aider.

When the patient has been treated and is in the ambulance on his way to ho spita l, a CB could be u sed to call a home-ba sed breaker with a reque st to inform the ho spital of the impending arrival of the patient.

There are certain Divisions in th e cou ntr y whic h because of their geograp hical lo cation, are richer than others in finance , manpower and equipment. These Divisions are also in areas of heavy use of CBs so it is more beneficial to refrain from their use. But equally, there are other areas where the reverse is applicable.

We are continually fighting the battle for recruitment of personnel and to hold on to those we a lr eady have. In this progressive day and age St John shou ld also appear to be mode rn by using modern, upto-date and efficient equipment. CB is ju s one o f the modern pieces of equipme nt avai labl e, if only we were a llow ed to use it.

HQ, please thi nk again. I am ure (he great majority of members are in favour of CBs. Plea e li s ten to their requests and call for the authorisation of the use of CBs in conjunction wit h SJAB frequencies - and gel the best of both world s. Bridport Combined Division T. Harper

JANUARY COVER

Caption Competition

OUR January cove r picture certai nl y prompted many readers to put pen to paper and submit their sugges ted capt ion s - we've never had suc h a response to an editorial subject. And it wasn't all about that tie e ither.

One or two readers were ser iou sly concerned about the appearance on the cover of an improperly dressed member - and we apo logise for this Our Super - Horace, we'll call him - was unexpectedly visited at home by the lo c.a l press for a photograph and in the rush he forgot about hi s tIe. And 10 our rush to get the Review to the printer on time - and hence to you the reader on time - we didn't notice it either.

So here's he winning capt ion , s ubmitt ed by Mrs J. Bannister, nursing member of Caterham Divi s ion (who rec e ives a free annual s ub scri ption to the Review);

'Wo uld you.wait until you could see the whiles of their eyes?'

(On snake b It es, the new Manual says: in general, poi so nous snakes have slit eyes and non-poisonous snakes have rounded ones.'

Recommended are:

'BIi "!ey , I'm being photographed. Perhaps if I hold me manual it'll hide it. .' - A I M Mervyn White, of Didcot.

We Will save life on the beaches, give succour on highways and byways,. we'll never surrender to out-dated techniques.'

(ApologIes to Sir Winston Churchill) - Mrs Molly Bowler, Hants Western Area Commissioner

'Perhaps, I shou.ldn't my Brigade tie as an arm sling all. Mrs Jil l MartIn, PA to the Commissioner-in-Chief. FIrst aid training is SUCH fun.' - E. G. Groves, of Cambridge.

Merseyside

from PRO F. Blaine

County Staff Officer (Training) Stuart Bailey part way through the County lO- hour sponsored teach - in - and going strong

Mrs Hughes (r ght of Wallasey Combined Cadet Division s parents committee (aren they marvellous?) , presenting a carrying sheet to the Division s Nursing Officer Mrs E Cargill SRN, DN

NEWS from SCOTLAND

SINCE its formation, the Central Region St John Association, which began as the Stirlingshire Committee, has proved to be one of the most successful and enthusiastic in the Prior y of Scotland.

This was demonstrated once again by the numbers - and sartorial elegance - of those attending the AGM and Dinner in the Golden Lion Hotel, Stirling, on Wednesday January 26 1983. Those present included the Earl of Mar and Kellie Lord Lieutenant of Clackmannanshire, and the Countess of Mar and Kellie; Major-General Fred. C. C. Graham, Lord Lieutenant of Stirlingshire and Mrs Graham. The guest speaker was Colonel Tom Lamb, who in addition to havin g a distinguished Army career, was of great se r v ice in the initial stages of establishing Stirling University, and now gives energetic leadership in the Angus St John Association. His racy and witty speech was a reminder that voluntary work for the Order of St John is not only of serious intent, it can and should also be t he occasion of fun and fellowship.

The Chancellor conveyed the thanks and good wishes of Priory and a vote of thanks was wittily proposed by Dr W. Macfarlane

WALES

MORE than 300 Newport cadets took part in a carol serv ice on Dec 18 to launch the 1983 Cadet Diamond Jubilee Year in Wales

The service, held at St Mark's Church, Gold Tops, Newport, included cadets from the ten divisions that make up the Newport District and was attended by the deputy Mayor and Mayoress of Newport, Councillor and Mrs John Pembridge Newport's MP, Mr Roy Hughes, also attended the service along with the newly appointed Chairman of the St John Council for Gwent, Major and Mrs R. Medley. Former St John cadets were also there.

The carols were introduced by the Brigade's District Chaplain, Canon David G, Lewis, and the readings were given by cadets.

Angus Committee and St John Association, though the most recent to be created in Scotland, ha s already shown sign of growth and de ve lo pment There ha s been fruitful liaison with the Dundee Junior Chamber of Commerce, Edzell Golf Club, and Dundee Bottle Bank Outstanding among several successful socia l events was the Reception at The Burn, Edzell, organised

by Co lone l and Mrs Lamb, attended by Th e Earl of DalhoLisie, Pre id e nt of th e Association; the Receiver-General and Mi ss Jean Waddell, who endured such a harassin g experience in Iran. Dundee Section of the St John Airwing also ha the upport of Angu s As ociation. Much needed equipment h a been donat ed to t he Ear, Nose and Throa[ Department of Bre c hin Infirmary Angu s As ociation has also co ntributed to a minibu for use by handicapped chi ldr en in Montrose.

STAFFORD: Blythe Bridge Quad Div sion's new ambulance presented to them by Cheadle and District Round Table, is dedicated

BOOKS BOOKS

POOO02 First Aid Manual 4th Edition

POOO03 First Aid at Work Course Book

POOO04 First Aid at Work Instructors Manual

POOO09 Emergency Aid in the Workplace POO010 Caring for the Sick

POO011

A new ambulance for the use of the Gwent Health Authority Hos pitals Division, Gwent, was blessed at a special ceremony in St Mark's Parish Hall , Newport on De ce mb e r 19. The vehicle, given to t he Division by the Gwent Health Authority, was dedicated by the Rev Kenneth Sharpe, who was also appointed the Division' s Chaplain.

During the year, cadets have held fund raising events to finance the provision of

The Rev Kenneth Sharpe, Divisional Chaplain to the Gwent Health Authority Hospitals Division, gave the addre ss. Happy cadets

equipment for the ambu lance. The Division 's President, Mr Alun Giles, presented the ambulance, on behalf of the Authority, to the Division at their enrolment ce remony and presentation of awards.

Several cadets were enrolled by County Staff Officer (Cadets) Keith Dunn and two new junior ca d ets were welcomed to the Brigade The Ca det of the Year shield went to Jeremy Bright, along with the President 's Trophy. Nursing Member Alison Leeson won the Vice - President'S sh ield, and Judith and Wendy Davies won the Nursing Cadet of the Year s hield.

News from Divisions/Centres

AVON: NIC Maxine Bo x and AIC Craig McCall, of Keynsham A and N Cadet Division, jointly won the Bransom Memorial trophy presented annually to the best all round cadet. It was presented to them by Mr George Creech, Assistant County Commissioner. (Photo: Myra R Meredith)

(Left) KENT: Four more Grand Prior Awards for Folkestone N I C Div sion brings the i total to 49. (L to R) N M Julie Jepps 18; Jeanette Darby, 16; Caroline Hills. 14; and Tracey Iverson, 15 With 1983 being the 50th anniversary of the Division. it s hoped the 50th GP badge will also be obtained

OBITUARY

Barrett, William (Bill), 74. Joined Norwich No 1 (City) Division 1932 , retired as sergeant 1978, after 45 years devoted service to the Division. Died in West Norwich Hospital Jan 18. (Remembered by hi s D / Supt (R) L. J. Nudds.)

Basford H. W., 68, former Corps Superintendent , London Transport Corps, Officer of the Order Died Jan 17. Brewer, Albert, Greater Manchester, West Area , North Corps President. Died Jan 9. Coyles, Richard, 92, of Whitehaven. Obtained first aid certificate in 1908, joined the Brigade on its formation in Whitehaven in 1924, and became Superintendent in 1930. Helped form 7 other divisions in the area. Serving Brother of the Order Millar, Dr Jean, South East Area Surgeon, Greater Manchester. Died Jan 21. Seddon, Miss Alice Mary, 65, retired Corps Officer, Morecambe and Heysham Corp s Lancashire. Joined Brigade in 1935 , Superintendent of Morecambe Nursing Divisio n 1956 to 1959. Serving Sister of the Order. Died Feb 4.

WHEN I APPROACH A CASUAL TV

THE FOLLOWING unfinished poem was written by Ambulance

Member George Fallows (aged 54) of the Epping Combined Division, Essex, a couple of days before he died very suddenly on December 4 1982 of an acute heart attack. Mr Fallows, by profession a reporter on the staff of the Daily Mirror, was a very busy and dedicated St John member, a devoted and beloved husband and father and an active supporter of his local church.

Donations given to the Epping Division in his memory by his family and friends and work colleagues have amounted to well over £400 and will be spent on resuscitation training equipment.

When I approach a casualty

I look around, so I can see

If danger lurks for him or me.

lt could be volts or gas or glass,

It could be cars if they can't pass, And we could quickly both be dead

If stuff starts falling on our head.

As this is going through my brain, I deal with it and start again.

A witness tells me what has passed.

I join the patient, not too fast,

My gaze is locked upon his face,

It tells me just how bad the case.

I ask his name, his age, the date, To see if he can concentrate.

If he can't answer, it is plain

That I must start my quest again.

Faster than it takes to note,

I tilt his head back, clear his throat,

Loosen tight clothes at neck and waist

And check his breathing, all in haste.

Then if in doubt I do not wait,

The course is clear - RESUSCIT ATE.

But, briefly, just before I start,

I put my ear down to his heart.

If I am certain there's no beat

Nor any pulse, sure I repeat

The only hope is heart compression

Thank God I worked hard on that session,

For all who try it must be brave

If Lazarus is to cheat the grave.

Fifteen compressions, then breathe two,

Or five to one if a friend's with you.

He's breathing now, his heart is strong

Yet he's unconscious. What is wrong?

Before I go where this is leading

I've got to check if he is bleeding.

My hands are feeling for a flood,

I quickly staunch it if it's blood.

And all the while I watch his chest

In case again there's lung arrest.

He's breathing and his heart is strong,

No bleeding, yet he's been 'out' long.

I check the pulse rate, that's a clue,

His co lour and his breath rate too.

Later - not now, it's got to wait -

I'll make a count more accurate.

I first must find the reason why,

And so I look into his eye.

All this while, I forgot to say,

An ambulance is on the way.

As soo n as I saw the case' was bad

T passed a me ssage on a pad.

Now I can go a littl e slow

And examine him from head to toe.

The next thing that I want to check

Is damage to head or back or neck

Lionheart Tours

invite you to

Tour the Holyland and visit your hospital in Jerusalem

Our tours depart on 9th April, 24th September and 5th November 1983, and will visit Ancient Jerusalem, Byzantine Avdat and Medieval Acre. Travel in the barren wilderness of the Negev Desert, see the unique natural phenomenon of the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth. Visit Nazareth and Bethlehem, sail on the Sea of Galilee and relax at the end of the tour on Tel Aviv's sandy beaches. During your stay you will also visit the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem to have lunch with and meet the staff and witness the wonderful work they do in the service of mankind.

For brochure and further information contact: Mrs Jean Taylor, Lionheart Tours, 66 Stamford Hill, London N 16 6XS. Tel: 01-806 0991 the mind (4). 14. Close a wound at jun ct ion b e tw ee n cran ia l bones (6). 17. Catch sight of a skin blemish (4) 18. Hunted for s uppli es fo r geriatric patients (7) 22. Mediaeval campaign in which Knight s of St John were prominent (7). 23. Impetuous eruption on the s kin (4) , 27. Delicate tissue lining arteries and veins (6) 28 [n robu s t h ealth in Cheshire, Hampshire, and Lincolnshire (4). 29 . C ollide viol entl y and deliberately with fractured arm (3) 3l. Spider with a s ting in the tail (8). 33 Skin concealed by elder mi santhrope (6). 34 Fun ctional disorder characterised by headache, nausea , and s cotoma (8) , 35. Telephone United States for tissue healing a fractured bon e (6) , Down

I. Many sure changes in local dilatation of arterial wall (8) 2. D e iver y of foetus during first 28 weeks of pregnancy (8). 3 Pain ful, inflammatory eye disorder affecting part of 15 Down (6) 5 D ance making one dizzy? (4). 6 Fish gametes for deer (3).7. Morbid gr owth in the body (6). 8. Group of organs combining to perform a com mon function (6). 11. Bitter repentance concerning telegraphic lan gu age (7). 15. Pigmented layer of the eye (4). 16. Arrest provoking a ho spital emergency (7). 19. A small dose of spirit given by the doctor th e morning after (4). 20. Glands producing tears (8). 21. 26 Down affecting the conjunctiva (8).24. Lithe and agile (6).25. Constitu tion conducive to maintenance of good health (6) 26. Excess of fluid in the tissues (6). 30. Preserve a callosity (4) 32 Innermost layer o f th e meninges (3).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 2 (83)

REVIEW CROSSWORD 1\10 3 (83) by A. A. Potter

(3). 13.

Across: 1. Hippo'crates; 7. Odd; 9. Lance; 10. Bedmaking; 11. Lark ; 12. AI·to; 13. Lotus; 15. Niagara; 16. Skin; 20. Germ; 22. Ba'lan ce; 25. Round; 27. Alf· a; 28. True; 30. Diastolic; 3l. Lux' or; 32 Eat; 33. Muscle spasm.

1. Holy Land; 2. Pancreas; 3. Open; 4. Rubella; 5 Tedious; 6. Stall; 7. Opiate; 8. Digest; 14. Pane; 17. Ills; 18. Anore xia; 19. Cerebrum;

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ST JOHN REVIEW

fOR THE WELfAR[ Of THOSE WITH CANCER

in the profess ional and l ay fields.

Further information available on request from the Secretary.

es or tran spa rencie ress day is th e 1s t o f the month pre ce ding th e cove r date.

Royal Jubilee Trusts

THE ROY AL JUBILEE TRUSTS, comprising The King George's Jubilee Trust and The Queen's Silver Jubilee Trust, provide funds to assist and encourage young people (ie, up to the age of 25 yea rs) in their character development and for projects within the community.

The Trustees give a bulk grant for allocation each ye ar to St John Ambulance Brigade from The Queen's Silver Jubilee Trust. This ha s been in the order of up to £20,000 a ye ar for young people s' projects in the counties in E ngland Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. (Wales is dealt with direct by the Trustees.)

The aims of the Queen's Jubilee Trust are: a, Enabling and encouraging young people to work to help others of all ages in the community.

b. The assistance of s pecific yo uth projects to be funded by the T ru st, and c. Su pporting project s for the benefit of yo ung people in Commonwealth countries.

While the need for experienced leader s hip is recognised , it is paramount that the Trust wishes to encourage enterprises which wi ll be handled on the whole by young people. Committees formed b y young people to handle a project are thus considered invaluable. 'In other wor d s it will help s upport new and existing ventures with a y outhful context which provide opportunities fo r some degree of ervice to others (H RH the Prince of Wales).

Requests fo r grants by Counties Districts are considered by St John Headquarters by a s mall standing Allocation Committee appointed b y the Commissioner-in-Chief. The Committee's recommendation s are then passed for approval.

The Allocation Committee, when considering applications for grants, have to ensu re that the following information ha s been given: a. The purpose of the project must be in line with the aims of the Tru s a s defined above: b. The need for the activity and it s value to the community must be evident: c. Activities mu st not unnece ssarily duplicate the initiatives of other voluntary or stat utor y organisations: d. The initial cost of a project must be clear. Also detail of any maintenance costs and the plans for meeting the se costs must be clearly state d: e. The extent of self- help fund raising and the sum achieved towards the total cost of the project , must be described.

Application for grants are to be made on the approved Royal JubiJee Trust Application Forms obtainable from St John Ambulance Headquarters (Staff Officer, Brigade Training and Cadets). All sections of the form must be filled in , preferably in clear black type. The completed application forms, passed through County / District Headquarters for recommendation by the Commissioner, are to be sent to Headquarters as soon as read y. Should Counties / Districts ",ish to submit more than one project for consideration at once , sepa rate applications must be made for each and Commissioners must recommend their order of priority.

When an application has been approved by the Commissioner-inChief, Counties / Districts will be informed and a cheque for the amount will be included with the notification. In the case of applications for a grant being unsuccessful, the Allocations Committee will consider as alternatives: a. Recommending a grant from another source (eg Edwina Mountbatten Trust, etc.): b. Defer to the next Allocation Committee meeting: c. Reject application.

In all cases, Commissioners will be informed of action taken and any subsequent developments.

TI FIRST READ about him in my wire' s n ews pape r und er the headline' Dead Les'. Les t urned out to be an emp loyee of a major Briti s h co mp any working in China at a tO\\l11

I had vag u ely heard of - Xian. My aUnt w ho had worked in China for man y years had mentioned the place to me.

I read o n - Les had been re u c itat ed by C hin ese doctors fo ll owing a card iac arre that had la ted 55 minutes. Thi had mad e medical hi tory in China, hence the new reached t he nat iona l dailie Apart fr o m w?n derin g w h at degree of brain dama ge might be present, I ga e the matter no further t hought.

X ian was soo n to loom large in my life.

The St John Aeromedical ervice were given the task of repatriating Le to England. Dr Tom Evans, of London Di strict aeromedi cal attendant and con ultant cardio lo gi t to the R oya l Free Ho pital, cance lled appointment for 8 da ys and I found my elf doing likewi e.

A Briti h repatr iat ion team, con i tin g of us two aeromedical aLrendalll , plu ii ehael, the per onnel manager of the Briti h company, was formed. We met one evening at the Royal Free Ho pital to di cus arrangements, Michael planning the operation with military preci ion. We \\ ere to take a crate of food for the journey aero China - on the inventory we nOled one bottle of cherry brandy and toilet roll Inoculations

Being a member of the UK Air Crash Team, my inoculation are u ually UP-IOdate, but my hepatiti had lap ed and had to be quickly organi ed. Our passport disappeared for vi a and we pack ed our warmest clothes for ub-zero temp e rature.

On the appointed day, "ve arri\'ed at Heathrow airport comp lete \\ ith defibrillator, ECG monitor, a pir ator, oxygen set, intubation equipment and all the paraphernalia that goe with th e e bi t'i of equipment, in addition to our per so nal case for 8 day s' travelling. Two large wooden crates with Red Cro e on them contained our food for the overland journe y. Our oxygen h ad gone on ahead on a BA flight as Air France wou ld not carry it.

We ll , even the best plan go as tr ay. The fi rst delay occurred at cu toms, wher e documentation of the two padlocked boxe of drugs carried by Tom had to be thorough ly checked. Leaving Tom and Mi c hael at c ustom s, [ headed for the air craft, adorned like a Chr istmas tree with bit of hand luggage, to be g reeted by the Air France cabin crew who wanted to know why we were holding up the flight. A nd then a bri ght o ra nge box I was carry in g attracted their atte ntion, followed by a reque s t (0 open it. No, it was n 't a cy lind er of oxygen. Il' S in ert gas, for t h e a s pirator. It ve nt s off excesS pressure at a ltitud e a nd is aeromed ically are,

hina for a patient

I told them. A di scussion followed as to whethe r th ey co uld carry it by which time Tom a nd Michael h ad arrived w it h the suspicious-looking padlocked boxe s - but they fa il ed to raise an eyebrow! By now the flight was in danger of losing its departure slot, so we were quickly placed in our seats along with our hand luggage Eighteen hours later we tood in the bitter co ld of Peking Airport, waiting for our luggage. We were met by two member s of the Briti sh Embas y a nd an apologetic looking member of Air France who very much regretted that our per onal lug gage had gone to Tokyo. As any good traveller knows, you do not put all your egg in one ba ket - a per onal surviva l kit of at least one change of clothes always goes in the hand baggage On the assumption that something always gets lost, we had managed to get all the medical equipment tak en a hand baggage Fortunately, the airline had managed not to 10 e the crate cOlllaining the cherry brandy. To cheer u up, the airline pre ented u with a pack of toil etr ie for 10 t luggage passenger - obviou sly, a regular occurrence.

Night train

We set off for the hotel, looking forw a rd lO a good night' re t, only to find thal we were booked on the night [rain to Xian , a 23-hour journey Being rat her li ght on clothing, thanks [0 Air France, we went to the ho te l shop and bought a couple of teehirts and a pair of rather fancy ilk p yja ma

We were later to di co ve r that we had inadvertently bought our wive a pre ent! Two very tired aeromedical attendant and Michael, who wa equally tired, were to be found at J Jpm on our fir t day in China boarding a train at Peking tation . The train was very long and drawn by a hu ge team eng ine, wh ich broughl bac k memoric of boyhood day s. Our compartment wa in the 's oft carriage for Europe an, wi t h four bunk.s , white heet hard pillow and lace curtain at the windO'vvs. Our Red Cro food crate stood proudly in the middle of the compartment and erved a a table. But a la there was no heating, and our breath blew c!ouds across the co mpartment, for rhe coalfIred boiler of our ca rri age had broken down. We wou ld remain without heat for the entire journey.

The majority of the pas enger see med [0 ha ve brought their own food. Out ide, the was crowded with people in blue SLl1t S and cap. Soon after departure we take ope n the food crate and Feasted on r cheese and c h erry brandy, before ret lr.lng to Our bunk. I do not rem ember ever b ee lln g 0 cold, even t houg h I was wearing oots and anorak. tht brown, fro ze n count rys id e greeted us next mornmg, and our breakfast included

c herry brandy. We appeared to be the only Europeans on the train. The ot h er carriages were packed so lid with Chinese, carrying a mul t it ud e of parce ls and package s.

At stations wh ere we sto pped, food trolleys on the platform did a brisk business, and we were able to get out to stretch our legs and take so me photographs. Arriving in Xian at dusk after a freezing journey of 23 hours, we were accommodated at the company guest house.

r wa awakened with a sta rt at 6.30am by loud voices and music coming from loud peakers in the middle of the field oppo ite -a Chine e Terry Wogan waking up the workers!

Borro wing some pullovers from the staff, we went off to Shansi Provincial Hospital to ee the patient and attend what turned out to be the first of many official meeting s. We were received by a committee of fourteen people, all virt uall y identically dressed, so it \Va diffi c ult to tell who was who. Ja smine tea \ a erved, followed by a two-hour meeting. We learned that the committee included the c hairman of the hospital, two doctor, the deputy chief engineers of the faclOry, foreign mini try officials, two photographer and interpreters. All our aeromedical equipment had to be demonstrated to their ari faction before we \-vere in ired [Q ee the patient. We cannot di cuss the patient here , but he was much a we expected to find him.

During the afternoon we \ ere taken by the Chine e interpreter on a tour of Xian and climbed the famou Goo e Pagoda ian , we learned , had for eleven dyna ties been the capital city of China.

ext day wa evacuation day 0 we were up at the crack of dawn, to the ac o mpaniment of 'Terry Wogan' again a bitter ly cold, frosty morning. We were not leaving until rhe evening, 0 \ e were taken ome 40 mile to ee t h e excavation of the fabulous terracorra army of 6000 warrior at t he ite of the tomb of Ch in Shih Huang Ti t he fir t emperor and builder of the Great \ all, and then to Huaking hot pring.

During the afternoon, Dr Evans held a c linic for the expatriate while I went to the tation to check the carriage that had been hired for £3,000 to take the patient and medical team to Peking. The engine wa al 0 exa min ed with great intere t -a huge mon ter be lching bla k moke and team.

Our carriage

Our carriage wa finally attached to the train. It con i ted of e ight co mp artment with 4 bert h in each. One ompartment wa allocated for the pat ient a nd a Chine e nurse with the ae romedica l kit, assembled and te ted, laid out o n the bunk above the patient. Tom Evans and my e lf, t h e Briti h medical team, occupied a compartment next

us about an

to the land of the Great Wall and few motor cars

to the patient. The Chine se medical team, a doctor and two nurses from Xian, were allocated another compartment. Other compartments were occupied b y Chinese factory officials, foreign mini st r y officials, interpreters, the patient 's mother, who had nown out f rom UK, and the accompanying English staff. Last but not least, there was a compartment full of baggage and food to feed us all. One felt as though it \\as the Royal Train. Thi s impression was further strengthened when we \-\ere informed that the chairman of Chinese R ailways, his deputy, the deput y chairman of t he factory, the chief engineer, the chief guard and the head of Foreign Affairs were also to travel \\ ith us. The most senior chef had been broU!zhr out of retirement for t he journey, the car being ne xt lO our carriage. Departure \\'a in the early evening after ever}1hing had been double checked. I t was obyiou that the Chinese were determined to make sure nothing \ ent w rong en route for Les had made big ne w in China and so had our arrival.

r had the unusual experience of preparing a meal for rhe patient on the coal -fired toyes in t he galley watched by the chefs. This time our compartment h eater was working and we ,vere at least warm. \V e are in the dining car in relays but no ticed that the re t of the pa senger refraine d from u ing thi en ice. We were not to ha ve a peaceful night. A frantic call for assi tan e had us in the patient' compartment in econd after one of the Chine e nur e looking after the patient at this tage had rai ed the alarm. The following da y \\e pa ed through Shansi province and at the main city, Taiyuan, the train wa met bv a Chine e medical team complete with def(brillatOr and cardiac moni to r laid out on the platform. Tom Evan de cended from the train, hook hand all round and in peeted the equipment. Honour wa ati fied and the train continued on it long journey aero the frozen \Va te of orthern China. Further meetings were held on [he train to make joint decision about the patient.

Peking

Arriving in Peking mid-af ternoon the next day, the patient \\'a taken for the night to the city ho pita!. \ e he a ded for the hotel, hoping for an early night. Our luggage had arrived from Tokyo 0 at la t \\'e could change our lothe.- I 0 a\\ aiting u \\ a an invitation to dine \\ ith taff of the Briti h Emba y, 0 we eventually retired to bed at 1.30a m The next day wa ro be a re t da\. a we had been on the go ince \\'e in China. Yet a no ther mee t in g howeyer, had been arranged for the aft rn on at the ho pital, and a lun ch meetin g a t the ummer Palace, 0 an ight eeing \\ a out. But where there' a will there' a way.

DEREK CLARK tells

aeromedical trip

To China for a patient (cont.)

rising before our ever -present escort, a taxi was hired at 5.45am and Michael and 1 went to see the Great Wall and the Ming Tombs.

At 8am, two frozen Englishmen were walking along the Great Wall in a tempe rature of - 14 °C. An experience not to be forgotten.

Later, at the Summer Palace, Tom Evans replied to the var iou s speeches at the lun ch. There vvere further problems at the hospital during the afternoon , so it was agreed that a member of the English staff should ta y at the hospital.

We were honoured that evening with a Peking Duck banquet given by the Chinese, a lengthy meal with many speeches - all of which were in terpreted. Fortunately, Michael had briefed us well on how to behave in China and I don't think we let the side down.

Arrangements were made to fly the patient to Hong Kong, and then on to the UK. A

79 treated, 10 to hospital, seven member on dut y from 6pm until 4.30am. These are the basic facts of the work that Weybridge Di vision did that night.

Work actually began at 2pm that afternoon, when three members spent two hours cleaning and loading the ve hicles, mobile first aid unit and ambulance, prior to the annual onslaught.

At 6pm, Weybridge's 'Magnificent Seven', led by D / Supt Steve Smith, with D / N / O Jean Nissen, T 10 Ray Pennock, Sgt Ron Baile y, N / M Tina Parker, A I M Graham Ranger and N / M Maxine Butcher (an excadet on her first public duty) started out.

One hour later King Charles Island came into view and the unit was soon parked, along with two London District units. Our ambulance beetled off to join the other 19 parked behind Admiralty Arch.

While the ambulance crews were at their briefing, given by the London Ambulance Service, the officers went to t heir briefing b y Deputy Commissioner John Gerrard.

All told, six mobile first aid units were dotted around the square, with one held in reserve in case of trouble elsewhere. King Charles Island, lucky us, was set aside and barried off as a recovery pen for those suffering from too much giggle juice. Each unit was allocated a doctor, in our case Dr Lucilla Butler, Divisional Surgeon for Englefield Green; we also had a medical student, David Penman, from St Thomas's Hospital, no stranger to us as he has worked on the unit several times.

Well, the evening bumbled along with very little to do, and even less fo od, by which time Maxine was wondering what all the fuss was about, but where was the food! (It should be pointed out that we are always given a hot meal from a London District cate r ing unit at this dut y). A ca ll over the air soon rectified the situation. Ah, yes, they had forgotten us, and the other two units on our station

By Ilpm the crowd seemed to have

very large ar arrived, an unu ual sig ht in China where there are no privately-owned cars, everyone u ses a bicycle and rush - hour in Peking has to be een to be believed. tile car wa in fact former Chairman Mao's private ambulance a nd an ingenious conversion. The boot lid went up, the back seat went down, and in went the tretcher.

We were een off at the airport by a large gathering and it was great to be welcomed on board by British Airways' stewardesses

The flight home was uneventful, a we took it in turns to monitor the patient. The patient's mother was p laced well forward in the aircraft and taken good care of by Michael and 5mgs of valium. The St John ambulance at Heathrow was escorted by police motorcyclists and the journey to the Royal Free Hospital took 34 minutes!

The patient, Les, was safely delivered to the ward under Tom Evans' expert care. Anot her mission for the St John Ambulance Aeromedical Service s was completed.

New Year's Eve -

In

Trafalgar Square

doubled in size and casualties suffering from a wide variety of cuts started to pour in. The first stretcher case was a male, unconsciou s, and reported to be suffering from a back injury after jumping from the surrounding wall of the square. A fractured femur was diagnosed, and he was very soon on hi s way to hospital.

More people suffe ring from cuts were brought in, including a young woman, soaking wet, with a severe cut on the palm of her right hand The cause, we found out, was that her boyfriend had thrown her into one of the fountains for a laugh, but unfortunately the fountains were by then full of broken glass. She was not amused. Her wound ne eded 15 st it c hes and what she was goi ng to do to the boyfriend was unrepeatable. Several minor cuts were sti tched on the unit by Dr Butler and David, the more severe being de spatched to ho spital.

Just before midnight, a casua lt y with blood pouring (this is no exaggeration) from his back was helped in. At first we thought it was a knifing, but learned it was caused by the casualty making su dden contact with a broken bottle after s lippin g off the edge of the kerb. The wound was so large it needed two No.3 ambulance dressings to cover the area and control the bleeding, another priority case for hospital. Midnight came and went - shucks, missed it again, too darn busy. Our next hospital case - a six months pregnant woman had been knocked to the ground and kicked in the stomach.

At about 12.30am there was a udden call on the radi o from t he L.A.s. asking if our doctor had a defibrillator unit and if so to sen d her to South Africa Hou e. This wa the incident in which two people died

At lam we were till going trong, with David no\ st it chin g a foot. Suddenly, all the light went out. 'Oh !' Over to th e auxiliary power while someone ru shed outside to check a to what had happ ened to the generator Cause susse d - fl ying empties. One had hit the power switch and turned the lights out. Thi wa just one bottle, oodles more landed on un uspectin g head s, caus in g a great many severe cu ts, complete with in tant headache.

An ambulance returned to our station jus t in lime to take another assaulted 'preggy' lady to hospital. All 19 ambulances were in constant use.

2am. Another male, facial injuries, stitches requi red to forehead and chin. Fat, red , swo llen nose. An as ault case? No. Was runnin g fast with he a d down, checking hi s feet, and ra n full tilt into a parked ca r.

(Don't laugh, be sy mpathetic , rem ember yo ur training!)

2.30am. The Police tarted to clear th e square and by 3am we were 'stood-down'

The floor was quickly washed over (again ) and everything put away. Home quick before they change their minds!

Arrived back at 4.15am Unload? No chance. Ju st got tim e for three hours sleep before h av ing to be at work.

By the way - HAPPY NEW YEAR !

AWARDS

ORDER AWARDS

Life Saving Medal in Silver

MrThomas Warren, Miner. of Ontario, Priory of Canada

In the late afternoon o July 16 1980 Mr Warren (aged 65) ca m e upon a two-car colli o n on a highway in Ontario which had left both cars in flames. While Mr George Fisher, already on thc scene, was trying but without s uccess to put out the fire, Mr Warren n stantly tried to open the driver s door of one of the cars. On finding it jammed, he wrenched it open with help from Mr Fisher and together hey removed to sa fet y the very s haken a nd dazed drive r. Being told o n enqui r y that the driver'S wife was in the front passenger sea t, Mr Warren rushed to the other side of the car, opened the door and found the pas se nger wedged under the da hboard He carefu ll y extricate d her and, again helped by Mr Fi s her, carr ied her to safety. By thi s time both cars were a raging inferno in which there was tragica ll y no possibility of reaching the trapped driver of the other car. Mr Warren then tra n spo rted the two rescued ca ua lti es to hospital where they made a good recovery.

Mr Montague John Vialoux. Hotel Manager, of Traverse Bay, Manitoba, Prior), of Canada

In the ear ly morning of September 20 1981 Mr Vialoux wa called to help put out a fire in a house-trailer behind hi s hotel. The who e trailer was engulfed in smoke and name and there were said to be s till two wome n inside it. Without h esitation Mr Vialoux entered the railer through a broken window in the main bedroom and located one woman who was already severe ly burnt on fa ce, arm and hands, and helped her out through the ame window. After refilling hi s lung with fre hair he twice returned to earch for the econd woman whom he eventually found and lifted hrough the broken window to those out s ide, bu t alas s he had already uccumb ed to moke nhalation. Mr Vialoux was him s elf taken to hospital s uffering from smoke inhalation but was di scharged later in the day.

Mr Wendall Wayne Froese. Student. of Saskatoon, Saskatc hewan, Priory of Canada [n the afternoon of January 28 1982 M r Froe e saw s mok e coming from the open front door of a house. Telling a nearb y you th to call the Fire Service he in sta ntly entered the house and on ca lling out heard a female voice cryi n g for help. Using the 2 Vl ft of clear a ir at floor level Mr Froese crawled in the direction of the voice but before he reached the v ict im the smoke had descended lower and h e had to grope with hi hands Lo find her. After dragging her some 10 ft towards the door he found it had by then closed and he had to leave h er in order to oca te and re-open it. When he eve n tua ll y managed to get the victim outside s he had topp e d breathmg but was s ucce s fully r es us c itat ed by anot h er helper while Mr Froese was taken to hospital to be treated for s moke inhalation.

Life Saving Medal in Bronze

January 1 to December 31 1982

Mr George Fisher, Store Proprietor, Ontario, Priory of Canada

In the late afternoon of Jul y 16 1980 Mr Fisher witnessed a two-car collision which had set both ca rs on fire. While he was making a persistent but unsuccessful attempt to put out the fire Mr Thomas Warren arrived and tried to rescue the driver of one of the cars but found the door jammed. Mr Fisher helped him to wrench it open and together they removed the driver to safety. Mr Warren also found the driver's wife wedged under the dashboard on the pas se nger' s s ide and Mr Fisher helped him to get her out safely. There was tragically no pos s ibility of reaching th e trapped driver of the other car. Throughout this ve ry courageo u s rescue Mr Fi s h er ably helped and supporte d Mr Warren, both men risking their lives with no thought fo r their own safety.

Constable Terrence Arbuckle Cameron, RCMP, Manitoba, Priory of Canada

Toward s du s k on ovember 22 19 80 Constab le Cameron and Constab e Moses Beard y were cross in g Is land Lake, each on a snowmob ile They ran onto thin ice and Constab le Beard y, a much heavier man and 40 yards in the lead, went through. Constable Cameron cautiously advanced on foot and by extending his gauntlet he towed Constable Beardy back towards safe r ice. While so doing he twice broke through him elf but recovered without submerging.

Having at last got his companion out of the water he would nOt risk entrusting their c ombined weight to the snowmobi le but, in a strong wi nd and at - 8 ° C, helped and supported Beardy for half a mile to the nearest she lter where both men obtained transport to a Nur ing Station.

Certificate of Honour

Nursing Cadet Sergeant Karen Foster, Congleton N I C Division, County of Cheshire

During the morning of May 31 1981 N I C Karen Foster (then aged 14 Vl ) was on duty at a motor cycle scramb le in heav y rai n and ery muddy condition, when one of the motor cycles went out of co ntrol and headed iraight for an Ambulance Member who wa al 0 on duty but looking in another dire tion. Seeing thi • Karen rushed forward and pushed him arely out of the way but did not have time to m ove away her e lf before the bike hit her on the back of the legs and threw h e r into the air.

She was take n to ho pital uffering from seve re bruising to the low e r part of th e spine but made a good recovery after a few days' res!.

Nursing Cadet Joanna Holder. Stroud A I C and N I C Division, County of Gloucester

During the af ternoon of Augu 30 1981 I C J oa nna Holder (then aged 13 ) wa on duty at a motor cycle cra mble when a rider lost control and hi s machine careered into the pec la tor s Joanna, who mi g ht otherwi e have e caped, tried o pu s h another girl out of the way but was only partly ucce ful; the other girl uffcred multiple injurie

Special Service Shield

FOR THOSE who h a ven t yet seen Brigade Orders for January 1983 I would bring your attention to Brigade Order 1733, which now permits holders of 1000 hour Special Service Shields to wear them on their adult uniform.

For ambulance members this will be worn at position 7 (see page 29 o f Dress Regs) and f or nursing members at position 2 (see page 39 of Dress Regs). Let's hope that now this honour has been agreed we shall see more cadets striving for the 1000 hour award.

Brigade Cadet Camp - Bexhill on Sea

Every year I do my best to encourage Divisions to send groups to this excellent camp, which really is good value for money and good fun for ever y one This year the camp will be open to cadets and officers from Cadet Divisions only, and runs from July 23 to August 27 Applications should be sent to the Camp Commandant, Miss W. Willis 179 Hazelbank Road, Catford, London SE6 lLU

Brigade Leadership Conference

Nottingham S e ptember 23 to 25 Older cadets / young adults will find this an extremely worthwhile weekend. Look out for details in Brigade Orders and through your County Circular

On

e apparent to yo u. You wi ll fi nd yo u a re a b le o plan and wor k t o wa rd s a c t iv i ties with a r ea l p u rpose, a nd ha ve t a r ge s to a im fo r. You will a lso fin d t h at you wi ll h ave p enty of time to get rea d y for a n d, i f n eed be, a lter activities suc h as r e-exams or profic iency su b j ects.

How to plan

When you get together to p lan your yearly prog ram m e, sta r t wi th a n ha f- h our's 'brainstorming' session, d u r i ng w hi ch eve r yone su bmits id eas, no ma t ter h ow far fetc h ed t hey m ay seem T h en for t h e n ext h a lf-hour study the ideas logically, keepi n g t h e following in m in d.

1) The fac ili ties and equipment available, or what you may beg, borrow or steal! Contact your Area staff and loca l youth organisations to see what equipment they can lend you. If yo u don't ask, you don't get.

2) Wha t do yo u r members want? Have yo u ever as ked t h em? If not, why not? After all this programme 0 f activities is for them.

SJ A (Southwark Co r ps) MU SIC MAKERS

annual disp lay and presentation of awar ds fo r the Southwark Corps of Drums was held in t h e last week of Feb. The VIP prese n t in cl ud e d Lt Co l D. R Beat , the Ba n d 's Pres id e n t, and M r G. H. Easton, ASSIstant C- in -C, and t h eir wives.

Fo ll owi n g h e in spectio n the band played throug h th e r 1982 / 83 ro u tine. This was followe d by t h e p r esentation of jun ior band certif cates b y t h e b a nd 's Area Superi nte nd ent an d F ir st A id Ce rtificate by Mr Easto n. band aw a rd s, pr es ent e d by t h e Pr es Iden t, wer e: Drumm e r of t h e YearJ ohn D wan T ru mp eter of t h e Year _

Na n cy Wh i tt ake r ; Juni or of t h e YearCaro lin e Mi nn ey; and B a nd sm an of t h e Year

- A nn e Box.

T h e eve nin g was r o und e d off w ith pr ov id e d b y th e Leag u e of

Fn end s.

No smo k ing

L ake, a m e mber o f t he Southw a rk o f Drum s' Leag ue of F ri e nd s t o ok p ar ' 111 a 24 - hour no -s m o kin g

shess IOn , and ral sed a stagg ering £ 114 65p for t e band.

DOUBLE TOP!

T amwo th (Staffs) tw ns Jane an d Ju ie Gende r s, 14 o f Wi necote N C D ivision, both received their Grand Prior Awards recently from ASO Maureen Hopper

Why not d ist r ibute a sim pl e q uestionna ir e asking if they e njoyed certa in a ctiv it ies last year, an d i f there is anyt h ing i n pa r tic u lar h at they want more or less of.

3) Try to contact outside instr u cto rs and experts to come along every so often to your meetings. Maybe they coul d ru n a p r oficiency subject course Get to know other youth organisations in your area, and do them a favour (such as running a fi r st aid course for the Scouts) and the n get t h em to do one for yo u (they could run a map readi n g course)

4) Remember to take into accou n t activities planned by your Area and Co u nty, and try to get in v olved where ever possib le.

5) You do not have to start your programme in January. It may be better to start after the summer holidays - perhaps in Septem ber.

Having worked o u t yo u r id eas t hat a re to be used , the next step is to put the m on to paper.

Remember to cover t h e w h ole year with acti vit ie s, bu t d o n 't try to c r am too much i nt o on e par t of t h e programme. Try to give a s m u c h c h oice as p ossi b le fo r everyone th rou ghout the year. And don't forget the j

Give t

m et h

On t h e p revious page is an example of how to pu t your plan on paper (thanks to SJA S & W Yo r kshire).

We

ve heard of two more awards to SJA member s in the New Year's Honours. Dr Anne Hunter, Haslemere Divisional Surgeon,

the aBE for her 30 years' work in

in

Ambulance Member John Semper, of Haslemere Divi sion, a first

for 18 years, receives the BEM.

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

AWARD

16-years-o ld Carol Saunders of Bridgwater Somerset. who won a main award in the nationa Young Citizens Award contest organised by Britannia Arrow and the Ross McWhirter Foundation. Carol , a cadet for four years, has given over 1400 hours of voluntary service to the community, her main service being at the Bl ake Geriatric Hospital Bridgwa ter. Here she is receiving her award from TV's Jan Leeming and Sebastian Coe. Another SJA winner was Selina T homas, 13 of East Brent , who has 500 hours service indi viduals appears at this stage to be in the order of £ 180-£200. Thi s information is given by Headquarter to allow for early publication so those who are in terested may plan. Further details, and a ca ll for volunteers, wi ll be provided as soon as firm arrangements are known.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

SJA

st; other meals sho uld be contained within a £10 per day budget. Total cost to

[ hear that SJA Papua New Guinea has be en give n the respon sibility of opera t in g the ambulance service in Port Moresby, the capital.

Mr Graham Keake, the SJ A general sec retary, recently visited Adelaide to s tudy the city's SJA ambulance service. Port Morseby ambu la nc e officers will also be

presents a new flag to Windsor Nursing Cadet Division (Supt Mrs J. A. Page). The flag was given by the president, Mrs Veronica Flint-Shipman (ri ght), who also received her warrant from Keith

vi it ing Adelaide thi year for a month training.

We \ ish t he new ervice t he best 0 f Iud.

SEA RESCUE

SJA memb er will be only too aware of the tragedy wh ic h occurred at Bl ackpoo l on Jan 5, when three police officers and a Scotli sh holid aymaker 10 t their li ve in the ea.

Police Constable Patrick Abram, a member of Pre ston's Alpha Divi ion, \ as at the cene and had to be rescued from the ea and resu scitated after a va liant atte mpt 10 ave the lives of hi co ll eagues.

Patrick spenr some time in intensive care and was clo e to death. E eryone, and particularly those who know him as a

Nursing Member Jane Tatham, of Norfolk, receives a County Commissioner's commendation for rendering first aid and resuscitation in exceptional circumstances from Mrs D. Lloyd Owen. County Supt Also present. Mr C. Davies, Div President , and Mr P Eastell Area Commissioner. (photo: Eastern Counties Newspapers)

BY

THE EDITOR

member of t he Lancashire Constabu lary fir st aid team, will be relieved to hear that he is now almost fully recovered and hope to resume duties in the very near future.

Pat's courage and determination is an example to us all, and I m s ure all SJA members will wish him a speedy return to full health.

GOING UP

In his annual report, Mr Harold F. Mulligan, Commissioner of SJA London' Northern Area, said that 200 new member joined the Area's 62 divi sio ns last year, and only 30 members were lo st, due mainly to retirement.

700 adult members and 475 cadel clocked up 80,000 hours of duty. The 20 ambulance and FA units covered 25,000 miles, carrying 1,100 casualties and invalid.

NURSES VOTE

An area s tafr officer with St John Ambulance ha been nominated to tand in the forthcoming election to the nur e English National Board. He i Mr Palrick Strong, SRN, RMN, an area nur ing officer With SJA Shropshire, and a member of the St John Aeromedical Panel.

The election, which is due to take place April, is considered to be one of the mo t Important in hi tory of British nur ing.

The United Kl11gdom Central Council and Natio nal Board will take 0 er the resp?nsibilities and function of nine existing Including the General ur ing Co.uncd and the Central Midwive Board. ThI S will for Ih e first lime bring the edu catIOn, training and regulation of nurs.es, midwi ve and health visitors in the UK co-ordi nated ystem. Que tion of vIla ll11terest to nur e wi ll be considered by the Boards.

N A tutor, Mr Strong i Director of ursl11g Services, Royal Shrewsbury

Director of Public Affairs, Richard Radcliffe, writes:

You be intere ted to know thaI the Publtc. Affairs Department i now rOducmg new poster and leaflets for St Ambulance, rather than t he Order wh h f' are ree ly available to everyone.

o I hear you ga p and say 'At last'?

Because a National Poster Campaign IS Just starting, smaller identical version

PUBLICITY

are being distributed to countie to help the promotion. We a l 0 felt it \\

FROST BITING

Hospita l t h e Eye, Ea r and Throat Ho s pital, and the Commun ity Nu rsi n g and Health Visiting services f or Ce ntral Shrop s hir e.

MELF OR D MEDLEY

Divis ions w it h in reac h of East An glia whi c h need to r aise m o n ey (a nd wh o doe sn ' t ? )

should be in tereste d i n a da y of fa mil y fun and frolic organise d by SJ A Su ff olk 's St Edmundsbury A r ea for t h e Spri ng Ban k Holiday, on May 30. Arranged in the lov el y gr ound s of Melford Hall, Long Melfo rd Su ff olk , b y kind permission of Si r Ri c hard and Lad y H yd eParker, the day in cludes T V pers onali ty John Mountford and C hipp er field 's racing camel s; but more importa n t to SJ A di vision s a re th e running events, he ld fr o m lOam to 2pm. Organised at three di ffere n t le ve ls so as to encourage less expe r ience d r u nn e r s, t h e events are:

Mini -marathon - half mar a thon di sta nce. Fun ru n - a b out 7 mile s

M rs H o un so m e, 28 Kin gs Ro a d Bur y St E dmund s , I P 33 3DP , on r eceipt of a sta mped a ddr esse d enve lo p e.

YOUR CLUB'S FUTURE

We are ha vin g t he gr e at est d if fi cu lty in meet ing th e ra pidl y ri sin g c o sts of kee pi ng t he St John H ous e cl ub runni ng and seek he a id of all m e m be r s o f t h e Found at io n to a chieve t hi s o bj ec t , wr ites he club ch a ir man.

One way in wh ic h you all ca n h e lp is by using its f a c ilitie s whene ve r p oss ibl e. Fo r inst ance, if you ar e coming up t o Lo nd on

always c h eck wit h t h e W a r de n (Te l. 0 1-235-2732) fo r acco m mo d at ion. If t here is no n e availab le in t h e h o u e, t h e W a rd en has c lose connec ti o ns with s m a ll h ote ls in the area and ca n arrange accom m o d a t ion for yo u Do give h er a t r y.

We are s t ay in g open in A u g ust th is year dur in g the week 0 t h ose of yo u wh o are reg ul ars wi ll be accommo d ate d R emember, for a comfortable stay try a to u c h of gracio u s living in Eaton P lace and h e re is a licenced BA R !

WALKERS UNITE

As r eaders will be awa r e, last year a group of yo u ng St J ohn membe rs took part in the Ni jm egen Marc h es in Ho ll an d Among this gro u p were two cadets fro m Ba rn sley Area of Sout h a n d West Yorkshi re, wh o came ho me with an idea of how St Jo h n could use t h e Nijmegen pri nciple to its adva n tage for f u nd ra is ing.

As a r es ul t Ba rn sley Area is orga ni in g ilS , Chisl eh ur s and Sid cu p Di v sio n s,

own 'Meda l Wa lk' on S un day, September II, 1983. The event is open to fami li es, groups and individual and the r e is a c h o ice of3 distances - 40km, 30km, and 16km (25, 19 and 10 mile). A ll entra n ts w h o succes fully comp lete their c h osen di tance will receive a commemorative meda l an d in addition teams of eve n o r m ore wh o wa lk to gether wi ll receive a team award.

A well a Barn ley Area be n efiti n g from entry fees, division can turn thi event to their own advantage by obtaining ponsor hip for members who choo e to walk.

Further detail can be obta in ed by sending an S.A.E, to: Barnsley Area 1nternationa l Walk, 25, Rut land P lace, Wombwe ll , Barnsley, South York hire 738 P U.

SUP

In the report of the new HQ for S J A We tbury, Wilt (Feb Review), the appea l was launched by the lale Div. P res id e n t W ill Taylor, not Div Sup.

Two quick references for nurses - one on complications In intravenous therapy and the other on diagnosis of pressure so es and decubitus ul cers are available, free from Medical Services, 3M United Kingdom PLC, 3M House, PO Box 1 Bracknell, Berks

AEROMEDICS TRAIN

The Aeromedical panel, advisers to the St John Aeromedical Service, decided in 198] that all aeromedical attendants who wished to remain in active service should attend one training weekend every three years, and one training day at an airport base every two years These se sions would be u ed al 0 as initial training for aspiring attendants, who now have to be either a doctor or a qualified nur e.

The first training weekend wa held in snowbound Ea thamp tead in January 1982 and wa follo\ ed by a training day at Sta nsted Airport. This year the weekend meeting wa held Jan 7 to 9 at the Un iversity of Birmingham.

Participants gathered on the Friday evening, coming mainly from the Midland and London with Lady 10yra Browne Superintendent-in-Chief a the chief gue t. Lady Moyra, an early arrival, attended all the weekend teaching e ion and participated in di cu ions. She wa made ery \ elcome and declared herself e en more enlightened about aeromedical activitie

The organi ation of the weekend \\'a excellent the organi ing team being 'Tri h ifcQueen (she of the golden and per uasive voice), ifr Debbie Moorhouse, ano t her operation officer and ma in trouble -s hooter, the Dire tor Gp Capt George Baxter, and the e er urbane founder director, George Wood hill. The room were comfortable the meal generou and the bar opened 'without the law.'

The training programme wa imilar to t he fi r t, give or take the la t minute c h ange of speaker; we even had to Ii ten to Andy H and ley, ew equipment wa d e m o ns t rate d and it use in aircraft e p la i ned.

Bu t, a a lway at u ch event one seemed [0 learn more f rom t h e informal

di scussio ns , which broke out at each ocial or refreshment break.

Derek Clark, aeromedical equipment officer, seems to have spent more time in the air than on the ground; and his air time eem [0 ha e involved the most cantankerou patients. Cathy Stretton's bottomles s flight bag seemed to contain even more e sentials - mostl y in plastic bag Brian Lewis's trips could be filed under the heading Bring 'em back alive ' The main ocial e ent was dinner on Saturday evening, probably because it \Va preceded by a champagne reception generou Iy given by the West Midlands St John Ambulance. An excellent meal \\'a followed b y orne appreciati\'e words from Lady 10yra and by a response to the toa t by Dr Brian Lewi recentl y ele\ ated to the po t of County Commis ioner , Kent. A u ual, he entertained without being able [0 conceal his commitment to [he work of St John

The ho gue t at the dinner were the We t Midland County Pre ident and her hu band (t\Ir & [r R. J, Cad bury) and the County Surgeon and hi wife (Dr & Ir Lloyd). Tran pon offi er 1\1r. K. Harri al 0 attended and \\'a acorded pecial acclaim. Hi organisation has never failed to pro\ ide a full' equipped modern ambulance for aeromedical 'pickup .'

Aft r dinner our We t Midland gue t cr ened a publicity and recr uiting video which howed all facet of their St John rgani arion. Thi \\'a followed by a re\'i ed pre enration by Derek Clark of hi e:\cellenr rape lide how 'What i the St John Aerom di al Sen i e' - a te hnical triumph,

On hundred and ten people attend d th weekend. Once again, we were enthu ed and in pir d bv the dedication and keenne of 0 \'olunteer

Knights of the Order joined a specia diamond jubilee enrolment ceremony at Humberstone Leicester. They are (L to R) Viscountess Kemsley (Dame of the

This article, originally a talk to members of Casualties Union, should also be of great interest to first-aiders.

FOR THOSE me mbers (th e great majorit y, I suspect) of Casualties ' Union that have never broken a bone I can express satisfac t ion that they ha ve escaped this sort of injury but those that have sustained some sort of fracture may feel able to agree with me that it was an instructive experience that has given them a better understand ing of the roles and responsibilities of both mock casual ties and first -aiders. Patients reactions

The first piece of advice I want to give is that when playing t he part of an injured person , whatever the supposed injury may be, try to remember that there is no set behaviour and that you shou ld a s k yourse l ves ho w you would behave Som e are crying and in distre ss, some are pale and tight-lipped and some are remarkably calm and natural.

Reactions are based on pain and fear parti cu larl y fear that the pain will become worse, and also upon the distress occasioned b y the circumstances of the injury.

I once looked after a man who had los t his arm near the shoulder as a result of an accident a t work. He complained more persistentl y and loudl y of pain than almost any other recently injured person that I could recall ; eve n large do ses of morphia had little e f fect, which was puzzling. When I talked to him about this later I asked him whether the pain had be e n ve ry seve re indeed or whe t her his beha viour was to some extent an expression of fear and anguish. He said that fear and anguish played a large part - his own estima t e was about 7sr.r;o - and we nt on t o exp lain that when the accident happened he was 50 yards from anyone else and that he walked those 50 yards carrying his nearly severed arm.

In st riking contrast is the case of a Serjeant in the King's German Legion who had his arm carried off just b elow the shoulder by a cannon ball and of whom it was reported that 'he rode un subdued for 15 miles'. That happened a t the Battle of Waterloo , o ve r 30 yea rs before the fir st use of general anaesthesia in Britain In those da ys soldier s knew what they might have to put up with; there was no que s tion of pain-killin g injections and if t hey needed help tho se that co uld still do so had to go and find it. Nevertheless, Sjt Trittmeier must have been pretty t ough ' The point of these stories is that reactions to similar injurie s can be strikingly different, depending upon the individ ual and also t he ci rcum stances of the injury.

Why do fractures hurt?

For those that ha ve never broken a bone the outstanding characteristic of a fracture is t hat it hurts and it may seem pointless to know why. In fact, the amount of pain is to some extent under vo luntary control and it is therefore necessary for both mock casua ltie s

When did you last break a bone?

by P. S. LONDON

MBE, CStJ, MB, BS, FRCS

President of Casualties Union

and fir s t-ai ders to know how to redu ce as much as possible the pai n ca u se d b y a fracture

One ca u se of pa in is the d amage done to the soft tissues adjoini ng th e br oken bone

Bone it se lf is large ly devoid of sens ibilit y but t he perio steu m that s u rro und s a nd is at tached to it is very sens it ive (fig. 1), so are muscles. Some pain co me s from the dama ge don e and so me comes from the swe llin g, which stretches the t iss u es co n ce rn e d ; stretc hi ng hurt s an d this pain u ua ll y in creas es as the swelling increases. P ara do xica ll y, however m ild fractures ma y be mor e pain ful t han severe ones and the explanation is that swelling that sprea d s into widely torn tis s ues stretc hes t h e m less t han when it occurs int o those t hat are intact and c onsequentl y unable to 'give'.

The se causes of pa in are not u nder vol untar y co ntr o l but a t hird cause is and that is muscular tensio n A frightened person is liable to hold him self tense and this can str etc h and press upon se nsit ive t issues around t he fracture, so caus in g pain and, as everyone kno ws, c ramp in a mu scle ca n be very painful. If the victim can be persuaded

to reJax it is remarkable how much less th e pain becomes. It is by no means unu s uaJ [o r sk ilful management , based upon per s ua sion and the confidence of the 'handler', to change a cry in g and frightened child into a confident and c h a tty youngster who may even take over the injured limb him elf. On e Indian boy preferred to hold onto hi s qui te badly broken e lbo w to ha v in g it put in a slin g; he even went to sleep on hi s father' lap, sti ll holdin g hi s arm. Ha ving br oke n my own elbow pretty badly year ago, I s ha red his feelings

Some casualties a re at ea e, others o ldi eI' on but m ake litt le verbal complaint, a for examp le, the hor se man who brok e the point of hi s e lb ow, went home , bathed and ch a nged and then travelled 20 mil es to hospital, where the fracture was operat ed on. He chose to wa lk w it h hi s a rm drawn back at the s houlder so t ha t the han d and for earm hun g st raigh t do wn from the e lb ow.

My sec ond pie ce of a d vice is to t hink in terms of providing co mfortab le s upp ort rather than of putting on p li nt The genuine cas ua lt y is in no doubt abo u t what is comfortable a nd w hat i not and 1 can a ure yo u t hat unless it is done with considerable ca re , putting on p lint s, o r eve n a s ling , can be qui te painful an d may not pro vide much su pport. For t he mo ck cas ualty it i ea iest to regard a ll fracture a ca using a good deal of pa in and act accordingly. In thi co nn ection, there is a furt her diffi culty in t h at what is good fir t aid in rea l life ma y be quit e una cceptab le in a fir t aid co mp etiti on. An examp le is the man \\ ho was brought to ho pita l w ith hi brok en lo\\ er limb draped over t he other one; the thigh wa broken in two pla ces but there was no doub t t hat the limb wa co mfor tably u pporled and t he am bul a n ce crew quite rightl y brou ght him as they fo und him Another patient had her br oken t hi gh comfortably supported on a p illo w and a third was brought to ho pital o n the sofa c u hion on which s he wa found ly in g co mfo rta bl y. Perhap my mo t re markabl e exper ie nce of co nsiderat ion and forti t ude was provided by the old woman

SKIN & FAT F ASC IA ENVELOPING HUSCLES

Diagrammatic cross-section of the forearm Other parts of the limb s contain 1h e s am e compo nent, and more or le ss sensitive , structures but they are differently arrang ed. The perio ste um covering t he bones, th e muscles and their partition s and e

who suffer ed an op e n fr ac tur e of t he tibia on a Saturday, dra gge d he r se lf to bed and waited until the Monda y before ' b ot he rin g' the doctor. I am g lad to say t hat both wou nd and fracture hea led uneventfully in s pit e of being com pl ete ly neglected for 48 hour. T hat may be very co nsiderate behav iour but it is b y no sta nd ar d good first aid.

Many years ago an o ld wo m an w ith a badly br oken w ri t refu se d to have an anaes th etic and to ld me to get on with se t t in g it. Having as ur ed her th a t that wou ld be far too painful for her 1 was eventually pers uaded a nd to my a toni s hm ent, I was ab le to manipulate the fra ct ure and put it in plaster witho u t apparently caus ing her more than s li ght discomfort.

Va lu ab le thou gh the trained cas ualt y is for ma ny teaching purpo e 1 ca n assure you that there is not hing lik e t he real thing.

Make-up

[n many ways the acting a nd taging app ropriat e to fracLUres is easier and more accurate than trying to reproduce the deformity of a fracture or di location.

Swe llin g i easi ly sim ulated and this may allow up to moderate deformity to be created but the fairly harp bend of a green tick fracture in a child's forearm is beyond simulation. The characte ri tic po ture of a dislocated hip is easily adopted; that of a dislocated houlder i not so ea y to mimic, especially for a t hin per on, and di lo cation of the elbow is more difficult till. This app lie particularly to fre h injurie , in which the deformity i pre ent but littl e or no swe llin g ha s occurred.

AJthough there are obviou advantage in knowing what hape thi or that injury should be, unless one has personal experie nce of them it can be dirricult to appreciate from photographs just what hap e injur ies really are. I have on numerou occa ion photographed what were to me good example of this or that deformity only to find that the photograph left the noviced puzzled: I knew wha t the reality wa , but a nur e, a tuden! or first-a ider did not.

In choosing fractures and di location for reproduction by trained casua l ties one is consequent ly re tricted to those that can be made up co n vincingly Acting and taging are not so re t ricted and 0 ffer bener opportunities for letting one elf go. On being exam in ed and handl ed

Diagnosing, or at least su pecting a fracture depends upon so methin g mor e than fin din g what happened and looking at the II1Jured part. During the .first minut e after there may be neither deformi ty nor swe llmg b u t t here is tendern ess where the bone is broken. In t he ca e of bones that are ju st under the kin t he tende r place i loca lized w hereas when the bone Ite s deeply wit hin mu cles tenderne s i mu c h m?re diffuse. Durin g the ear ly m in u te a m.dd fracture may not int e r fere ve r y much t he use of , say, th e hand o r even t he oot o r ankle but there will be te nd ernes and th e acting cas ua lt y must know just where th e fract ur e · d IS III or er to react cor r ect ly to

questions an d exam in ation. It nee d s a lso to be sa id th at it is at t im es impossible to dist in gu is h betwe en a fr ac ture and a s pra in, o r even a bruise, without t h e use of X- ra ys. More difficu lt than knowing ho w to react to examinat ion is re acti ng to h an dlin g Try to ask yourself whether, if yo u really had a fracture, the first-aider dealing with yo u wou ld gain your confidence. If the vo ce, manner and placing and use of the hand s impr ess you favourably you wi ll react favourably to in st ructions such as, 'Take it ea y', 'Relax', or 'Just leave it to me, o ld chap' and s ho w how muc h more comfortable you feel now that you are in good hands. You may, of course, be too frightened to react favourably to even t he most sk ilful and considerate handling and blame on the 'hand ler' the pain that you are causing yourself by your failure to relax.

Alternatively, t he handler may not inspire confidence in you; he or s he is clearly very nervous , with hands that are heavy or un ure You are entit led to tell h im to lea ve you a lone until the am bulance comes, to take it easy or not to touch here or there. Patients often put up with a good deal but even the mo t tolerant may decide to draw the line at ome of the thing that are being done or intended.

If yo u are frightened and say so, does the handler's reaction soo t he or increase yo ur fears. Would you be convinced by il if yo ur

bone was rea ll y broken?

A fir s t-aider ma y ri ghtly suspect a fracture and ad vise acco rdin g ly whereas the casua lt y may have decided t hat if he or she could limp in for a d vice he might as wel l limp out again, h aving ignored it. Let me assure first-aiders that even doctor s have the frustrating ex perience of having their advice sought and then ignored. Some patients take the attitude, If I can walk on it l use it, it cannOl be broken', others go to the opposite extreme and refu se to use the injured part even though assured that there is no more than a b ru ise or a mild sprain.

By now, it may seem that there are so many if 's and but s that the whole business of s imulating fractures and dislocations is becoming hopelessly complicated, confusing and uncertain and that it is much easier to s tick to the well worn paths of conventional s imuJa tion than to try to cope with the tremendou s range of variations that occur with genuine injuries.

For the cautious - all right, do it the u ual way; fo r the adventurous there are exciting challenges but for both, my final piece of advice is to keep your eyes and ears open 0 that you can take every opportunit y of experiencing t he real thing and seeing how patients react and what their injuries look like - there is no substitute for it.

(Reprinted J om Casua/IY Sill/II/alion, Ihe II/aga::. ine oj Casliallies Union)

Are you fit enough to give first aid?

asks NORMA REEVES

of N. Bucks

HAV] G WORKED in industry a a enior fir t-aider 1 have often had to prim two or three hundred yard to deal \ irh a serio u condition at the end of it without becoming a casualty my elf, 0 I am well aware how fit a has to be.

Now that I am teaching fir a id to people from the workp lace, I am freq uen tl y amazed at the cond ition of ome of the candidate 1 meet on the fir t morning of a new cour e. It i nothing to ee peop le with ob iou re piratory di order, obe ity, arthritic joint and ight defect.

With t he new FA W package our candidate find out on the fir t day t hat learning fir t aid i not ju t i tting Ii tening to omeone ta lk for hour or it ting a nd di C ll in g t he proper ti e of the triangular band age, but it i get ring o n to t he floor and performing re sus itation. They are astoni hed to le arn Iheir knees won't be nd th at they annot sit on their heels w he n

beside a or dummy, and [hat [hey are unable to lllhale enough air to inflate the dummy. Quite often these people do not retu rn !

When asked to jog on the POt for two mi nut es (to rai se their heart beat for pul etaking purpo e ) they are equa ll y appalled to find the cannot ustain the effort, orne of them for longer than II minute. Of our e we poim out to them in [he yerv nice twa\' that i ma y be nece ary to up a fligh·t of talr and perhap have to perform re u itation when arriying at the ene. The e people al 0 quire often do not return!

Our team of in tructor ha al 0 learned that to teach we al 0 have to be fit. I am glad to say t h a t tho e that needed to have taken up t he hal\enge a nd got them el\'e fit and regu lar ly rev iew their fime s factor.

When reac hin g t hey wil J remind a can did ate who may be liavin a difficultv in placing an I - tone- per on the reco{ ery

Fig. 1

MUSCLE

LEADE R. S Ht P

As f'teside1'\f, I ,.Jo lld 1 ,\r (he ,:1\%l1610f to d"\-'" i.JJ...,r 1 d i,,',

position that you have to be fit to be a firstaider!

AND WHAT ABOUT YOU BRIGADE MEMBERS OUT THERE - ARE YOU

FIT TO BE FIRST-AlDERS?

When you get down beside the dummy, can you sit on your heels and take a deep breath and inflate the dummy to the required

First Aid for the Blind

by ISOBEl BARCLAY Nursing Member

EASINGTON, Co Durham, marked the 1981 International Year of the Disabled with a special six-weeks course in the essentials of first aid, and as a nursing member of Horden Combined Division I assisted Mr Hope, the Area Commissioner, at these lectures. The course was very successful and resulted in the disabled group being much more confident in themselves, knowing that they could cope with any emergency that might arise.

The knowledge that I acquired from this course prompted me to try to help the blind and partially-sighted in my area. I discussed with Mr Hope the possibility of teaching them the essentials of first aid, and he contacted a blind instructor, Mrs Betty Hutchingson. She asked her Blackhall (Co Durham) blind class if any of them would be willing to form a group and take up first aid. Seven agreed - three women and four men - and in June 1982 another special course started in Blackhall chapel halL

Over the following six weeks the group tried very hard and put everything into making these lessons work. At the same time we were learning a lot about them and how quickly they adapted to different situations and treatments. I find blind people somehow specia l people, and this clas s was no

capacity? When you bend forward does anything get in the way? Does your preyious meal feel as if it is about to be regurgitated? When you place your hands on the sternum and interlace your fingers do your wrists feel as if they are going to break? Are you able to bend your wrists back sufficiently to keep the fingers off the rib-cage? Can you lock your elbow straight or does it hurt your elbow joints? When you rock backwards and forwards to depress the chest the required distance for 15 times, are you out of breath? Can you resuscitate the dummy for 10 minutes or more? You've got to be fit to be a first-aider!

It is my gue s that a lot of you out there are not fit enough to be first-aiders.

What about it, fellow members - why not introduce a new course to the Divi sion ? Dancercise. Discocise. Keep-fit. Popmobility. Football. Jogging. Badminton. Yoga. Anything to build strength, tamina and mobility.

For th ere's no doubt about it, you've got to be fit to be a fir t-ai der

Public Duty Handbook

HEADQUARTERS has certainly been busy during the past year with new first aid and nursing manuals appearing, and now the first edition of a Public Duty Handbook.

This will be widely welcomed, and those respon sib le for its production deserve our congratulations. Much of the book is so und common sense, written by those with considerable experience of public duties, and will be of enormous value to those counties where the major public duty is les s frequent than in the main urban areas, particularly London. It stresses the principle that equipment sho uld be tools and not toys, and that it is essential to establish the need for its provision rather than see it as a status symbol.

Centre is Miss Jean Usher of the class, demonstrating how to support a fractured arm on Mrs Norma Cardy, with he r guide dog Cleo. The author, Mrs Barclay is next to County Sec , Laurie Simpson , right. Left , is Area Comm ssioner Tom Hope. with Sister Owens County Supt (N)

exception. 1 ney seemed to radiate a wi llin gness to learn everything which might help their fellow men in an emergency - and one could sense their togetherness. No special teaching aids, other than Anatomic Anne, the resuscitation model, were used. Ordinary household articles, which could be found in and around the home, were improvi sed Head squares were used in place of triangular bandages, and made into arm slings and hand bandages for the treatment of wounds, burns and scalds, etc. Ties, belts and sca rve s were used as broad bandages; woollen sweaters for padding. A garden hoe and tent pole, two lengths of garden fencing, four pieces of curta in tape, plus two old sports jackets, made a stu rd y stretcher. And to cover the casualty newspapers were used instead of a blanket. Artificial respiration and external heart compression posed no problems for these students, as t hey soon discovered how to use the model; and they were able to demonstrate the Holger Nielson method as well as the recovery position with calm as s urance. As a blind person cannot see if a casualty is in shock or unconscious, these

conditions were assessed by using their ultrasensitive hearing and touch abilitie s. Listening for breathing and feeling for moisture on the backs of thei r hands near the casua lt y's mouth, told them if the patient was not breathing correctly. They soon found out how to feel and compare limb with limb, feeling for any broken bones, swellings or deformities. They also knew that should they req uire further assistance they could always obtain help from a passer-by by passing on in structio ns.

All aspects of treatment, methods and procedures in first aid were covered, discussed and debated at great length, and at the end of the course the class demonstrated their new-found sk ills in front of their families and friends. Mrs Bet ty Hutchingson, our CSO Mr L. Simpson and County Supt (N), Sister Owens, were also present, and each received their Emergency First Aid certi fi cate from Sister Owens. Handicaps and hardships go hand-i nhand, and if this happy group of peopl e could achieve so much in such a short time, what heights could the able-bodied m an in the street aim for - with a little more effort?

Not surprisingly, however, a sma ll number of errors have crept into the book, and I would be loathe to comment, having suffered them myself in publications, but I feel one must justify an errata slip. This relates to Chapter 12, page 66, in which we are told that cylinders of Entonox shou ld be stored at temperatures about 10 °C and kept at about 100e. This should read in each case above 10 °C.

In my view Chapter 11 is something of a disaster area, since it reiterates views on oxygen therapy which are totally out of date , and in fact contains some statements which are actually wrong. I hope this section can be re-written at an early date, because unle s this is done it will involve the Brigade in considerab le criticism from both within and without,

from The Supplies Dept. Order of St John, St John's Gate London EC1 M

4DA. Price £2. and seriously detract from the vast bulk of the book which is so good.

Books themselves are only tools, and I hope this one will serve to encourage discussion, and provide a sound basis for teaching and practice, as these procedures will continually need to be revised and rehearsed. I believe it can and s hould raise standards, serve as an important step to expand the role of those first-aiders who engage in this sort of duty and I hope will ultimatel y lead to a teaching package, examination and certificate which will recogni se the expertise of the many first-class personnel involved.

Counties would do well to devote some time to not only studying the book, but discussing at Area and Divisional level how it ca n best be used. Local circumstances and indeed existing vehicles and equipment will need to be integrated , bearing in mind compatability and the provision and availability of spare parts. Equipment is expensive and may have limited uses; it may well be better to provide it on an Area or County basis, lending it to the Division doing the duty, rather than duplicate it at many loca tions. Money is hard to rai se and should never be wasted.

I particularly liked the chapter on The Ambulance, and I hope counties will heed the advice on the minimum size of the interior. Whilst providing a ride for t he not very ill, cont1l1enral ambulances can be very dangerous if the patient collapses and

requires resuscitation, since accessability by the attendants is often either impossible or unlikely, unless the Brigade member is a contortionist. Whilst I share the preference of the author for front-wheel drive vehicles I am unaware at present of a British-ma'ke providing this facility, and would be very sorry if this led the Brigade to buying imported vehicles. British manufacturers, please note. Tho se buying secondhand vehicles would do well to purchase them from the statutory authontles who tend to give the Brigade a very fair deal , or where buying from commercial outlets insist on an AA or RAC examination before taking delivery. No book as comprehensive as this can expect to satisfy everyone in its first edition, and will inevitably be criticised because of this. evertheless, it is a big step forward and I wish it well.

Dr Brian Lewis FFARCS Commissioner Kenr

From Headquarters

COMME T by Dr P. A. B. Raffle, Chief Medical Officer, and Dr 1. C Graham, Surgeon-in-Chiej'Dr Lewis is of cour e, as a Surgeon in the Brigade entitled to his view, but we would like him to give us factual medical evidence that what we say is actually wrong in relation to oxygen therap and fir t aid.

'Our chapter was taken from an article published in the Review (October '81) which wa ba ed on a paper in the lay /J une 1981 AlIlbulance Journal. In neither journal was there any sub equent correspondence ub tantiating a contrary view. '

(Ediror: Two le{{ers, one from l'vJr A. P. Hickox, rhe orher from Dr Perer Bask er t, COllsulrant Anaesrhetisr, in reply (0 (he article mellfioned above and published ill rhe May 1982 Review , lrere drall'n to (he a{{enrion of Drs Raffle alld Graham.}

ORDER

INVESTITURE

CHAPLAIN

(London)

COMMANDE

(Isle of Wight)

OFFICER Broth er)

Brig William Grierson (Surrey)

Surg Cdr Ernest Edward Pet er Barnard, WHP MB BS, DPhil, FFCM, MFOM (Go port)

Leslie RobertS (London SE9)

Raymond Francis Giles (London SE6)

Walter Anhur Doad e (Avon)

Peter I an Evan Greaves (South Yorks)

Harry Frederick D avid Dymond, BSc (Hants)

Lionel John Blackburn (North Yorks)

Donald Me rvyn Wi kins, MRCS (London N2)

Bernard Mic ha el Byrne (Staffs)

Ll-Co Kenneth George Allen (Worcester)

Surg-Capt Duncan Sutherland Monro, QHP, RD RNR (Gla gow)

Andrew Francis Handley, MB , ChB (We Midlands)

Sidney Jack Abbott (Romford)

Surg Rear-Adml John Marsden HaughtOn QHP, MVO, MRCS , LRCP, DA, FFARCS (Devon)

OFF CE R (Sis t er)

Lad y Donald Mary Donald son (London)

Gwendoline Margaret, Mrs Peart (Hants)

Violet Joy ce, Mrs H anby (Surrey)

Jennife r, Mrs Chris ti e, SRN (Wilts)

Doreen Miss Sainsbury (Essex)

Mary Myfanwy, Mrs Platt, SRN (Merseyside)

Maureen Rosella, Mrs Weston (Wilts)

Pamela Geraldine, Mrs Rafne (Oxon)

SE RVING BROTHER

Sgt-Maj Cyril H orace Phillips MBE (London)

John Vern o n Lee (Cheshire)

Dudley Coulthard, MB, BS (Newcastle upon Tyne)

K eir Mackessack-Leitch, FRCS MB, ChB (Oxon)

Stephen Lerche (West Yorks)

Douglas Thomas (London)

Robert William Lyle, MB, BS, DR COG (Glos)

Ronald Stokes (Clwyd)

Frank Popplewell (West Midlands)

Leslie Bullen (Ox on)

Frederick William Bryant (London)

Ha rry Edmund Brown (Merseyside)

Keith Frederick Cl if ford Warren (Northants)

James Crook (North umbria)

Harold Thorpe (NOllS)

Alfred William Percy Eason (Surrey)

Derek Hugh Underwood (Kent)

Jame s Anthony Cowb urn (Lancs)

Eric Percy Me ll or, JP (Cheshire)

Michael VictOr Moring (Essex)

Albert Arthur Dorrill (Bucks)

Mi chael Albert Healing ( I sle of Wight )

George Henry Howe (M idd x)

Ray mond Garrill (South York)

Geoffrey Hunter (C h es hir e)

Jo hn Trevor Proudlock GM (Rugby)

Edgar E lli s Beed (Merseyside)

Peter William s (Su nd er and)

Sgt John Mi chael Daughters (Surrey)

Raben John Pooley ( H erts)

David Roy ston Roberts (Wilt s)

Ernest Wi lli am Phillips (West Midlands)

Roland Gi ll am (Sussex)

William Ma ck into sh Saunders Su th er and (London)

George Jonathan G lo ve (Merseyside)

Andrew Frank Parker, MRCS, LR CP, D I H, DPH (North Yorks)

Gordon Jesse Varley, MB, C hB (Cheshire)

Derek Orgill Sankey (Staffs)

James Edward Hu ghes (London)

James Andrews (Norfolk)

Ron ald Frederick Spencer (West Midlands)

Edward Dan Godfrey (Sur ey)

Jack Eric Green (London)

Edward Munro Atkins (Leic s)

William Elvin Bates (Northants)

Denis John Manning (Shrewsbury)

Sta nl ey Johnson (London)

John Dougla s Thorne Bond (South Shields)

Lawrence Cowley (Cleveland)

Frederi ck Edward Coomber (Nolls)

Reginald John Judson (Surrey)

Donald Lawrence Keech (Warwicks)

Roy Patrick Mann (Su ffolk)

H arry Blakemore (London)

Raymond Barker Charnock, MB, ChB (South York s)

George H erbert Turle (Middx)

Vivian Glyn Robert s (BristOl)

John Alfred Mallhew Wood (Surrey)

Mrs Eileen Mikulik , nursing member of Norf olk's Thetford Combined Division (and treasurer) with 30 years service, becomes a Serving

Sister Mrs M lkulik has been a full time DHSS Ambulance woman since 1971

MOBILITY

Mervyn Godwin Beadle (Oxon) Robert Orr (Newcastle upon Tyne) John William Gilbert (London)

Roy Dixon Att wood (Gateshead)

Preston Corps rece ive a caravan first aid unit from the presidem of Gregson Lane Cadet Division, Mr A. Burford and his wife. It was handed over to Area Commissioner T. Bates and dedicated by Rev Jackson in the presence of the May or and Mayoress of Preston. (Photo: Lancashire Evening Post

SJA's first woman County Commissioner, Lady Holborow of Cornwall, congratu lat es 0 / 0 R. Davey after the dedication of Launceston's

Surgeon)

FOR RETIRED MEMBERS

from Mrs P. M. Williams, Hon Sec

The St John Guild, Western Hampshire, has had a very successful first year. We've listened to interesting speakers on a variety of subjects: bees , cruising, local government, a Western Australian holiday, and a first aid quiz. We also visited the Gate, Clerkenwell, and made a tour of the New Forest. Our annual general meeting in December showed financial stability and great enthusiasm.

This year, because of a mammoth jumble sale in January (out of doors!), we've already been able to donate £100 to an ambulance fund for local divisions. Soon we'll be hearing a talk on age concern, which does concern us, however spritely we may feel, and we also hope during t he year to suppo rt a local appeal for a Cheshire Home.

One of our members has produced an idea for a badge, and we have chosen a motto: 'We will serve'.

We thought it would be a good idea to tell everyone through the Review what we were doing. We hope to read news from other groups in our magazine soon.

1 COnifer Crescent, Lyminton P. M Wilfiams (Mrs)

Editor: This idea for a national network of organisations for retired members, which was first mooted in the Review last year, has been studied at Headquarters and we hope to publish full details of the proposal in the May issue.

WORLD WAR ONE PHOTOS

from E. A Eldridge , Ambulance Member

Enclosed is a photograph of two St John Ambulance volunteers taken during the 1914-18 war that I recently picked up on a market stall. Apart from reassuring our male personnel that our girls were just as attractive in bygone days, may I ask if any members ha ve photos of soldiers of the 14-18 war?

I am a member of an organisation called the Western Front Association which is dedicated to perpetuating the memory and courage of the soldiers of both sides who fought in that conflict. It is entirely non political and non profit making. The idea being that grandad's photo is preserved for future generations and does not finish up unnamed and unknown on a market stall or thrown away. I will of course pay any expenses.

126 Wilton Rd, London SW1

E. A. ELdridge

USE OF RADIO

Found on a stall Aren't they lovely?

from John Springer Divisional Superintendent

In view of the total misunderstanding of my previous letters on this subject printed in the Review (1981/82), I hesitate to try to make plain statements and get questions answered, but I must try.

The first is that CB radio has a great potential for some Brigade uses - eg, ambulances on aeromedical/transport duties could well benefit from carrying a set, which could call for and respond to calls for assistance anywhere and at any time. CB has the drawbacks associated with open channel - massive usage, manic users, and jargon for people who prefer to use plain speech - but we must think these problems out.

The second is Brigade radio. My SJA HQ licence /radio information sheet of 1972 (the last issued to me) states that the licence conditions are: one frequency, A/M low band, power 10 watts for vehicles, V4 watt for handheld, and all single channel. All of these seem to be 90

changing and yet I find out afterwards, sometimes b y pure chance! Dissemination of information in this field may so on be better with the appointment of County Radio Officers.

The new Public Duties Handbook s tate s t hat our m ax imum power is 5 watts . Why must I lose half o f m y po ss ibl e maximum power in a hill distric t Oike mine) when the 6 Y2 watts I get from my Cambridge set is hardly adequate? I am told I must bu y n ew ra dios. But why must I get rid of m y lo ve ly Cambridges, which I can buy for £45 to £50 each, and raise about £2500 plus VAT to replac e our six licenced sets?

With 20 member s annually covering 150 duties in an area of 15 villages and hamlets with three ambulances, two caravans, a medical comforts depot and public clas ses, but with no HQ for holding fundraising events, how can I ta ke on t he responsibility for raising such a sum ?

Huddersfield John Springer

DELICATE GROUND

from Watkin W. Williams, Divisional President

While browsing on the pages of the March Re view I came une xpectedly on a photograph (p.57) of myself receiving la st Dec ember on behal f of the SJA Air Wing the most generous gift of a photocopying machin e from the sales manager of Roneo A1catel. This h as prompted me to tread on delicate ground b y expressing st ron g personal views about the wearing of uniform.

There are two points at is sue : the first is for how long one continues to wear the badges of a former rank. In my v ew, Brigade ranks and their related badges indicate the job that one h appens at the time to be both qualified and availab le to perform, and do NOT indicate one's rung on a ladder of promotion on which we are all breathl essly chasing the Joneses to the top. My f irst uni f orm was that of an Ambu lance Member, and after 32 years' continuous service in various appointments (including 19 as Divisional Superintend ent) I had the great privilege of wearing the insignia of Deputy Comm issioner-inChief for a little over 6 years, by which time I was 71 and transferred to the (then) Retired List. For the next year on very rare occasion s when uniform was appropriate, I continued t o wear the bad ges of Deputy C-in-C with an 'R' on each shou lder -strap. On being appointed a Divisional President after my regulation year 'in th e wilderness I surprised some people by removing all traces of my former appointment and putting up a President's bad ges and go rget p atc h es and the relevant county name and emblem, because tha t was th e job I was doing The second point at issue is what the uniform sta nd s for in the eyes of the public. I am firmly convinced by experience that it indi cates that the wearer is (a) currently qualified as a fir st-aider and (b) physically capable of rendering first aid, and that NO ONE who cannot fulfil those two conditions should in any circumstances wear uniform. When that photograph in the March Review was taken I still held a valid FA certificate and was able to reach the Air Wing's flight control centre without using a walking stick! But the v alidity of my FA certificate lapsed in January (and that of my Nursing certificate a littl e earlier) and I must confess that after a coronary a couple of years ago I feel safer with a stick to support me. So I reckon that I no lon ger

qualify for uniform on either of the two counts, though I shall continue as a Divisional President and in any emergency I wouldn't hesitate to try to give first aid in the absence of others better qualified. I therefore rather specially treasure that photograph as the last that will ever be taken of me in Brigade uniform - not because I'm not proud of the uniform, but because I'm TOO proud of it to wear it when I believe it would mislead the public. And anyway, I can't believe that the sight of grey-haired veterans in their late 70's (or beyond) can do anything to enhance the public image of the Brigade! So I hope that others will come to share my view s and voluntarily act upon them, even though they go beyond the restrictions that Brigade Regulations require.

Epping Combined Division Watkin W. Williams

THOSE FACTS from Bryan W. Nicholls

On behalf of my ,father, l\!orman Nicholls, I would like to thank you for transfernng hIm to ChIppmg Norton Di vision in your article about the C-in-S::'s visit to Oxford (Around and About, March). Out of father has done three years in th e Hastings Division, and 48 years m the Ox fo rd City Divi si on C? when we going to get the facts wright (sic). All the same, Chlppmg Norton IS a very nice country town.

Oxford Division Bryan W. Nicholls

EdItor: Sorry, about dad 's se r vice and even the spe llin g of his name. But I'm afraid we do have to rely on others in this case your County, sending us material, and we can't check on t h e accuracy of ever yt hmg t hat everyone wri t e s.

The keys of M acclesfie ld Ambul ance Divis on's new ambu lan ce, which was dedicated by the Rev David Harrison are handed to D iv Supt Howard Elkin by the County Supt Mrs B Smith. Also at the ceremony with members were the Mayor and Mayoress of Macclesfield Mr N. Winterton, the local MP and the

CHESHIRE

county

(Right) Crewe Nursing Division held a coffee and beauty demonstration eve ning in the Mayor's Parlourhere's the Deputy Mayoress and Cty Supt Mrs Barbara Smith with the beauty girl - and raised over £ 130 for the Ophthalmic Hospital. Photo; Crewe & Chester Chroni cle)

NEWS from SCOTLAND

THE SEASON is approa chin g when t he ca nal boat the St John Crusader' will be gi n it s trips along the Union Canal. A total o f 329 trips were booked dur i ng the la st sailing season Crews were pro vi ded by St John volunteers and others. The canal boa t was

At the confe

WALES

pre sent ed to the Seagull T ru st by t he Edinburgh Committee of the Ord er of St John , and nearly 4,000 disabled people took ad va ntage of the free ca nal trip s. Trips on t he canal are organised with th e help of staff at Lad y Ha ig's Popp y Factory in Edinburgh, under the leader s hIp of Major Simon Campbell.

One of the many beautiful views obtained from the Union Canal as it passes through Midlothian cou ntryside

The Priory of Scot land look forward to the v isit of H R. H. Grand Prior on April 12 whe n he will be in Edinburgh to install as Prior of Scotland the Viscount of Arbuthnott in ucce ion to Hi Gra e th e Duke of Hamilton and Brandon.

and

Price , Chief Commissioner

THE Annual Surgeons' and Nursin g Officer s' Conference , held recen t ly at the Metropole Hotel, L1andrindod Wells, Pow ys, was pre sided o ver b y the Chief Surgeon, Dr D. W . William s on. The guest speakers includ ed Dr K. C. Easton (known for his vast knowl edge of road accidents); Mr J. Collin s Con sultant Emeritu s f or the Derb y Group of Ho spi t als; and Dr Peter Thomas, Consultant Geriatr ici an for the Dyfed G r oup of Ho s pitals. Dr Dor een Chambers , Deputy Chief Surgeon, chaired the Saturday sess ion s and Dr C. W. T. Thomas, Commissioner for Dyfed, the Sunday morning s essio n s

The Chief Nursing O f fi cer, Mr s M. John ,

announced that Nursing Bur saries had been awarded to three nurses w i t hin the Principalit y.

Th e Mayor of L1 a ndrindod, Councillor I. W. Hughe s, g a ve a ci vic we lcom e and a s herry part y to t he conference dele ga tes on the Saturday evening. The conference was att ended by 125 delegate s and their par tn ers

An added attra c tion to the conference was the pre sen ce of a number of medical companies, who r eg ularly s upport the weekend.

For the wive s of delegate s a knittin g machine demon s tration and fashion s how was held on the Saturday afternoon.

Changing the airport into healthrow

PLACE 26 million p eo ple of eve r y nationality annually in a n area covering one and a quarter squa re mile s, a nd yo u ge t a see mingly endle ss now of medi ca l probl e ms. Mi x into this recipe another 56,000 people permanently on the s it e, m a n y of th e m und e rtakin g dan gero us j ob, and the nee d fo r adequate hea lth co ntr o l is par a mount.

Heathro w Airport today finds itself in thi unenviable s it uat ion From pioneer fl ying days in th e 20s,w h e n it was used la r ge ly as an exper im enta l aerodrome, it has developed into t he world's bu siest int ernat iona l a irp o rt.

At t he height of t he tourist seaso n Heathrow often pay s host to the eq ui va lent of a W e mbl ey Stadium full of peop le100,000 - eve r y 24 ho ur

And they need a lot of medi ca l care at peak time, day and n ig h t. Teams keep bu y thro ugho ut the summe r months with a wide va riety of work.

It ra nges from rout in e medicals to treating minor stomach a ilm ent and end in g cardiac arre ts to one of the nearby Hillingdon AHA hospitals.

A nin e trong team of doctor pec ially trained in resuscitative technique s are on hand in hift around the clock for uc h emerge ncies.

They are emp loyed by th e AHA in the Hea lt h Co ntr o l Unit and their experience i worldwi d e ranging from t he colonia l erv ice to the RAF, Navy and a mi ion u ni t.

H ead of he H CU, p rin c ipa l Dr P eter Coope r , says: A are ult of our work many patient recover w ho would otherwi e die. But about 40 people who collap sed at t he airport la year ub equently died.'

'When you take the total figure of people usi ng the place, plu vi itor and taff, it is a ve ry mall figure, a ery small percentage.'

HCU doctors are paid a enior cl ini cal medical o f ficer a nd th e a lar ie are reimbursed to th e A H A by the DH SS

Work in g along id e are 30 taff , emp loyed by the Borou gh of Hillin gdo n Dr Coo p er, who is paid o n a con ultan[ sc ale, join ed the unit 22 year ago when it had ju t five doctor s . Previou s ly he worked in West Africa.

Nowaday, most of t he ir time at th e unit is spent examining immigrants, knowin g full well it is very unlikel y th e re is anything wrong with them.

T heir top priorit y i to top infection com ing into Brit ai n.

Last year t he un it exa min ed 43 000 people referred to them b y immi grat ion a uth o ri t ie 16 ,9 50 of them a li e n s, the r est Commonwealth c iti zen. On the H CU recommendation , 99 a lien s and 30 ot hers wer e refused la ndin g. lmmigration officers make refe rral to the HCU. The se in c lude peopl e coming to Britain to work , th e ir wives and d epe ndant anybody who appears to be ph ys ica ll y or mentally unwell a nd anyone who m en tion heal t h as a rea on for hi vi it.

by Robin Stride

Heathrow Airport is now building up to its busiest time the summer holiday season - and that means hectic activity for medical personnel working on the site

R eject' advice would be given LO Immi grat ion if the vi itor was suffering from a disease pr esenti ng a publi c hea lth risk, for exam ple act ive TB.

Fortunately, doctor s have no difficulties wit h lan guages as interpret ers are provided by Immi g ration The uni t's radiographer, an Asian, a lso helps out on occa s ions.

But Dr Cooper admits that wit h 26 million peop le coming in and out of H eat hrow each year he H CU task is a difficult one.

Medical performed by his department are not lengt h y affa ir s, they are compromises.

'We deal in a d iffere n t way with so mebod y who is refusable t han with someo ne who has right of e ntr y,' Dr Cooper explained.

Let's say a man a lr eady resident in this country ends for hi wife from India. We exam in e her and find s he may have TB.'

'We would notify rhe local authority where s he was go ng and s he would be followed up a nd se nt to h ospita l. '

'If s he did not h ave right of entry, he wo uld be put in hospital locally, [0 wait for a fligh t back.'

If s he wa infectiou ,thi \Nait would be exte nded for her to become non-infe ct iou a nd hence no ri k to other pa enger '.

'S he might a lso be waiting to hear the outcome of any appeal to ray in thi s country, de pite lmmigration refu al to g ive landing per mi ion.'

H o pita l u ed by the HCU include Hillin gdon, As h ford St John' s Uxbridge, ort h wick Park and Ha ref ie ld The two condition worry ing the Government mo t, ays Dr Cooper , are malaria and TB. La st year the unit sent [0 malaria ase to St John' a nd confirmed 50 TB cases, mo tly

from Pakistan and Indi a; 23 of them were refu sed entry.

Another part of the HC U brief is fo ll ow in g up a case where a per son fa ll s sick on a flight. Th e air line radio s on company f requenc y to H eathrow and the unit doctors and staff go ou[ to mee t t he pl ane. While the doctor looks at the patient, other pas sengers fill in s urveill ance cards, w ri ting do wn their de s tination addresses.

Routine first aid at Heathr ow come from an exper ienced team of a dozen SRN nurses. They work round the clock at t he British Airports Authorit y Medical Centre under the direction of chief medical adviser Dr Da,id Allera, who over see s medical services at the authority' S seve n airports. Th e Heathrow centre alone deals v. ith around 25,000 case a year. The BBA has its own ambulances to take emergencie to ho s pi ta l t hou

and the airline frequentl y gi\ es doctors, ho pitals and clinic s adv ice.

Late t info r mati o n for GP on o\er eas health requirement s. based on data supplied by the DHSS and WHO , i a\ ailable in Doctor fortnightly a nd updated in interim week.

However, BA al 0 an \\ er indi\ idual inquirie from do c[O r \\h o want to kno\\ about the uitability of a particular patient for air tr a vel.

Any inquirie hould be ent to the i\ !edical Officer, P a enger Service. Briti h Airways I\ !edical Service, Central Area Medical Unit, Heathro\\ Airport, Houn 10\\ liddle ex Tel 01 -759 5511 x 23 78 or 01-897 - 616.

( Reprillfed ji'oll/ DO C T O R the \I'eekly ne\l'spaper 0/ the Fall1ill' Practitioner. August 28. 19 0)

13 contraindications to air travel

Anaemia of se vere degree.

Severe cases of otiti s medi a and sinusitis.

Acute contagious or communicable disea se

Recent myocardial infarction.

Peptic ulceration with recent haemorrhage (ie within 3 weeks).

Uncontrolled cardiac failure. Recent cerebral infarction

Post-operative ca ses:

a) within 10 da ys of simple abdominal operation b) within 21 days of major ches t surgery.

Sk in di ea e which are contagi ous or re pul sive in appearance. Fractures of the mandible" ith fixed wirin a of the jaw. Mental iIInes without escort and sedat i on

Preanancies beyond the end of the week for iong internati onal journ ey and beyond 36th week for short journeys. Introduction of air to body c3\ities for diagno tic or therapeutic purpo e within 7 day

News from Divisions/Centres

OBITUARY

H.

The world's tallest woman has died

The tallest woman in the world was Zeng Jinlian, a C hin ese gir l of 17 years o f a ge who live d in t h e province of Hunan , in t he centra l region of the Chinese continent.

Recently, a Peking paper announced her death which was attributed t o diabete s It appears that right up to the moment she died, when her height was 2.46 metres (lOfeet 3inches), s he was still growing.

Patients guilty of negligence

R ecently it has b eco me very common for doctors to be accused of incompetence, either in n correct tre atment or negligence, in cases in which patients declare that the medical services prejudiced their health.

But Dr Gershon Lesser, of the University of South Ca l iforn ia, accu s es man y per sons of being patients gu il ty of ne g lig ence. H e defines t his as 'Negligen ce b y the patient against himself (or herself) which can put the patient's h ea lth in jeopa rd y.' This can well be due to the patient not accepting the fact that it is upon himself that the greater part of the responsibility to safeguard his health must sure ly rest.

Lesser cites a common example: 'One patient asked his doctor which among the many we ll-kno wn d ietary regimes is the best, whethe r sw immin g or cy cling is the better exercise, and w ha t is the best way to relieve nervous tension. Whilst asking these questions this patient puffed away stead il y at a cigarette!'

Smoking is so damaging, especially to the heart and lu ngs that, in comparison, the other features of prophylactic medicine b ecome insignific a nt if the person smokes. Many patients, among them many who do not smoke, damage their bodies by continuall y eating sweetmeats lacking in the element s of proper nutrition, etc.

T he med ical expert comme nt s: 'With all these classes of patien a concept, erroneou s and dangerou s, exists about modern medicine The patients guilty of negligence

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS

have t he belief that they ca n abu e themse lves wi t hou t sufferi ng the penally becau se, they t hink new medical techniques or medicine s will come to their a id .' He goes on to say, 'No di scovery Or medical advance ha justified a li fe of autodestruction. Such a discovery or medical advance has yet to be made which will relieve people of the principal responsibilit y of watching over their health themselve s.'

Illiteracy is on the increase

According to UNESCO (United Nation s Educationa l, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) the amount of illiteracy in the world has grown from 742 millions in 19 70 to 814 millions in 1980. [ f the tenden cy continues, the agency says, by 1990 the amount of illitera cy w ill reach 884 million s. Moreover, t h e number of women who cannot read or write continues to be greater than the number of men and the gap i widening. The highest le ve ls of illiteracy are found, generally, in rural zones and, al 0, in t he poor zone of cities or the surrounding s lum. 'So,' declares the periodical Fm/emile Malin of the Ivor y Coast (West Africa), 'illiteracy and pover ty are intimately related.'

Precipitation of atmospheric moisture (4). 14. What remain of milk when the curds are removed (4). 16. Last main change for charm bringing good fo rtune (8).20. R emedy [0 make good the damage (6). 22. Boy appearing in Palladium (3).24. Heartless s aviour s how s taste (6) 25. Drug given to increase urinary output (8). 28. Strange lo ve for a rodent (4).29. Staphylococcal infection of a hair follicle (4).30 Breast region (5). 33. Gave up work and took to bed (7). 34. MotLO of the Order of St John (3.4).35. The o ld doctor is a s ucker (5).36. Sincere palpitations? (9).

Down

1. Inflammation of the structures of a joint (9).2. Lukewarm (5). 3 Dead prefix (5).4. Region infested by the anopheles mosquito (8). S. Orifice where the oesophagus joins t h e stomach (6) 6. A very short time for a parasite (4).7. Branch of surgery for one who is kind and friendly? (4.5). 8. Hoarse as a dog? (5). 12. Old Testament judge is in delirium (3). ]5. Rent a drop of the secretion of the lacrimal glands (4). 17. Grand Ma ste r hero of the Siege of Malta (2.7). 18 Stimulus from bony growth on calcaneum causing a painful heel (4). 19. In short, no abnormal or pathological findings (3). 2l. Posture for pa tient who s feeling faint (9).23. Double vision (8).26. Self-e s te em for part of mind reacting to reality (3). 27. Who has reconstructed the seat for an elephant ride (6). 28. Diseases such as influenz a, mea sles, and rabies (5). 30. Boots c hanged to raise morale (5). 31. Skeletal st ructur e with pin in centre (5). 32. Pre-eminent part of the foot (4).

REVIEW CROSSWORD No 4 (83) by A. A. Potter SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 3 (83) A p ri

MENS & WOMENS

BUlley, Wo

oj a Plalig num pen will be awarded 10 Ihe sender oj Ihe jirsl c o rreclly compleled Crosswo rd No 4 (83) opened on

Sujjolk PI2 3QF. Winner Crossword No 2 Mrs M F Jone s, 64 Smithfie ld Rd Market Drayton Shropshire.

Across 1. Nervous syste m conce rned with involuntary activities of the body (9). 6. Structure with crown neck, and root (5). 9 Affecting a part of the body concerne d with current events (7). 10 Di sease of children with fa ul ty tickers (7). 11. Exhibition of cow bo y's sk ill s (5). 13

Across: 1. Alalia; 4. Pruritus; 9. E'xotic; 10. Ten'esmus; 12. Rat ; 13. Idea; 14. Suture; 17. Spot; 18. For'aged; 22. Crusade; 23. Rash ; 27 Intima; 28 Hale; 29. Ram; 31. Scorpion; 33. Der mis; 34. Migraine; 35. Call· us. Down: I. Aneurysm; 2. Abortion; 3. Iriti s; 5. Ree l; 6. Roe; 7. Tumour; 8. System; 11. Re morse; 15. Uvea; 16. Cardiac; 19. Dr-am; 20. Lacrimal; 21. Chemosis; 24. Lissom; 25. Strong; 26. Oedema; 30. Corn; 32. Pia.

RESUSCITATION TRAINING MODEL

ST JOHN REVIEW

NAME

THE CORPORATE membership of branches shall be called the St John Fellowship.

We have arrived at the term 'Fellowship' after considering all the suggestions made in the Review and elsewhere. 'Association' is clearly out. There is already a Ladies' 'G uild' in the Order, and there are several spheres in which 'Friends of St John' is already used. A Fellowship describes effectively what we hope it will be, so perhaps the name may be happily accepted.

MEMBERSHIP

Membership of a Branch of the Fellowship shall be based on service with St John which is acceptable to the local Branch committee.

OBJECTS

The objects of the Fellowship shall be: a. To enable former members to keep in touch with St John and with each other. b. To form local Branches which will arrange meetings, social events and other activities as desired by members. c. To help former members in need, especially the housebound and those in hospital or residential homes who would appreciate visits and outings.

ADMINISTRA TION

Central Committee: The Fellowship shall be administered by a Central Committee of nine members as under, elected at all Annual General Meeting: Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Treasurer, National Secretary, 5 Branch Representatives.

Members of the Central Committee shall serve for three years after election and shall then be eligible for re-election provided that no elected member of the Central Committee shall serve for more than six consecutive years.

p.109

London Quiz Final p. 11

Humble

Nottingham 1983 p.113

Readers' Views p.114

News from Scotland - N. Ireland - Overseas p.116

A duty with the handicapped p. 11 7

News from Divisions/Centres p.118

The World about us, by Jack p.120 EDITORIAL and ADVERTISEMENTS

Not more than two members from anyone County shall serve on the Central Committee simultaneously.

On the resignation or death of a member of the Central Committee, the Committee shall co-opt a Branch member to serve for the remainder of the three-year term of office.

A Quorum of the Central Committee shall be four members, one of which must be an officer of the Committee.

Branches: Branches of the Fellowship may be formed anywhere. Branches shall be self-governing through an elected committee. Branches shall be wholly self-supporting fmancially. Branch secretaries shall notify the National Secretary of the formation of a Branch.

Annual General Meeting: The National Secretary shall notify Branches of the time and place of the Annual General Meeting at least twenty-one days in advance. All Branch members shall have the right to attend and vote at the Annual General Meeting. The Treasurer of the Central Committee shall present to the Annual General Meeting a statement of the accounts for the previous year, duly audited.

FELLOWSHIP BADGE

A St John Fellowship badge shall be available for purchase by Branch Secretaries through the National Secretary.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

The amount of any subscription by Branches to the Central Committee to cover postage, a Dir ectory of Branches or any other central services desired shall be determined by the Annual General Meeting. The amount of any subscription by members to indi idual Branches shall be decided under Branch arrangements.

INAUGURAL GENERAL MEETING

The Fellowship will formally come into being at an Inaugural General Meeting to be held in the vicinity of St Paul's Cathedral after the Service on St John's Day, June 25 1983 The time, place and full detail will be published in t he Sf John Review for June.

COMMUNICATIONS

The Editor, St John Re view, ha s kindly agreed to publish Branch addresses as formed and other Fellowship news monthly. A proforma for notifying t he formation of a Branch will appear in each i sue from July 1983

'CADETS are a waste of time and money.' What absolute rubbish! But I wonder what it was that made two officers with many years Brigade service say this to me on separate occasions recently? And how many more members agree with those sentiments? I would suggest that more than just a few do.

If that is true then I am of course saddened, but not surprised. I hope in this short article to add a little to the debate which I believe may have been stirred up b y lain Armstrong in his article in the March Review and in doing so throw some light on the reasons behind the opening statement.

lain concludes the first part of his article by asking the question as to the aims of St John Cadets, and it is a most valid question, as the success or otherwise of any organisation can only be measured against its aims. A vital principle to understand is that aims must be dynamic, in that they must always re spon d to the ever changing world in which we li ve. An organisation which refuses to recognise that it exists in a changing environment will die by allowing itself to become irrelevant.

Let me then suggest that when asked what the aims are of those involved in the leadership of St John Cadets, I give the following as my answer:

1) To teach first aid and allied subjects to young people;

2) To give youngsters a well balanced and challenging programme of events which they will enjoy and find useful, both now and in their future lives;

3) Provide a youth organisa ti on understanding the aspirations, needs and problems of today's youngsters, and working in co-operation with, rather than competing with, other organisations;

4) Where possible encourage cadets to give voluntary service to the community.

Now having hopefully got everyone to agree, to disagree or to add countless things to the list, let me similarly give my list of aims for an adult division:

1) Provide a uniformed voluntary organisation giving first aid cover at public events and in times of accident and disaster;

2) Work closely with the professional services to ensure that the organisation is respected because of its members' competence and not by a false respect attributed to a 'do

gooding' group of people;

3) Ensure that members are given a meaningful training programme to maintain their efficiency in first aid and allied subjects, and to develop a keen interest in current techniques;

4) Encourage where practical welfare activities such as escort duties, home nursing, hospital visiting, etc.

H will be immediately noticed that while there is of course a common flavour to both sets of aims, they are indeed very different. One could perhaps even ask are they compatible?

I believe that they are. But let me first refer back to my remarks regarding ai ms changing with the times. Joan Clifford wrote in 1967* 'In 1926 the Cadet movement was proving itself val uable as a recruiting ground for Adult Divisions of the Brigade gradually, therefore, young people took their place in the Brigade and proved their w orth, not alone as potential members for Adult Division s, but also as First Aiders in their own right.'

Perhaps this is the key to the problem How man y of our adult members and officer s sti ll see the prime role of the cadet division as being to train children ready for promotion to an adult d ivisio n , where they will prove their worth'? I would suggest that those who do would indeed say that where cadets leave at the ages of 15 to 18 years, and do not become adult member s, the cadet di vision has failed and that it has all been a waste of time and money. I would of course totally disagree. The success of St John cadets cannot be measured by t he number of cadets who promote to adult divisions. If the aims I have listed above have been met, then all the t ime and money have been worthwhile, as cadets will leave with new knowledge, enhanced abilities and broadened outlooks with which to go forward into adult life. How the aims are met, and why so few cadets actually become adult members, are separate issues and very important questions which perhaps you may wish to write your views in the Review.

While there is a place for our historic and valued traditions, we must all identify our aims and roles, or else we will become a meaningless organisation living as a Darby and Joan club on memories and former glories.

Chris Kimberley, Deputy County Staff Officer (Cadets), West Midlands

*A Good Uniform by Joan C liffor d, publi shed by Robert Hale Ltd , London.

Talking Point -is open' toVOUR views

NURSING

THE FOURTH annual St John Ambulance nursing bursaries were awarded to three members from Wale s and one from the Solomon fslands. The presentation s were made by Lady Moyra Browne, the Superintendent-in -C hief , at Headquarters during March.

The Smith and Nephew Award (£500) for a professional nurse working in occupational health, went to Mrs Jessie Shaw SEN, Nursing Officer of Flint a nd Courtaulds Division, Clwyd, North Wales.

Mrs H. Brou g hton SRN, RCN, Divisional Nursing Officer of Honiara, Solomon Islands , won £450 for profe ss ional nurs es serv ing in the Brigade , and Mrs Patricia Morgan, Di v Supt of Gwent, won £250 in the non-professional Brigade members' section. A special award of £50 went to Mis s Lynda Thomas, a Divisional Nursing Officer also of Gwent, in the professional nurses' section. These three awards were spon ored by the National Federation of Groups of 18

Award

Guernsey

A YOUNG ambulance member in Guern sey was surpri ed, and a litt le unnerved, to receive an invitation to Government House - the residence of the Queen's representative in the island. No rea on wa given for the command until the day before, when it becam e known that the Lt. Governor, Air Chief Marshal Sir Peter Ie Cheminant, would be presenting awards to eight islanders to mark their dedication or bravery.

Four of these were associated in some way with St John activities on t he island, with two others for bravery and two for distinguished service by officers of the Police and Fire Brigade.

Three of the bravery awards were presented to men in connection with a clif f rescue in May of la st year. A boat's propeller became fouled by a rope in choppy seas, and when the boat drifted into a gully on the south coast the skipper entered the water to try to clear the obstruction. A fter so me time the boat began to break up on the rocks, and the exhausted boat owner managed to scramble onto rocks about 10 feet above the water level.

Two local men, Mr J. C. Alder and Mr J. T. William s, noticed that the boat was missing from its moorings, and with the weather worsening started to sea rch the headlands in the vicinity. Wh e n they saw the boat owner at the foot of 300- feet cl i rfs one of them went to ca ll t he St John Ambulance and Re sc ue Service while the other scrambled down the cliffs to the gully.

BURSARIES

plus Great Britain.

To qualify for the bursaries, applicants have to submit a written thesis designed to broaden their own and thereby the Brigade' s nursing experience. The bursaries are usually used to gain further understanding of specialist subjects - Jessie Shaw intends to take an ophthalmic course to study the effects of chemical burns on the eyes, and Mrs Broughton will remain in the UK for six months to take an occupational health course.

Patricia Morgan, a housewife, intends to widen her ex perience of geriatric care and Lynda Thomas will study child psychology as it relates to recruiting for the St John cadet

Grosvenor Crescent, London

for member

A third man, Mr J D. McEwan, helped to assist the boat owner out of the gully and tide until the St John Cliff Rescue team arrived to et up ropes. The three men involved were awarded Royal Humane Society testimonials for bravery.

The Guern ey St John member at the presentation wa A I M Simon Goss, who

Below) The Silver Jubilee Trust certificate , sig ned by Prince Charles, which was presented to A M Simon Goss of Guernsey Right ) The award winners A I M Goss - right) with the Lt. Governor and the Bailiff of Guernsey aher the special ceremony. (photo : Guernsey Press Co.)

received the Queen's Silver Jubilee Trust Certificate for distinguished se r vice in St John.

His ci tation, read in full at the ceremony, was: 'Simo n Goss is now an ambulance member in the Guernsey Ambulance Division of the St John Ambulance. Before that he serve d for more than five years in the Guern ey Ambulance Cadet division.

'He became a Grand Prior Cadet in 1981 and in the sa me year gained the Phyllis Touzeau Troph y as the best cadet of all division and the Bichard Troph y as best cadet of his own di visio n in 1980 and 1981.

'He led the divisional team for two years,

winning two indi vi dual trophies. He led the team to victory in t he Parson' s Shield, the inter-insular and the regional competitions in 1982, in which he achieved secon d place in the national finals, winning the individual trophy for the highest score by a team leader ' He is a founder member of the St John Ambulance Band , playing the cornet and teaching, and he has attended every cadet camp.

'By authority o f His Ro yal Highness Prince Charles , president of the Royal Jubilee Trust, the Queen 's Silver Jubilee Trust Certificate is awarded to Simon Goss.' eil R Tucker Public Relations Officer

THEQUEE

SlLVERJUBlLEE TRUST

La help young people help others

11,,>

(Left to right) Jessie Shaw Lydna Thomas and Patricia Morgan, at the award presentations at St John Ambulance headquan:ers

A series on improving your divisional meeting by NANCY SALE

On lifting patients ...

MY MOTHER, having been educated at a time when lea rning b y hear t was much in favour, had a splendid stock of quotations. One of them was: Take her up tenderly, Lift her with care; Fashioned so slenderly, Young, and so fair!

Although this referred to a girl who had committed suicide jumping off the Bridge of Sighs, by altering the pronoun my mo t her used it frequently to restrain my impetuosity when I was washing up the best tea set or dusting a precious ornament. 'Take it up tenderl y, treat it with care' was a definite part of my upbr ing ing and after I had joined St John, it was always at the back o f my mind whenever there was a casualty, in practice or reality, to be moved. I commend it to all St John members - 'Take them up tenderly, lift them with care' - however inappropriate t he two following lines of the original ma y be.

Less haste

Handling and transport should never be undertaken in too much of a hurry unless there is an over-riding need for speed. First of all there is the decision whether or not the casualty should be moved at all, or left for the arrival of the emergency services.

Howe ve r, at many public duties a St John ambulance vehicle is already available, and at a major incident casualties may well have to be carried by St John members to a Central First Aid Post or loading point.

Disposing of a casualty for whom a stretcher is necessary usually means a series of actions, each of which may cause pain, apprehension and an increase of shock, so it is most importan to minimise the effects by careful handling and also by explaining each move to the conscious casualty and giving reassurance throughout. First, if the ground is smooth, the casualty should be got on to a blanket , lifting canvas or scoop stretcher. Then comes the loading on to the stretcher or trolley, and if it is not possible to bring the trolley close there will have to be a stretcher carry, with a further lift to the trolley when it is reached. Finally comes the loading into the ambulance.

It is all these moves that make the practice of disposal so important. It should be a most sat isfy ing part of training if carried out

100

TAKE THEM UP TENDERLY

imaginatively, with plenty of difficultie s to be discussed and overcome until perfection is reached. As the First Aid Manual so rightly says, lifting casualties is a skill, and this skill includes the correct posture of t he lifters, the physical actions required and the use of all the items of equipment the Division possesses.

I have left handling and transport almost to the end of my se ries of articles, but this is not because I consider it just a tail piece to t he first aid work, but because I feel it is of great importance and should h ave complete periods devoted to it.

Members should again work in groups, covering all the work given in the 18 page s of the First Aid Manual de voted to Handling and Transport, which includes carries for sitti ng cases, and then proceed to work these into a variety of situations. Practice in all the procedures given in the cha pter on Comfort and Mobility in our manual on Caring for t he Sick will benefit both nursing and firs t aid work, as t he more people of all shapes and sizes, ages and we ight s that members learn to move and lift the better it will be. It is most important to have the stretcher in the right place befo re lif ting the casualty. The correct position is in line with the casualty's head , with two lifters on each side, bu t there are often occasions when t hi s is not possible Where should the str etcher be put if the casualty is up against a wall, or in a confined space? Also will it be pos s ib le to carry the load ed stretche r from the site of the accident to the trolley or ambulance? Any number of difficulties may be worked out in yo ur own headquarters, u si ng all the accommodation there is, with tables to represent immovable obstructions and chairs movable ones.

Out and about

Even more interesting problems will present themselve s when you leave yo ur headquarters and go elsewhere to do so me training in conditions which you are likely to meet with when on duty either indoor or outdoor.

As you prac t ise in your group make sure each person is using his or her brain as well as muscles, and is given a chance to weigh up the possible alternatives and make decisions as about what is the best thing to do. Do you ever watch snooker on TV?

Whether you are an enthusiast or not, or even if yo u know nothing about the game, yo u can appreciate the way the player s consider every possible alterna t ive befo re playing a difficult stroke. I am sure th at playing for a prize of £ 12,000 or so mu t conce nt rate the mind wonderfully. Though mone y does no t come into St John thinkin g, I feel that the fact that one is dea li ng with the handling of inj ured, sometimes ve r y seve rel y injured persons should be enough to concentrate the mind on planning the be t way a removal should be carried out. When the best method ha been decided, all members shou ld be capable of carrying out all the ne cessary mo ve efficiently.

Lifting

For the first time the First Aid Manu al tell us how li fting should be done (p.192). Besides the correct stance and the use of the proper m uscles it i important th at there i fu ll control of t he muscles, so rhat all bear ers in a party rai se and lower at the same speed, smoot hl y and gent ly at all tim es, and not only, as too often happens, when the li g htest member of the Division is being used for the casualty. If your Division ha s spen t time over the past months in improvin g sta ndard s of first ai d, from diagnosis to di sposal, everyone Should be ready for a meeting right away from headquarters I s ugge sted in my Januar y article that sites and premises s hould be booked early, and I hope t his ha been done , as such meetings give good experience and will test not only every aspect of first aid but also leadership capabilities.

These 'away' meeting s may take the form of an emergency incident or a happen ing at a big public duty, where casualties may be scattered in ones and twos and sma ll groups. The advance tour of the site by those who wi ll be organising t he evening sho uld settle on the spot where casua lti es are to be placed with injuries appropriate to the supposed cause of the incident and the lo cation of the injured. I have already suggested a number of possible place s for this type of training but obviously t hese will differ greatly from Divi sion to Division. If yo u hav e the use of a large hall, a false alarm of fire could hav e caused panic and a rush for the exits, with casualties piled around t hese, but if the h all has a stage, gallery a nd staircase t here will be mu ch mor e scope. A factory yard or

int erior will usua lly provid e a va riet y of opportunities. Outdoors, a s uppo se d runaway hor se at a crow d ed show li ttle g roups of casua lti es at va rIOU S pOints. The Casua lties Union will h ave to be contacted well in advance, but if you are not lucky enough to have the C.U. in your area you wi ll have to decide how many, if any, of the Division yo u s hould use as casualtIes as this wou ld mean depleting the first aid part ies. I am sur e some cadets wo uld be happy to help and mem bers of o.ther organi ations which the Division has assIsted might also be approached. If some of the volu nteer s are not trained in casualty work, injuries s hould be planned with this in mind The cas ualtie s s hould be asked to come well in advance so that they will be made up, briefed a nd in position by the time t he in ciden [ is d LIe to start. A room should be set aside fo r t heir use with washing facilities if pos ible. Someone sho uld be in charge of the casua ltie s and a list kept of their name s, [he po ition and injuries of each. Both they and the members should be told beforehand what the condition of the site is likel y to be so that uitable clot he s and footwear ma y be worn. Be ure that eve ryone will have transport and thar there is adequate parking.

Fir t aid parties shou ld con ist of four to five member, including t he leader ; eac h party hould be given a practice F . A. bag two blanket and a tretcher. Fre h supplie sho uld be a ailable at rhe lo adi ng point , ualtie already treated and hould ha ve their bandage

removed so that all equipment may be used again if necessary.

There must be an officer in overall charge, who must direct eac h party to a specific area, which must be searched, the casualties treated and then brought to a central point indi ca ted by so me form of marker. The firstaiders shou ld use labels to give such information as is applicab le (p.42 of the Manual). Later, if the labels have the name of the casualty on, they may be checked against the li st of injuries. If the casualties are dealt with quickly, they may be use d a second time, returning to their original area and treated by a differenr F.A. party.

I do hope yo ur Divi sio nal Surgeon and Nursing Officer will be present at these trainings as the y will be invaluable in observing and commenting on the cho ice of priorities, treatment and handling. They would probabl y appreciate a list of casualties beforehand

Comments may be given on the same evening, in which case some refreshments might be a good idea. The WRVS are often willing to serve, even out of doors, for the cost of the mat eria ls. But whether comments are made on the spo t, or at the ne xt meering, rhere must always be t ime allotted for the practice of any part of t he treatment or handling which had not been satisfactorily carried out.

For the first one or two of these incident evenings [he fir ( aid parties should each have a proved le ader appointed. After that, other members hould be drawn in, as every

memb er, if he is to be a good first-aider, should be able to take charge. So he must be given opportunities to assess situations, to diagnose and settle priorities, to decide on the be st treatment and disposal, and to carry thi s out, possibly alone, or if with others (whether trained or not) to instruct them in whar is to be done

Thi s is quite possible if at the instructional meerings the group system of four, five or s ix member s working together is used, as turns ma y t hen be taken in acting as leader. New member s s hould perhaps be taken on their own for a few weeks, working at a s lower speed, with time to think and talk of what is required in dealing with an accident. These requirements are laid out on p.9 of the First Aid Manual under 'Responsibility of the First Aider'. ot the responsibility of some first-aiders bur of all firsr-aiders. So all m usr ha ve the necessary trai ning and be given opportunities to gain experience. It must be realised that every member may, ar any time, ha ve to face the responsibilit y of coping with an accident. As this means a great deal more than just the ability to treat injuries, besides the actual first aid procedures being learnt, everyone should take a full parr in ever y aspect of Divisional life, helping to plan and carry ou[ the meetings and other events. This should help members to think, act and produce ideas for themselves and to gain confidence. This will not only make them better fir taiders but meetings will become much more lively and interesting with never a dull

Guernsey Division busy

recruiting

new

of the Bailiwick Commissioner before being enrolled (Photo: Guernsey Press Ltd)

THE STRENGTH of one di vision in Guernsey increa ed by nineteen at a recent enrolment ceremony.

The 19 new entrants were enrolled into the Rohais Nursing Cadet Division at a prizegiving evening attended b y Bailiwick

Commissioner Mr Harold Tou zea u. After welcoming the cadets, Mr Tou zeau promised them a lot of h ard work, but a great sense of reward and friend hip as member of an act ive organisation.

Chantelle Parkyn who completed 468 hours of voluntary duty in 1982 receives the Jubilee Cup from Commiss oner Harold Touzeau Photo Guernsey Press Ltd ) At the arne ceremony the Cadet of [he Year, \ ho i elected by the cadet them elve ,\Va named a Cadet Leader J 0 -La ine and s he was presented with the Spirit of th; Order trophy by the Commissioner. In addition a new cup to the di i ion, the Jubilee Cup, \ a pre ented to Cadet Corporal Chantelle Park n for completing 468 hour of duty during 1982

Teil R. T ucker Public R elations Officer

The

recruits lined up in front

AFTER FIFTEEN years' experience of sitting on the other side of the table during many first aid exams, I am, I think, qualified to give a personal opinion on the kind of knowledge the doctor is hoping to extract from you.

I have seen many competent and senior first-aiders floundering due to nervousness alone. Remember, when it comes to first aid, you are the experts, having had much more training and practical experience in that subject than most doctors ever have. The doctor's aim is to make sure that you understand the underlying reasons for your actions, that you have a basic knowledge of very simple anatomy, and that your actions are always beneficial to your patient. He will not expect you to have a deep understanding of diseases or expect you to provide medical answers. However, he does expect you to recognise the obvious illnesses and injuries - shock, fracture, epileptic fit, asphyxia, unconsciousness, to name but a few. He will also expect you to have an intimate knowledge of the current First Aid Manual which you should be able to quote to him chapter and verse.

In the management of patients doctors follow a scheme of obtaining a history, then examining the patient, and finally deciding on appropriate action. You should try to do the same. Most of the time a diagnosis can be made from history alone So often firstaiders tell me that when presented with a casualty the first thing they would want to do is examine him. This is normally wrong, so much can be learned by quickly obtaining a story from the casualty or bystanderssize up the situation first before springing into action. Similarly, do not summon an ambulance until you have made sure it is necessary.

I will now detail some of the information I like to receive from first-aiders at exams:

Anatomy and Physiology: You are expected to know the position and function of the main bones and organs. Name and locate a few of these accurately and the

doctor cannot fail to be impressed You are expected to know the difference between arteries and veins, and where the w rist and neck pulses are and what they are called.

Asphyxia: Remember the cardinal sign of asphyxia is cyanosis. If yo u can remember that cyanosis is caused by oxygen deficiency in the circulating blood, then you will score valuable points. When cyanosis is present assume that there is something wrong with the breathing apparatus, for example, a blocked airway, a chest injury, a deflated lung or inadequate respiration.

Emergency Resuscitation: is a practical procedure - practise it over and over again. Never forget it and one day yo u may save a life.

Choking: If all else fails attempt mouth to mouth breathing.

Bleeding: Initially appl y pressure firmly over a heavily bleeding wound using fingers

or thumbs. Pressure points a re awkward to locate and compress unless you know your anatomy well.

Shock: You must know all about this. It is one of the life-threatening cond ition s, easy to aggravate by mis-management, easy to improve by s implc first aid actions. Essentially, in shock the blood pressure falls and the brain becomes starved of blood and oxygen Therefore lay the casualty flat on his back, with le gs sli ghtly raised to counteract gravity and facilitate blood flow to the brain. Recovery is often rapid following t his simple manoeuvre. Only roll t h e casualty into the recovery position if unconsciousne ss develops. Shock requires urgent medical assessment, as it is nearly always associated with catastrophic haemorrhage Shock and faint are very simi l ar; in fact faint can be described as mini-shock. In shock the pulse is fast and feeble, in faint s low and feeble, but the first aid remedy is the same for both Fractures: Easy to learn , easy to ask questions about. Remember classification and signs, and in particular such fractures as fractured skull, spine and femur.

Unconsciousness: Thi s li ke shock, is another life threatening condition. It is essential to maintain a c ear airway, therefore. Unconsciousness is the one condition where the recovery position mus t be used (hence I prefer the old term 'coma position'). Thi s position prevents inhalation of foreign material into the airwa y (inhalation of vo mit is a common cause of death in unconscious casualties). It is not necessarily designed for comfort or rest, a these factors are quite irrelevant (0 the unconscious casualty.

Before any exam read the First Aid Manual from cover to cover and back again. So often the keen practical first-aider fails the exam merely because he ha s not followed this simple rule. The doctor will try hard to pass you; for believe me, failing candidates depresses t he examiner as well!

Dr D. L. Wynn- Williams Eastern Area Surgeon, Leics

s.s. Uganda's T-shirt Doctors

One hundred and fifty nine casualties were treated in just one four-hour period aboard S.S. Uganda as helicopters queued overhead with more injured men. The doctors who worked day and night at the height of the Falklands battles "have stories to tell their grandchildren", they said.

DOCTORS who served in the front line during the Falklands conflict say their lives will never be the same again. As the excitement of being home dies down, the 96 doctors, nurses and medical

auxiliaries who served on the hospital ship S.S. Uganda will inevitably be reflecting on the unique but often harrowing experiences they encountered during the] ] 3 days they spent in the thick of the fight for the South Atlantic Island s. Days without proper s leep, hour s of operating on broken bodies in cra mp ed conditions, t he constant fear of being overwhelmed by too many casualties - these were situations doctors admitted they never dreamed they would have to face But und erlying the constant tension, the camaraderie on the Uganda - nicknamed NOSH, Naval Ocean-going Surgical Hospital - shone through like Florence Nightingale's lamp. Doctors were s tripped of their clinical neutrality; they just had to muck in with everybody else. Many agreed that their attitude towards medicine had fundamentally changed, and several spoke about the

bedsteads. Here they stayed until examined and identified by medical staff.

Two operating theatres were set up in t he Veranda room - normally u sed b y sc hoolchildren for discos. Infection was kept to a minimum by a steam-driven steriliser.

The Veranda room saw 504 operations thro ughou t the whole campaign and these ranged from removing shrapne l , amputating limbs - or more often 'tidying up' amputations carried out roughly on shorethrough to delicate eye operations

The relaxing smoke room, with its deeppile carpets, turned into. a 44-bed intensive care UnIt. When casualtIes reached a peak, during the attacks on HMS Sir Galahad, Sir Tristram and Plymouth, staff responded to Senior Medical Officer Andrew Rintoul 's command and transformed the music room into an extra ward in 45 minutes.

'We were br i nging in patients one end as beds were being put up at the other end,' said Surgeon Captain Rintoul.

The ship's cocktail bar became a path lab, and the tuck hop an X-ray centre. The team even set up a dental s ur gery and an ophthalmology departmen t.

Bu perhaps the mo st harrowing scenes were played out in the ship sown ho pital - sw iftly converted into a burn unit. Here, plas t ic surgeon Charles Chapman, with a team of yo un g nurses, carried out s kin grafts on badly burned men in temperatures over 80 de grees Fahrenheit. The g reenhouse conditions were necessary to prevent the injured from going into s ho ck as well as to keep them comfortable.

'We managed very well, aid Mr Chapman, w ho \Va seconded from he burns unit at Woolwich. 'But you could only work for fou r hour s at a time. It was impo ssi ble to stay in there for any lon ger.'

Although Mr Chapman spoke lightl y of the experience, matron Miss Edith Meiklejohn was more graphic. We would not normally ee uch appalling injurie " he said. 'T he nurses were privileged to help in this unique sit uation.

-ARE EE

-It MEMBER Or ST. JOIfN AMBLMJCE?

uncertainty of switching back to a normal routine 'I'm not quite sure how I am going to cope,' admitted one doctor, who asked to remain anonymous. 'I suppose I'll ju t hav e to see how I feel when I come back after a holiday.

The task of converting the 30-year -old educational cruise ship into a floating hospital was a major event in itself. Surgeon Lieutenant David Tullock exp lained : 'The planners only had one chance to get it right. The ship was requisitioned in Gibraltar on 10 April and we sailed for the Fa lkland s nine days later .'

Uganda was chosen because of her wide open spaces, s uitabl e for quick conversion to hospital use. The indoor sports room, directly below the hastily const ruct ed helipad , was turned into t he casualty reception area. Patients were rushed down a ramp and their stretchers placed on

Surgeon Captain Rintoul said his team was often frustrated by littl e things - including the lack of proper bathing facilities, lack of proper theatre clothing and bad lighting 'Sometimes we were so worked off our feet that P. and O. staff volunteered to wa h, feed and generally clea n up the patients ,' he said.

During the Argentinian attacks on HMS Sir Galahad and Sir Trisrram, doctors worked through the night in T-shirts and shorts to treat the 'horrifying injuries' of patients taken from the burning wrecks. At the worst time they treated] 59 casualties in f?ur hours in a desperate bid against time as fIve helicopters whirled above the ship to bring on more badly burned and Injured men. Despite the pressure, only three patients died.

.The medical staff aid the only way to wll1d down from days of tension and exhaustion was to gat her in what they called the 'swamp' - coined from the TV series MASH - and 'booze themselves to sleep.'

Despite being seasoned Army and Navy doctors many were surprised at the extent of the inj uries especially those with burns

caused by the exploding ships.

Surgeon Captain Rintoul says he has recommended c hanges in the use of th e 'flash' suits use d fo r protection against fire.

'We hav e r e- learn ed some old lessons,' he said. 'So me of the chaps were wearing these uits at the wrong time.' The surgeons would not be pre sse d into details for 'tactical reasons affecting the rest of Britain' S defence fleet,' but it is likel y t hat the Navy will be conducting an enquiry into the use and quality of the flash suits.

One big s urpri se was the number of cases of trench foot encountered by the doctors.

The majority of cases were on the Argentinian side, and Surgeon Captain Rintoul described the tragedy of many Argentinian conscripts - some as you ng as 16 - who had feet amputated only because they were too frightened to give themselves up.

'The e lad were in very poor con dition ,' he said. 'Many had hidden in the open for da ys in freezing temperatures. By the time we got to them it was too late to save their feet.' He ad ded: 'O nce they realised we weren't going to shoot them they improved dramaticall y in 48 hours. Many of them cried when they were told they were being shipped back home.'

The medical land forces - the 16th Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corpstold of working in waterlogged holes in freezing temperatures and howling gales, giving immediate aid to the wounded 'One of our main problems was in erting aline drips,' said Sergeant Sami Bernard , who worked at the Medical Reception Centre at Fitzroy. 'The weather was 0 cold we could not find the patients' veins.'

The only note of bitterness came from one of Sergeant Bernard's colleague , who would not identify himself. A soft -spoken middleaged man, he described how his men worked and slept in the san1e clothes for almost two months, hardly ever being dry. ' Sometimes men would share sleeping bags to keep warm,' he said.

He looked incredulous when told of the lack of baths aboard S.S Uganda. Baths! All we managed to do was swill our hands and faces in water once in a while. My long johns almost walked by themselves when I finally took them off.'

But the bitterness was not deeply felt, even by th is man. As on board ship, the comradeshjp was uppermost in most people 's minds. 'It's sad that it takes something like a war to bring it out ,' Sergeant Bernard said. Despite rumours of a Government 'Argiebashing campaign, doctors on both sides of the conflict experienced a high level of cooperation and respect for each other. The Argentinians offered Uganda supplies of drugs and blood - and even sent 0 er a case of wine.

Surgeon Captain Rintoul said: They were very friendly and co-operative. When they heard we had a blood shortage they immediately offered us their own supplies They asked if we needed drugs, but it was not necessary to take up that offer.'

In all, S.S. Uganda treated 730 casualties - 580 British and 150 Argentinian. As the battered and rusty ship sailed up the So lent to a rapturous welcome, it was clear there were regrets that the team which had worked so closely for so long was about to disperse forever. Doctors remained 'low profile' as the Gurkhas and ship's staff waved frantically to friends and families

The feeling of togetherness was heightened as the Band of the Royal Marines played the NOSH march, specially written by the Bandmaster. During the campaign, the band had acted as stretcher bearers

'It was unforgettable ,' admitted Surgeon Lieut. Tullock. 'I'll have stories to tell my grandchildren.' This doctor celebrated the first birthday of his daughter Alexia the day Uganda came home. He added: 'One thing the whole thing has taught me is that I'll never be frightened of a wound again, however bad.'

(Reprinted from Medikasset Magazine, Winrhrop Laboratories)

TOGETHERNESS

The investiture of March 24 (see page 108) probably created a precedent by having a h u sband and wife both being made Commanders of the Order on the same day. For such was the occasion for Area Superintendents Charles and Phyllis Wilce, of Worcester.

Mr Wike, who was awarded the DFM during World War I I as an air gunner with 61 Squadron of Lancasters, took his FA certificate in 1939 and after the war was very active training police FA teams. He joined the Brigade in 1964 as Div Supt of Kidderminster Di vision and became Area Supt in 1974.

Mrs Wilce, who d rove a CD ambulance during the war at Brierly Hills, West Midlands, first became involved with the Association in 1941 She joined Kidderminster Nursing Division in 1963, became ASO in 1969 and Area Supt in 1973 - a year earlier than Charles. For 26 years Phyllis was an industrial nurse at the British Sugar Corps' Kidderminster plant.

Congratulation s, Ph yll is and Charles!

HOLY YEAR DUTY

The Pope has declared the period from March 24,1983 to April 23, 1984 to be a Holy Year, and th e Brigade have once again been invited by the Sovereign Military Order to man the first aid post with t hem in St Peter's Square, Rome, for the six weeks from August 1 to September II. Six teams will be required,each comprising two doctors, four trained nurses (SRN / SEN), four ambulance members and four nursing member s. Each te am will take

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

A St John watchdog following a shaky looking raft during Kingston s ag week. See story WORKING TOGETHER Photo Surrey Comet the duty for one week, changing over on Saturdays, and will be split be tw ee n t he morning and afternoon shifts.

Return air travel London / Rome will cost approximately £140. Free accommodation in Rome , includin g breakfast, will be provided by the SMOM. Cost of food and meals should not exceed £ 10 per day. The aim is to keep overall costs below £200. It is hoped to repea t the highly successf ul

R ome duty of 1975, and volunteers for th e yea r a re now called for. There will be p lenLY of tim e for sightsee in g, and yo u hould have lot s of fun coupled with a memorable and exciting duty.

Members who are intere ste d in further details s hould end the following particular as soo n as po sib le to Alan McKa y, at 1 Grosvenor Crescent, London SW I , who will g ladl y answer any queries: Name, rank, age,

Then there vvere seven

One morning about three year s ago Ambulance Sergeant J. Linnard, of Cornwall's Bude-Stratton Division, gave a talk on SJA at the local comprehensive sc hool and invited youngsters who were interested to go along to the Cadet Division. Among those who accepted the invitation was Linda Hardy, and fo r her second attendance at the Cadets she brought along her young sister, Tracey. Which made two. Then a few weeks later along came big siste r Susan, who also joined up. This was catching. Now there were three.

Some time later broth e rs Da vid and Alan, who were getting fed-up with being practised on as 'casualties' at home, decided to 'enlist' as well. Now there were four - and five. Then Dad, Leslie Hardy, began to get a bit worried about whether he was giving the correct answers to the first aid question s he was continually being asked, so he thought he'd better take a first aid course, passed the examination, and before he could get his breath back found him self being measured up and fitted out in uniform So there was number six.

Now Mum Joyce Hardy, realising that she was being left out of something decided

to take the next first aid and nursing course, passed the examinations and in due course found herself in uniform as a nursing member. So now there were seven, seve n Hardy family SJA members. And all in the same Division too! Which must be, someone sai d, a record. If not a record, very unu sua l. As indeed it is.

Susan has pas se d into the adult divi ion now a nd is training LO become a Divi ional Officer in the Cadets. David i ju t 'co min g up and is at present taking th e adult fir [ aid course. And Linda will be following him next October, thus proving that the s trength of an adult division li e with it cadet

Long may the Hard y family serve St John!

Cornwall's SJA Hardy family just won't be divid ed

B 01

BY THE EDITOR

religion, address, division , len gt h of se rvice, qualificat ion s (doctor, SRN, etc.), languages an d degree of proficiency, and date s available.

WORKING TOGETHER

Three counties and four di v is ion upplied member s for land and water-borne cover of the Kingston-upon-Thames Polytechnic 's raft race on the Thames during their rag week. (Photo on previous pa ge)

Crew from the sa fety boat s came f rom London's Tideway Division , Surrey' Weybridge Di vis ion and Kent' s Swanscombe a nd Greenhithe Division, with ambulance back-up manned by Kingston member. The working integration of members fro m va ri ous countie help s no en d in coordinati ng the operation of safe ty boats and s hould prove invaluable when crew are needed for such s ituation s as wide pread flooding.

The rafts tOok about an hour to cover the 1200-m etre cour e, during which five students had to be hauled out of the co ld river. Once in the boat urvival bag were used to retain body heat. But al l refu ed fur t her treatment and in i ted on being landed at the fini sh in g po t - nearb y a pub.

SJA's amb ul ance crew, ho weve r, went on to Twicker , not to the bar, but to cover the Ca lcutta Cup match between England and Scotland.

LOOKING AHEAD

2 Ma): Bank Holiday HQ clo ed

10 May: 6.30pm Annual Florence ighlin ga le en ice ror Nur es, We lmin er Abbey

19 May: 2.30pm nveSl il ure s, Grand Priory Chu rch

20 May: 7.30pm C eo Laine and Johnn y Dankwonh Ga a Performance, Barbican Cent re

21 May: Cup Fin al, Wel11ble y 30 Ma): Bank Holi day. HQ 10 ed

TWO-WHEEL AMBULANCE

From SJA South Australia (well t h ey a re nearer than we are) 1 hear that a be at- thetraffic motorcycle ha been put into ervice at a Hong Kong ambulance station. It see ms that traffic congestion on that island bee-hive has become uch a problem for emergency services that experiments with a 650cc motorbike, which carries basic emergency equipment, including a mini-resuscitator, went on the road last October.

The stat ion 's super intend ent says: 'So far It has proved very successful.'

The value of the motorcycle emergency out-r id er was full y displayed when it reached

RETIRES

STUDY DAY

the scene of an afternoon rush-hour accident 13 minutes before an ambul a nce The motorcycle ha s been called into action more than ten time s in t he f ir st two months, m a inl y to accidents. Onl y senior ambulance men will use he machin e. They will go ahead of ambulance s to apply emergency aid to vict im s

The service has been given a s ix-month trial and if successful it may be extended to other areas.

The plan was nspired b y the Chicago ambulance se r vice in the United States. The city became the first place in t he world to u se s uch a scheme after cont inual battle s with congested road s wh ich held up large emergency vehicles.

OUTWARD BOUND 1983

Thi s year the Outward Bound Tru st ha s again arranged cour s es for S t John Am bulance per son nel aged 14 to 17 year s. The dates are:

a Eskdale, Cumbria. August 6 - 13

b. Rhowniar , Wales. August 13 - 20

Subject to demand we ha ve also tentativ e ly arranged

c. Eskdale , Cumbria. July 30 - August 6 for potential lead ers (adults).

You are asked, please, to encourage yo ur you nger members t o take part in one of the 1983 courses. Ou tw ard Bound aim s to use the best educational thought, research and practice to pro vi de opportunities for young people to under sta nd t hem s elves and mo ve closely to fulfilling heir po te ntial. In urban as well as outdoor environments Outward Bound bring s st uden ts to recognise their physical limit s and s ocial abilitie s and makes them aware of their own weakness and abilities as well as their relation s with other people.

Funding: The Outward Bound T r ust is a charitable non-profi t makin g organ is ation. The full cost of t he

WEDDING TIME

of

(Scarborough & District Newspapers

£l49.S0p. St John Ambulance H eadq u arters will a llo w a subsidy of £89.S0 per p erso n from training funds. Costs to the indi v idual county will thu s be £60 pe r person.

Applications: Per so nnel intere ste d in taking p a rt in one of th ese courses s h ou ld apply through Di st ri ct/Co unt y Headqu arte rs to the Staff Officer Brigad e Training a nd Cadets at 1 Grosvenor Cre cent, tat in g: a Title and full per so nal name; b. Birth date; c. Co ur se required; d. P erso n a l address; e. St John Ambulance County; f. Recommendation of Co unt y Co mmi ss ion er. Successf ul allocations of places wil l be s ubje c t to availability and the number of applicants. No mone y s hould be sent; payment w ill be requested af er nominations have been accepted. Nominations should reach Headquarter s by June 1 1983 on w hich date a final selection wi ll be made

HUMBERSIDE

I hear that a very successful weekend residential co nference, organised by Humberside 's County Superintendent Mr s E. A. Jack s on, was held at Bridlington March 19 t o 20.

Th e s peakers included the Supt-in-Chief, Lad y Moyra Browne, Di re cto r of Aeromedical Services, Gp Capt George Ba xter, County Dir ec tor, D r Gordon Cameroan, and County Surgeon , Dr K. McGuane.

U nder the chairmanship of Humberside 's Commissioner, Bryan Molloy thi s fourth annual conference was also s upport e d by Deputy Supt-in-Chief, Lady Westbury , and the C oun ty Vice-President of Nursing Cadets, Lady Grimthorpe.

OSTEND WEEKEND

Bri ga de member s in and around London ma y b e interested in a weekend in Ostend p lanned for Friday, October 21 to Sunday, October 23 1983 inclu s ive. Thi s is s ubject to

SPECTACULAR INDEED

with

Everyone IS

fe rr y a nd h ote l avai labilit y - ther e fore an early r es pon se is essential.

Thi is a purely soc ia l e vent de s igned to give m embers, t h ei r familie and friend a c h ance {o get together a nd make friends from ot h er Di vi ions in an i nforma l atmo s ph e r e.

The cost of £60 per per on include lu x ur y coach travel (recl inin g seal S, video W C , etc. ) fro m pi ck-up points in orth, Ea t and Centra London (othe r pick-up point c a n probab y be arranged provided it is not to o far off the route), return cro channel ferr y from Dover, two nights half-board at Novotel, Bru gge (based on two s h arin g a room), and all sight eeing including vi it to O s t e nd, Sluis (Holland) and Brugge. Th e Novotel offers first class accommodation , a ll r ooms centra l h eated, colour televi ion and private bathroom and wc. Our luxury coach will transport u s throughout the trip on bo t h s ide s of the c hannel.

Further details from: Mr Jeann e tt e Br a d s haw , SO St John 's P ark Mansion s, Pemb erto n Gardens, London, N 19 SRT 01-263 3086 (afte r 6pm).

PENZANCE WAY

I hear that of more than a d oze n team th at took part in a road safety quiz in Penzance, Hayle Nursing Di vision's A team fini s hed fir s t to win the cup, and the Di v ision 's B t eam f ini s h e d fourth

SJ A Ha y le, b y th e way, ce lebrated its 50th birthday during March, and t h ey h ope to hav e so m e founder members at a golden jubilee church se rvi ce.

NEW FILM

A new 22-minute, 16mm safe t y film ca ll ed Nobody Told Me is available fr ee on loan from The Briti s h In s uran ce Assoc , Aldermary Hou se, Queen St, London EC4N ITU. It is a ls o avai able in video cassette

The f ilm s how s 25 typica l accidents which occur in th e home, often with deva s tatin g re s ult s.

ORDER

INVESTITURE

Leslie A Webb, of Chadwell Heath Essex who joined the Brigade as a cadet n 1936 and moved to the adults o n his 17th birthday in 1938, and is now London s Eastern Area Commissioner, is invested as a Commander of the Order by the Lord Prior, Sir Maurice Dorman. Mr Webb formed Chadwell Heath Ambulance Division in 1954

Mrs P Kay Harris an exWren who joined Hanley Nursing D ivision 31 years ago after attending a F A course, later to become its Supt and is now County Superintendent for Staffs , is invested a Commander of the Order Mrs Harris who is a se nior mistress at Endon High School, is a founder member of Casualt ies Union s N. Staffs branch, and is also on the Union 's National Council John Fallow s, of London 's Palmer's Green and Staff Sergeant, New Southgate

Combined D ivision, with 52 years service , becomes an Officer of the Order Mr Fallows who is a vicepresident of the Peng u ins Swimming Club for the handicapped, is treasurer of his Division and auditor of other Divisions for some years

by the lord Prior, london, March 24

COMMANDER (Brother)

Lt-Col Harold Geo rge Daniel s, JP, DL (Surrey)

George Erne s At kin so n , FIMTA, DPA (Humberside)

Stanley Edward Baldwin (Surrey)

John Renshaw Holt, JP (Lan caster)

Capt Harold Thoma s Duff y, MBE , VRD, DL (Merseyside)

Maj Arthur Jame s Ha yes (Sussex)

James Mackane ss (Northampt on)

Arthur John Sunderland (W est Midlands)

Char le s Wilce, BEM (Worcs)

Le s lie Alf red Webb (Essex)

Col Ronald Herb ert Jones, TO, MB, ChB, M RCGP (Mer seys id e)

Bernard T yle r (Northampton)

Brig Peter Harr y Mit che ll May, DSO, OBE, MC (No rthumbri a)

Ri chard Benj a min Adams (Surrey)

ASSOCIATE COMMANDER (Brother)

Adel Ahmad Taher Dajani (London)

Sohrab Da rouga r (London)

COMMANDER (Sister)

Mary Cora, Mrs C reec h (Avon)

Phylli s, Mrs Wilc e (Worcs)

Ethel Anne, Mrs Jackson (Humber ide)

Daphne Isla, Mrs Rowlands (Somerset)

Pearl Kay Dorothy, Mr Harri (Staff)

ASSOClATE COMMANDER (Sister)

Simone Ruth , Mrs Pr endergast, OBE, JP, DL (London)

OFFICER (Brother)

Peter Joh n Tay lor, MD, BSc, FRCP, FFCM, FFOM, DlH (Suffolk)

Ia n Co rn er (Lancs)

Norman Francis Ru ssell (Wi lt s)

James Edward Tuplin , FB IM , N IA II (Es eA)

Alfred William Darrall (Derbys)

William Francis C har le s Best, QPM (Surrey)

Donal Hugh Jeffer y (London)

Arthur Townr ow (La ncs)

Mi c hael William Hod gson (Lancs)

Col Rowland Aubrey Goodhead, TO, Q H P, MB , BS (Tyne & Wear)

Albert Edward Dolling (M idd x)

Brian Victor King (Kent)

Barr y Da vid Keith P rice, QPM (Cumbria)

John Ke vin Lynch (S tafford)

Capt Donald Rei d (Ty ne & Wear)

John Wright (Lan caste r)

John William Fallows, FCCA, ATII (London)

OFF1CER (Sister)

E dith Marie , Mi ss Clarke (Merseyside)

Joan, Mi ss Waring (Cheshire)

Pamela, Miss Willi s (L ondon)

Betty, Miss Wright (Devon)

Cicely, Mr s Stacey (London)

Bertha Caro lin e May, Mr s Rowe (Do rset)

Lady Dorothy Mary Do na ld so n (London)

Jean Mar y, Mi ss Higg s, S RN (Mi ddx)

SERVING BROTHER

Miss Betty Wright, now of Exeter, who retired last year as HQ s supervisor examinations section, becomes an Officer of the Order. Betty was at Headquarte rs for 17 years

Thomas Henry Nan ca rrow (G los)

Jack Bashforth (Tyne & Wear )

Garth Reginald Pet er Blox som e (S urr ey )

David Ra ymond Archibald Royl e (Gtr

Manchester)

Gerald Jam es Savage (Glo s)

Eric Desmond Br e tt (E ssex )

ILeh)

David Alan Richards (Middx)

George Thain (Cheshire)

Raben Neil Wallace Smith (Cleveland)

Edward William Stockdale (E ex)

James Drummond Cameron Gedde s , RGN, RNT, LHA, MB IM (Tyne & Wear)

George William Gillson (Kent)

John Edward Glo er ( u ex)

Eric Hickli n (Cleveland)

Richard Hinchcliffe (Devon)

Keith Wi lli am Jack on (Che hire)

Peter John Jackson (Kent)

Howard Malcolm Jame (Worcs)

Gordon McNicoll-Norbury, DFC (Norfolk)

Clifford Gilbert San om (Hert )

John Oliver Seddon (London)

Alan Francis Hawk er (Glos)

Henry Wiggin (We t Midland)

GREAT changes are being made by the Youth Ho ste A ociation, a a re u lt of a market re earch urvey, to make hostelling more attractive. These changes inc lud e later times to be in at night, day time acce ,a national advance booking ervice, more cafeteria meal , TV, video games, and sma ll er dormitories. Along with these change the YHA is extending it aClivitie and now offers a wide range of weekend and longer holiday break at hostel on s uch activities as computing skills, windsurfing, pony trekking , railway hi sro ry and practical goatkeeping! Further detaiJ can be obtained from YHA, Trevalyan House, St Albans, Hens All 2DY

Pet Care F ilm

The People's Di pen ary for Sick Animals

This small Identity card, the same size as a cheque card, is designed to be carried by pet owners and IS available from t he RSPCA Causeway, Horsham Sussex RH 12 1 HG on receipt of a stamped addressed envelope. In the event of an aCCident, the card will give vital information about the Owners' pets and their whereabouts

Alec William s (Merseyside)

Alan John on (Co Durham)

David William Mul len (Essex)

David Michael Hodson (Oxon)

Graham Cecil Miles (Gloucester)

Dougla s MacLeod, MB, ChB, FRFPS (Clwyd)

Ian J ohn Parke (Cheshire)

Amon Charles Turner (Surrey)

Victor Charles Lewi (Norfolk)

Ronald Frederick Slrutt, M ICD (Middx)

ASSOCIATE E RVI NG BROTHER

Laurence Adrian Cop pel. BSc, FCA ( ottingham)

SERV I NG SISTE R Eileen Mary, Mr Bird (Essex)

Dorothy Rosina May, Mrs Griffin (London)

Patri cia

Margaret

Patricia

Edna,

Enid

Kathleen

Sqdn Ldr I hbel Mackenzie VlcCabe (Camb s )

Patricia Glenice, Mrs Masterman (Somer set )

Ro sina Violet, Miss Camp (Essex)

SERV I NG BROTHER

Mrs 1-1. Cobb collected the insignia awarded to her late husband, Rev John ewbert Cobb, J P (South York)

Mr E. Brewer collected the insignia al\ arded to the late Albert Smith Brewer, BE:--l, JP (Che hire) j\ Ir s A. Burslem collected the insignia all arded to the late Wilfr ed Hamiel Penny (\ler ey ide)

subjects from the Staff Officer Cadets at Brigade HQ, and will publish these each month for those who have not been able to obtain a copy. The fir t ubject, on the next page, is bird\ atching.

We ll Done, Grange-over-Sands Nur ing Ca det s!

ha produced a new film for c hildr en, A Pet of Your Own,

It te ll the story of a sc h oo l's annual pet s h ow, u si n g the occasion to emphasi e the t im e and effort t h at mu t go into good petkeeping Through the use of camera tricks, it emphas ises the need to be aware of a pet's point of view. 'A Pet of Your Own' a t for 2S minutes and i n arrated by Johnny Morris. It is availab le free on loan in the tandard gauges a nd on video cassette from severa l film libr ar ie s. Detail s from PDSA House, South Street, Dorkin g, Surrey RH4 2LB.

Proficienc y Subjects

I h ave received full d etai l of orne n ew

1 have received a long and very interesting letter from the Pre sidem of this Division giving details of the Division' activitie The letter makes a particular point of the upport given by parents and friend, a well as members of the Division, and tre e the value of publicity in achieving greater progres A I[r Andrew, the Pre ident, say: 'We agree that it pay to ad\ erri e!' Co ntribution s I f you would like to contribute to thi olumn, plea e write to Jim ', 3 Brandrealh R oad London E6 4QB ( ote new addre )

JUST A GAME

by

lain Armstrong

IT COULD be aid, a our main area of work involve first aid, why should St John cadets spend the ir time playing game? But if we look at what game are, and what they do exactly, there can be no doubt that there i a need for game time in our programme. Look up the word game' in a di tionary a nd you will find it meaning something like: 'A for m of play or port especially one with rules.' Games are important in order to

Lyneete, Mrs Thomas (Somer et)

Mary, Mrs Long (Dublin)

Ann, Mrs Stockdale (E sex)

Mrs Clark (Lanes)

Mary, Mrs Heale y, JP (Glos)

Audrey , Mrs Turner (Bedford)

AN IMPORTANT part of fund raising for our Division - and I suspect for many others too - are jumble sales. As I have been involved in organising them, some hints on how we have made the most of jumble might be useful.

A sale can be broken down into four stages. 1) The decision and pUblicity 2) Collecting and sorting the stock. 3) The Sale. 4) Clearing up

Decision and publicity

Only a few words on the date and time of the sale need be said about the decision. Dates to avoid are when there are a lot of duties to be covered, because a successful sale needs a lot of helpers, and days on which there are popular national events such as the Cup Final, when most potential customers will be glued to the telly, especially if the times clashes too

On timing, mornings and afternoons both have particular advantages, but the safest guide is to hold the sale when most people locally are out shopping, or when most members are available. Lack of either customers or members to help can lead to problems.

Publicity

This is a very important prelude to a jumble sale, as most of the customers we get come specifically for the sale. There is always a limited amount of 'passing trade', but this is small compared with those who make a point of going to a sale. So it is very important to advertise in the local papers.

Some free papers do not charge charities for publishing fund raising events, while others give a reduced rate if the number of the registered charity is quoted.

Posters are also very valuable publicity material. We have a master jumble sale poster which can be up-dated by sticking on new information such as date, place, etc. The master is then photocopied and the posters, roughly A4 size, are pasted on to hardboard, and then displayed along the local high street

Humble jumble can be valuable especially these hard times

by tying them to lamposts and trees.

Promptly after the sale we collect the posters, keeping them for the next sale. Posters are also displayed in the windows of members' houses and other prominent places, some with the date heavily coloured with a felt tip pen - very eye catching! If the hall to be used for the sale is just off the main thoroughfare, direction boards with arrows and JUMBLE SALE painted on them are very useful and can be used year after year.

Collecting and Sorting

Our Division has not found it necessary to make door-to-door collections for jumble, but have relied solely on our own efforts and those of friends and relatives to accumulate stock. Ruthless clearance of one's own house, garage and shed will yield a surprising amount of saleable material - and avoids having to accept - and then get rid ofuseless rubbish which the door-to-door collection only too often yields.

The jumble is usually sorted on the morning of the sale (which suggests that afternoon sales are better, but re member there is also the clearing up to be done), and the process is simple enough. Rubbish, if yo u ha ve any, goes into one heap. Clothes make another. Toys, books and hardware make others. It would be easy to make more heaps, but customers soon spoil the best of laid out tables.

Clothes, however, do need sorting into male, female and children. And if time permits even into shirts, trousers, blouse s,

SAYS P. DREW

etc. Other clothing well worth pickin g out is the new and the very best, which can go on one counter at a higher price. Shoes sell surprisingly well, so th ey should be laid out in pairs either on a table or the floor with a chair nearby to encourage cu stomers to try them on.

Hardware covers a vast range of item s.

Very large , bulk y furniture is best avoided as it can be difficult to get rid of if not old.

Electrical equipment se ll s well, but onl y if seen to be working; so it sho uld be checked by a membe r competent in electricity , and a power lead and plug shou ld be readil y available for tryi ng it.

It always pays to look closely at hardwa re, as sometimes a valuable piece turns up. Anything that is obviously very old should be taken to an antique or junk shop for appraisal. I t might turn out to be worthle s of course, but it can always be put in the next sale. But it might be worth £S - or ISO!

Anything that look s like si lver should be checked for a hallmark, for even battered and broken ilver will fetch its price by weight.

Toys can be sold cheaply to children as a leader to their parents buying something too. Put children's annuals on the toy counter, and the bulk of the books next to them.

Books are best displayed with their pine upwards so that the titles can be easily read, but such rows tend to slip sideways, 0 place a brick at e ither end of the row to prevent this. COUNTY COMPETITION

Newton double

DEVON's Cadet competitions, held at Ashburton on Saturday March 26, saw Newton Abbot Ambulance Cadets take the Ellis Cup as overall winners, together with the Sid Nicholson Cup for team test and the Hoerman Cup for uniform, and Newton Abbot Nursing Cadets took the Stuart Nicholson Cup as overall winners, with Lynda Carthew sharing the Impert Terry Rosebowl for highest individual test.

So both the Newton Abbot teams noW represent Devon in the regional competitions. (Left) The two victorious teams (L to R), back row : Neil Eddiford , Paul Martin, Steven Carthew, Richard Masters and Graham Stocker. Front roW:

The sale With a good turnout of customers one could sta rt with a price of say lSp for everything in a certa in area of the display, which might later go down to Sp. With few customers it would probably be better to let some things go for :'ip rather than lose the customers. If a queue builds up before the sale is due to open a valuab le time-saver is to collect admissio n money from the queue. This wi ll also help to reduce the number who t ry to s lip through without paying when the

doors open. Jumble sa le goers are always looking for a bargain! And watch out for lift e rs (thieves). One of their techniques is to put a number of items in a bag at t heir feet and then offer to pay for the one thing they are holding. Watch closely any s u specte d lifter, if only to frighten them. But don't forget that you are there to take money, not to over-play the detective.

Clearing up

After a number of attempts to get someone

NOTTINGHAM 1983

THIS YEAR's 'Nottingham' will be at t he University of Nottingham from 4pm on Friday, Sept 23 to 1pm on Sunday , Sept 2S - so put those dates in your diary. The weekend is open to all SJA members, and everyone will be welcome, particularly younge r Brigade members.

Programme

The weekend will comprise a n intere ting programme of lectures, presentation s, discussions and social gatherings. There will be the usual di co / dance on the Saturday evening and the interdenominational service on Sunday mornin g.

Charges

While the University has had to increase its charge this year, it i now able to offer both residential and non-residential attendance as follows: Residential: Friday upper to Sunday lunc h incl - £40.

Non-Residential Day Attendance: Saturday morning coffee, lunch tea, upper, disco / dance; Sunday morning coffee and lunc h - £2S.

Booking

To sec ure your place at ottingham thi year please book through your County / District office before Augu 1 1 For reasons of cater ing and administralion, the University cannot accept casual attendance.

Abbot's success

Tracey Plumridge, Lynda Cart hew , Fiona Leaman, Jane Clark and Julie Salter. Runners-up in the ambulance cadets was Barn sta ple and in the nursing cadelS Colyton, who received their trophie (right) from Mr Adrian Daw, Portreeve of Ashburton The girls of Colyton went home WIth the !emplar Rosebowl (runners-up), the NIc hol son Cup (uniform), while Sally F lnnemor e took the Thomas Cup (bedmaking), and Joanne Board shared the Impert Terry C up (individual) . The team front to .back) are: Sally Luff, Joanne oard, Sally Flllnemore, Marie Thoma and Paula Goss. (Photos and story by Griffin of Colyton.)

to clear the leftovers from our sales very cheap ly, or being asked to pay for this service, we have found it quickest and easiest to dump the lot at a nearby council dump. Unless another charity is interested, or sto rage space is available, this is the best cou rse.

The only thing left now is to count and bank the takings. A task over which none of us should have any problems. For however humble, jumble can be made to produce some exciting results. Loot to boot.

(Book now - see you there)

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

from Mrs M. Seymour , Area Staff Officer

We would like to express our dismay at reading B.O. 1728 restricting the composition of competition teams.

In the Eastern Area of Essex, 13 out of 16 adult divisions are combined divisions; Southern Area have 7 out of 13, and Western Area 12 out o f 14. Many ambulance members have already ta ken the additional nursing qualifications, and all new members must take the nursing examination, but they cannot enter an equally mixed team for competitions even at Area level. Several combined divisions were unable to en ter four out of five nursing member s for their teams for the 19 83 Area Competitions and so lo st a motivating facto r for improved s tandards Such a competition cou ld be the finest training method available, and SJA members at th e fi rst or lowliest le ve l onwards are to be depri ve d of this to fit in with the Association Rules (Ass. Circ. A1I230) for the Grand Prior' s Trophy, a Nation a l F.A. Industrial Competition, which is for many outside bodies as well as the finalist national SJA (Brigade) team.

We woul d welcome a move to an 'equal opportunity' at lea st for two ambulance plus two nursing member s, with a suitab le reser ve, in a mixed tea m in a competition specifically for SJA member s Essex Mary Seymour (and 1. Gates and D Hilton)

PROFESSIONALS PLEASE

from Bryan W. Nicholls SEN

May I first congratu la te the wr iter of the T a lking Poin t article in the March R eview I wou ld li ke t o take up two points m e n t ion ed in t he article.

1. I fully agree with the reference to Dr Brian Lewis's view that the Brigade should ha ve a paramedical service within its str uct u re. As a nurse spec iali sing in intensi ve care for eight years and anaesthetics for the last three yea rs, I get in volved in t he advance training of ambulance personnel within the DHSS an d can say that some a dv anced skills are ve r y mu c h first aid.

2. I cannot see the Br iga de getting a larger intake of new members until they improve the standards of teachin g, as some of it is a joke. In my view all first aid courses sho uld have a do cto r in attendance, as la y in str uctor s running a course on their own can result in a litt le knowledge being dan ge rou s. I had the misfortune to s it through a f ir st aid lect ur e give n b y a la y instructor on asthma, which h e s tru ggled through with d ifficu lt y and at the end was asked a simple que stion by one of t he class. H e did not kno w the answer, bu t in stead of admitting that he gave a very complica te d answer, with some nice big wor d s in it, which no doubt plea sed him bu t would in fact have put the patient in danger.

So let's have professional teaching on all f ir st aid courses. After all , this ini t ial view of first aid ma y be t h e difference bet ween people joining u s or not.

W. O xfo rd

FANTASTIC WELCOME DOWN UNDER

A. G Jarvis Divisional Superintendent Bryan W. N ich olls

My wife and I arrived in Australia on Christmas Da y 1982 to join

our son and daughter-in-law a nd their two sons for a two mon t hs' h oliday John and Raelene had arranged a fu ll programme for us, including a visit to the local St John Ambulance, which he kn ew I wo ul d want to make. (Photo below).

We were take n to the Melbourn e HQ where we met the Commi sioner, Major-Gen F. E. Poke, who warmly welcomed u and contacted as many SJA units for us as possible. He also gave u permission to wear our uniform while in the country.

We visited Oakleigh D iv is ion on their class night and the we lcome was fantastic. I was asked to introduce my wife and give a hort talk on t he Brigade at home. We were invited to join member on duty at an open golf tournament where we had a g lorious time, so much so that we jo ined them for a further du ty at masters' Golf'.

While sightseeing we met up with the Diamond Valley Divi ion on dut y at a youth cycle rally, where the welcome was once again great. Visiting the Police Academy we met the members and cadet of the Waverley / Camberwell Divi ion. The cadets were doing a wonderful job, by the way.

My wife and I would like to say 'Thank-you' through the Review to a ll our fr iends down under. We were treated by everyone as old friends.

No r chfleer, Kent A. G. Jarvis

TEDDY BEAR WALK

from G A Fisk Divisional Superintendent

The photograph below was taken at the end of Whitstable Divi sion' sponsored Teddy Bear Walk - everyone you' ll notice has got their teddy bear with them, some big, some small. Thi wa lk, in aid of our divisional funds, was organised by the matron of our local Lyndhurst Home for Elderly Residents, Mrs Richardson. In fact, during 1982 Mrs Richard son organised many fund-raising activilies (dolly day sale, coffee mornings, etc) and produced £ 1200 for our Division

We wo ul d like to thank her through t he Review.

Wh itstable G. A. Fisk

Whitstable members and teddy bears

ON THE TRAIL OF A MUG from Thos. H . Hollingworth

In the November 1982 Review a letter was published a king for information about a mug commemorating a SlAB camp in Blackpool during 193 8. Like the writer, Mr Field end, 1 too have one of these mugs and had made enquiries about its origin from the makers Doulton & Co without success. I wrote to Mr Field end to learn that he had not received any replie to hi s letter, 0 I wrote to the local Blackpool paper about the mu g and two people replied s ugge st ing I make enquiries in the Doncaster and Chesterfield area.

The Evening PO Sl in Donca ter published my appeal, which re ulted in 13 people writing to me, and one phoning.

The D.A.C. Camp wa organi ed by the Doncaster Amalgamated Colleries, which \ ere according to one of their staff employed in the Transport Department very safety conscious and well dispo ed to the Brigade as he (the writer) was. The camp of 1938 was on land which is now the site of the Squire' Gate airport.

The camp organi ed by D.A.C. were held during Doncaster Race week, the first week in September, the charge being 25 s hillin g per head, which in the word of one camper 'wa a good week' holiday after 51 weeks in the pit.'

The mug were pre ented by Dr Bernard Hart, John Le Brun, and William Humble to lho e who had attended the camps for 5 year.

The 1938 camp was the last one to be held under canva The advance parry in 1939 pitched the tent on Saturday, September 2, the day before war wa declared.

I have been g iven two ver ion of what happened to thi 1939 camp One is the advance parry struck camp and returned to Donca ter.

The other, from a member who e father and two brothers were in the advance party, that the camp wa left tanding ready to receive evacuees from other part of the country.

I find this to be a more logical action, when the country was expect in g air raids and gas attack.

In 1938 the Brigade had three bras band, drum and bugle band and a pipe band to lead the parade down the front to the War Memorial where a service was held.

I?r Bernard Hart was [h e Camp Commandant, John Le Brun the Adjutant and William Humb le the Director of Music. Dr Hart was a native of Nottingham and a pioneer in t he f ield of radiography.

In 1995 he was radiographer at Sheffield Royal Ho pital and also for t he medical profes ion. During the 1914-1 8 war he erved

In the Royal Navy a a s urgeon sub li eutenant and saw much active service. He returned to his medica l studie on the ce ation of hostili ties.

Dr Hart commenced practi s ing in Donca tel' a a general practitioner and :vas also a co nsu lting radiologist until 1924 when he had to giv up hiS wo rk as a radiologist for health rea sons.

So m e of my co rr esponde n ts a nd people to 'whom I have po ken ment ioned the badly scarred arms of Dr Hart and that he had 10 t or mor e fingers becau e of his work a a radiologist. Dr Hart has admitted to the Order of St John as a Serving Brother awarded e OBE in the New Year's Honours li st of 1937 or 1938,'and later ecame a Knight of the Order.

Durin g the 1939-45 War, County Surgeon Dr Hart wanted to take an ambulance unit to Finland, which had been invaded by Russia. 250 volunteers from the Doncaster area were prepared to go and serve under him

The esteem in which Dr Hart was held is shown by extracts from two letters I received, one from an old Bri gade member said 'one of [he greatest guys it was m y privilege to kno'.'.'.

A member of the staff of the Squire's Gate Holiday Camp in 1946, at which the last Brigade camp was held wrote, 'an exceptionally great man, and worked hard for the cause'.

The Coal Industr y Welfare Organisation organised camps after 1946 for paraplegic miners from the Doncaster area. An amusing incident concerning the three gentlemen who donated the mugs is recalled by one old member who was present at the 1938 camp: 'I shall never fo rget that afternoon, when the three of them drove inro camp in an open landau, with Bernard Han a[ the rein doing a Ben Hur act around the camp lines.

There is a memorial in Armthorpe 1iners Welfare Park inscribed: 'Dr Bern ard Hart , O.B.E., Kt. Sr. J., who practised in Armthorpe 1924 -1 956. Thi memorial was erected by public subscription'.

John Le Brun was agent for the Firbeck and Bullcroft \Iain Colleries, part of the D.A.C. and later became [he General Ianager. Hi s rank in the Brigade is not known

A natural lake near Firbeck Collery known now as Lanadale Lido wa uitable for bathing by Mr Le Brun who had dre ing room' for Ladles and Gentlemen built, and diving boards and raft installed in and around the lake.

The nearby car park was given to the unemployed to provide \\'ork and a ource of income and eventually taken over by the Unemployed Miners' C lub.

One year, Mr Le Brun chartered two aeroplanes from Southampton to take a party 0 f Girl Guides to his birth place in lderney. Hi wi fe wa a captain in the Girl Guide.

William Humble wa the on of the chairman of D.A.C., a member of management and a Brigade officer who e rank I ha\ e been unable to e tabli h.

'Young Billy', as he was popularly known, flew a fa [ red monoplane , which he must ha ve flown to 8Iackpool for the camp, because one letter writer wrote he took the lads for a trip round rhe Tower '. He wa a test pilor, pre umably during hi R.A.F. en ' i e in the 1938-45 War.

All letters written to me on thi ubject ha e been an wered, apart from one signed 'Anon', and I hope t hat he aw my letter of thank to t he Donca ter Evening Po t. Copie of thi letter will be ent to those wonderful people who he lped me to find the rory behind rhe m ug.

F inall y! What a wonderful idea it would be if [he Brigade in Donca ter co uld get a ll these wonderful people toaether and let them r emi ni ce about t he camp of 1938

23 Tithe B arn Co urI, Thos H. Ho/lingll'orrh Newark (Tel. 79649), ofrs.

NEWS FROM SCOTLAND

The Duke of Hamilton. who has just ret red as Prior of Scotland

His Grace The Duke of Hamilton and Brandon, KStJ

SINCE HIS installation, the unostentatious leadership of the Duke of Hamilton has ensured a steady and well-regulated growth of the Order's activities within the realm.

The Order in Scotland is grateful for the years which he has given as Prior of Scotland and it is with complete understanding that his wish to lay down office is viewed.

The gratitude of every member of the Order for his dignified presidency of festivals, installations, Chapter and Council

N. Ireland

The Viscount of Arbuthnott the n ew Prior of Scotland

meetings, and the many other occasions when his presence added distinction to the proceedings , is heartily ack nowledged It is with a sense of loss that the depar ture of the present Prior is recorded, but sadnes has no place when, as a Knight of Justice His Grace remains as a Confrere and encourager within the Order in Scotland.

The new Prior of Scotland - the Rt. Hon.

The Viscount of Arbuthnott

THE NEW Prior of Scotland, the Rt. Hon.

The Viscount of Arbuthnott, establishes an historic connection with the Order in

MR ALBERT MAGEE (3rd left), retlflng Divisional Officer of the Portadown A N Division, was honoured at a special dinner recently when Divisional Superintendent Roland Wright presented him with a gift cheque. Also in the picture, from left, Commander SJA Mr D. S. Stephens, Mrs S. Agnes Magee, who received a gift from Mrs Eileen Twinem, who takes over as Divisional Officer, and District Secretary, Mr Patrick Corkey.

Many tributes were paid to Mr Magee's outstanding service during the past 42 years. He was made Divisional Of f icer in 1968, and admitted to the Order as a Serving Brother in 1973

Scotland which spans some 500 years, as his ancestor, Sir Robert Arbuthnott and his wife were admitted to th e Order by William Knolles, Preceptor of Torphichen, which will not only appeal to the Prior's own hi stor ical interest but many within the Order in contemporary Scotland.

He brings to the office not only distinguished se rvice in the Fleet Air Arm in the Near and Far East, but also experience as chairman of the Red Deer Commission and the Scottish Landowners' Federation while his 30 years' interest in co n se r va ncy and ecology will bring a new dimension to Priory's relationship with an area of growing concern to many confreres.

The Installation on April 12 by H.R.H.

The Grand Prior shou ld provide an opportunity for representatives of the Order and Associations t hrou ghout Scotland to offer personal good wishes to the Viscount of Arbuthnott , which will be the vocal expression of the sentiments of everyone involved in the service of the Order.

A new chapter in the history of the Order in Scotland opens. The good wishes, hop es and prayers of each member of the Order are assured to the new Prior as he is charged with his responsibilities as Prior of Scotland.

A duty with the Handicapped

EARLY in August la st year two Guernsey Nursing Di vis ion s were asked if anyone was interested in doing a duty at Mont Varouf schoo l, on Mondays, Wednesdays and fridays for two weeks, from 10 am to 3.30 pm. It was a different type of duty fro m usual, but was very interesting, and we learned a lot about handicapped children.

Gwen de la Mare, Mary Besnard and myse lf vo lunt eered to assist w ith a scheme to help working mother s by relieving them of their physica ll y and mentally handicapped childre n during the long summer holiday.

Each day a teacher or helper, who was used to dealing with the c hildren , was present and we were to ld that the plan cou ld on ly have s ucceeded with the help of SJA member. Some children arrived with a parent, other travelled on the school minibus, often with brother and iter as well. It wa difficult to determine t he age of each child, but they eemed to range from about 4 to j 4 year.

Boy and gir ls from La Mare de Cateret enior chool, and ome from a religious group ca llin g t hem se lves God Squad' , also ca me to help and eac h wa allocated a ch ild to look after for the day. Mary and I looked after a little 7-year old cal led Annette whom we 'a dopted' for the two week. She suffered :rom brain damage of unknown orig in , and IS till being examined and investigated at Guy's Hospital periodically. She cannot peak and has only just learned to wa lk in new surg ical boots; apparently he gets aro und at home on her knee, but ha what her mother ca ll s 'sc reaming fit' occasionally. She love mu ic and enjoyed all the attention we were ab le to gi ve her. She already ha a wimming badge which he Won at Beau Sejour. Her brother and sister so metimes came wit h her, so we got to know th em too. Annette had to be fed of cou rse, and has a very goo d appetite, as did mo t of t.he ch ildr en, but drinking wa rather dlff!cu lt even from her trainer cup

Most people know about the standard first-aid duties which we get up to. Too little is heard, however, about the more unusual nursing and welfare duties undertaken by Brigade members

Here, Barbara Gore of SJA Guernsey, describes a duty performed with some mentally and physically handicapped children last summer

mongols (two with ser iou s cardiac condition s) , one possible MS, epilepsy, most of whom were mongols, dyslectics, antistics, one deaf and dumb, and Annette. Some mongols did not speak but were quite happy li ste ning to music all da y as they did at home.

They had numerous books , toys, a typewriter, musical in stru ment s from the school band, a sandpit and plastic building equipme nt. Outside was a climbing frame in the shape of a yacht, an engine and a car.

Their wa hing was done each day in the school machine, but a lot were toilet trained.

At lun chtime the helper s took it in turns

LO get tables and chairs ready and to wash up afterwards. We either took the children

La the 100 or c han ged their nappies before lunch and again at 3 pm before going home

A few epi leptics were due for their drugs at lunchtime, and these were given by the teacher. The older children ate in a epa rate room from the yo unger ones, each brought a packed lun ch and grace was said before they all tucked in

During the fir s t week the children swam in the indoor wimming pool soon after

lun c h, each wearing eithe r arm band s or plastic ring s. Most of them cou ld swi m with the aid of their h e lp er and all of them lo ve d the water. It was much easier to get them in than out! Thi s was a great a sset durin g the first week as it broke up the day, but un fortunately the filter was out of action the second week so the pool could not be used. In stead they watched TV or had a si ngso ng. One particular teacher was very good and arranged a sports afternoon out on the field. She actually had the whole day nicely organised and this made a big difference. One afternoon when they were getting ready to go home Sara, a sweet little mon go l, was sitting on the lao when in came a mongol boy - thi s was officially forbidden but was overlooked on this occasion - she put her arms round his neck, kissed him and then announced that they we re married!

Except for one occasion we only had s mall cuts, grazes and bruises to treat - most of these were cured with a piece of pla ster. The one nasty accident which occurred could have been a lot more serious. Mary and I were called to the corridor leading to the washbasins and toilets where we saw a little 12-year old helper sitting on a cha ir with her face covered in blood, and the floor soaked in blood as well. Tina was crying a nd frig ht ened, but did not appear shocked. She was not knocked out, and was ve ry se n ible and co-operative: she was only cryi ng because she did no t like the sight of blood! Someone put two clean towels in my hand, so while I c leaned her up I talked to her and reassured her and asked what had happened. Apparently the cistern - an old type with a c hai n attached - had fallen off the wall and hit her on the head. I foun d t he offending wound and after a little time managed to control the bleeding a few minutes before the ambulance arrived. I checked for signs of kull injurie and monitored her pulse, and explained to her that he would probabl y be taken to the recei ving room to see her doctor, migh t have an X-ray, and would ha e t he wound utured , po ibly with little st rips of plaster. It was not pas ible to rule out a skull fracture as the ci tern was heav y.

The ambulance soon arrived and the man carried Tina out, then they examined her and dres se d her forehead before taking her to ee her doctor at re eiving room. Later in the afternoon we were pleased when her mo ther telephoned to say Tina was home and well. Accident form had t o be filled in , of cour e, and the Headma ter was called in to get statement and fill in more form

for employees of Jambo Hotels and Securicor in Malindi. Exa mining on completion of the course was Dr P. Nicklen (2nd from eft)

On arrival, all the chi ldren played ge nerally unless the person in c harg e had some thing specia l organised. On most da ys boys who were ab le played football or CrIcket in the playground, w ith supervi ion, and a ll the children spent so me tim e outside In the fresh air if the weather was suitable. One li tt le mon go l boy was very keen on running away, as he doe at home, 0 consta nt watch had to be kept on him and the gate !

We had a variety of di sa bilitie s pre se nt -

One of the more unusual patients carried by the Flying Christine ', SJA Guernsey's ambulance launch Th is seal was found stranded, and after treatment at the animal shelter it was taken back to sea aboard the marine ambulance.

A few days later it turned up again in the harbour but after a second return to sea it seemed to take the hint and swam off to find its own food! (SJA Guernsey Ouarte rly News)

Apart from that one unfortunate incident, a ll went well for the entire t\\'o week , and the organiser hope to continue the cheme as an annual event, po sibly right through the holiday.

We grew ery attached to the children we looked after, the organi er told u the scheme could not have worked without the help of St John , and the parent were very grateful for all th at was done.

R epril1led /1'0/11 5J 4 Guernsey Quorrerly 1'11" )

News from Divisions/Centres

OBITUARY

63, County Secretary f o NOrl h al11ptons hir e for 17 year, for everal year also Assis ant Dire c or. Retired due to ill health a t the end of 1982 An Officer of the Order. She was uuerly dedicat ed t o Sl John. Di ed March 7 1983.

(A bove) CORNWALL: At the annual dinner of H elston Nursing Division Area Supt (N Miss M. P. Sowden (right) presents a portable TV set from members and frie nds to N M Miss G. (Cissie ) Julian to mark her retirement. Miss Julian, who joined th e Division 32 years ago became a Serving Sister in 1976. (Photo: Dave Minchin)

N. We s ern, H ey ham 37 52 Y, 37 36 2 92 2 -12. Midland s, Sl ourpon 32 36 42 35 91 236 Women I. Midland s, Ru ge ey 44 39 ", 46 -10 12-1 ", 294

2. S. We lern,

ESSEX: The Mayor and Mayor ess of Thurrock (Cll r B. Wood and his wife) set the style

Non-alcoholic drinks take first place

There was a time when non-alcoholic drinks (fizzy drinks) took fourth place (after milk, coffee and beer) as the drink preferred by Americans - apart from water. However, fi zzy drinks have now taken the first place and- bee r ha s replaced milk which held the sec ond place In 1980 the equivalent of 86 thousand millions of fizzy drinks were sold - nearly 400 tins for every inhabitant of the countr y It is expected that soon the consumption of these will exceed the 100 thousand million.

Voodooism frightens the teaching profession

'Witchcraft is so wide-spread in the primary school of Munyati in Mumbwa (about 100 miles N. W. of Lusaka)', according to the Times of Zambia , 'that it is regarded in two distinc ways one official and the other as dicta ted b y a witch-doctor. In fact, the periodical declares, 'the villagers have agreed to call in a witch-doctor to ac t against a sorcerer who is terrorizing the teachers of the school .

The headmaster of the school complains that all around the s urroundings of his house pieces of dog ha ve been scattered and the si x members of t he family of the deputy head teacher have abandoned their own home and gone to sleep in the school office

According to the Times, 'teachers, officials o f UNMZ (Nation a l Union of Tea c hers of Zambia), part y leaders and exasperated village headmen ha v e met to consider the situation in Munyati.' The informant declar e s that meanwhile, owing to the fear

Surgery by sound they

Do proteins reduce the weight?

According to a recent study reported in t he review Science, the diets of high pro t ein content to reduce weight, which have become so popular in recent years , are not really a s efficacious as has been claimed A group of rats w hich was given the same quantit y o f calories as a second group but with f i v e times th e amount o f pro t ein fini s h ed th e

w

ca ll e d bl oo dl ess s ur gery'. A fi n e sp r ay of wat e r iss u es f r o m t h e po in t to irr igate the a r ea b e ing operated u pon. A lr ea d y mor e th a n 1,000 o p e r a ti o n s h ave b ee n ca rri e d out w ith th e a pp a r at us.

o le cr a non , and s y loid pro cesses (4 ). 13. A fa ir y- t a le b eg inni ng on ju s t a single o c casion (4) 14. P r o fo und s lee p (5 ). 16 Fat- di gest i ng en zy me of the pancr e ati c ju ice (6) 17. A race with in cr u s a ti o n s on their tee t h? (7). 20. Beni g n bon e tu mo ur f r o m a MO 's toe (7) 22 Nurse on a tough , in e lastic c onn ec ti ve t iss u e (6) 24. Anato mi cal s tructures for fa c tor y w orker s? (5). 26 D a l es w i t h pl ayt h i n gs (4)

27. Wa ste product of pr o t ei n met a b o li s m (4 ) 29. Prim e s de m ake s part o f the s kin (9 ). 30. P r imat e in cr e di t for a fro lic (5). 3 1 R ete n tion

c yst in s alivar y gland f r om ar t ist w i h f r act ur e d 12 Ac ro ss (6). 32

Man y sure chan g e s in o cal dil a t at ion o f wa ll of la r ge a r te r y (8).

Down

1 Embarra ss ing s pa s modi c c on t ra ctio n o f t h e d iap hr ag m (6). 2. Not the primary aim in w o u nd healin g (6 .9 ) 3. Str u c tur e reg ul a t i n g the amount of li g ht e nterin g h e eye (4 ) 4. Go for w a rd by a d ance encompa ss in g fi ve (7) 6 Ul ce rat ed s kin lesio n s f r om to r s o r estr u cture (5).7. Stud y of t he e lec tr ical acti vi ty o f t h e br a i n (1 5) 8 Inn a mm ation of the lining of the thoraci c c a vi ty (8 ) . 9 Co nt a mina te wi t h p a th ogenic organisms (6). 15. Rea s on for s aintl y li g h h ea dedn ess? (4) 18 Call a finger (4) 19. Tru e ner v e of hearin g (8 ). 2 1. A t t ac k of r es pir ator y dyspnoea, often due to aller g en (6) 22 Pr ote in - di ges ti ng en zy m e of pancreatic juice (7). 23. Bone formin g par of ve rtebr a l column and pel v ic girdle (6).25 Period of ime f o r a n in ca nt at ion (5) 29. Fawn colour ha s s trange cur e (4 ).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 4 (83)

REVIEW CROSSWORD No 5 (83) by A. A. Potter Across: 1. Autonomi c 6. Tooth; 9. Topical 10. Ri c ke ts ; 11. R o d eo: 13 Rain; 14 Whey; 16. Talisman; 20. Repair; 22. Lad ; 24. S avo ur ; 25. Diuretic; 28 Vol e ; 29 Boil; 30 Bo s om ; 33. R e tired; 34 Pr o fid e; 35. Leech; 36. Heartfelt.

PILCHER· GREENE

ST JOHN REVIEW

for Cheshire p.133

Cadet Chat, by Jim p.134

Home is the Sailor p.135

Exercise Felix, by Clive Rooke p 36

Books p.137

Readers views p.138

The World About Us , by Jack p 1 38 Nottingham p.1 39

News from Scotland - Wales - Overseas p.140

News from Divisions / Centres p 142

EDITORIAL and ADVERTISEMENTS

Edited and produced for the Order of St John by Driscoll Productions Wood Cottage, High Corner, Butley Nr Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3QF Advertising rates on request. Phone: Orford (STD 039 45) 548. Editor: Frank Driscoll.

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Contributions to the St John Review are always welcome. They should be typed, treble line spacing, on one side of paper only, (if in longhand please print name of peop le, p laces, etc), and send LO the editorial address above. If pos ible supply

BY KI D PERMISSION of The Central Electricity Generating Board, the inaugural general meeting of the St John Fellowship will take place at Sudbury House, 15 Newgate Street, London ECl * on Saturday, 25 June 1983 at 3.45pm

The Chief Commander, Major General Peter Leuchars, has kindly agreed to open the proceedings and take the chair until the Fellowship c hairman has been elected.

This Inaugural Meeting is open to ALL former members of St John Ambulance, irrespective of age or length of service, and whether or not they are members of The Order.

AGENDA

Chairman's Opening Remarks

Adoption of the Constitution of the Fellowship (published in [he May Re v iew)

Eligibility for Membership Objects Administration

i Central Committee

ii Branches

iii Annual General Meeting

Fellow hip Badge Sub criptions

Elections to the Central Committee

Chairman

Vice-Chairman

Trea urer

National Secretary

Note As and when branches are formed, regions will be asked to nominate branch representatives on the central committee.

Any Other Business _________

li Sheila Puckle, Acting ational Secretary pending the above election, would be glad to receive nomination for the Central Committee before Friday, 24 June 1983. Please address them to her at St John Ambulance HQ, 1 , Grosvenor Crescent, London SW1X 7 EF marking the envelope St John Fellow hip'.

*On the north side of Paternoster Square, where the Brigade bands play after the Order Service. Entrance in Newgate Street behind the Square.

CQVER

Paul Thomas , a rowing man who entered the London Marathon in support of Weybridge Combined Division's HQ building appeal is taken care of after he d finished the run by (L to R) Maria Signorelli Ron

and

London's great MARATHON

18,000 Runners

1 000 First-aiders

HIGH ABOVE London - in fact, on the 17th floor of a building in Newgate Street, EC1 - St John Ambulance set up its radio centre to control more than 1000 first-aiders who were out on the city st reets to cove r London's great marathon on Sunday April 15. Along the 26-mile route were 23 first aid stations which were made up from 25 large mobile FA units, 40 ambulances and f ive support vehicles. All of these ve hicles were in radio contact with the control centre, thanks to the CEGB, who had allowed SJA to use the premises because from such a height virtually uninterrupted radio contact could be kept with the ground area The firstaiders included 15 doctors, 50 professional nurses, cardiologists and consultants. Four of the first aid stations were located in the

On that gruelling 26-mile run around the streets that has now become the Capital's biggest annual attraction City, at Monument Street, High Timber Street, Temple Place, and Lambeth Hill, near the Blackfriars underpass.

In charge of the control centre was District Officer Vic Phillips (who is now attached to the Area which covers the City), with Mrs Iris Sullivan, three radio operators, and liaison officers from the City police, the Metropolitan police, and the London Ambulance Service. The centre was open from 7am to 5pm.

During the day, with 18,000 runners in the marathon, St John dealt with 1606 runners, 19 of whom were sent to hospital, and six spectators.

True picture

The stark statistics of this year's London marathon, writes an on look er, do not give the true picture of this major, complex duty for SJA.

The weather alone was a problem, for it poured with rain from 7am (when many of the members reported for duty at the 23 stations) until 11 am. But there was no sign of this deterring the members, who were visited by London 's COl}lmissioner Derek Fenton or his deputy John Gerrard. Their cheerfulness was amazing. Continued overleaf

18,000 Runners ...

1000 First-aiders

(Continued from p. 21)

Months of detailed planning, including many meetings on site, were necessary for this du ty, despite the fac t that this wa s London s third marathon. These meetin gs included senior officers from the London Ambulance Service and the Metropolitan Police, together with the organisers and sponsors of the marathon. Interviews had to be arranged before and on the day for radio, TV and t he press.

The fina l casualty figure of 1606 with 19 sent to hospital, of which only two were detained, reflects the high standard of patient care given on site. From over 500 cases at the end of the race, only three we re taken to hospitaL Credit for this was un do ubtedl y the medical provision by teams of SJA doctors and nursing officers, and a s pecifi c intensive treatment unit.

As the Marathon Medical Director said: ' St John in London provides the best med ical care in any part of the world for marathons.'

A tribute, yes, but it must be borne in mind that this has been achieved only by the improving training standards given by our doctors and nursing officers, the enthusiasm of our medical colleagues, and the cooperation with the London Ambulance Service and Metropolitan Poli ce.

This surely answers those, orne in hi gh positions, who feel that SJA's days as a first aid organisation are dra wing to a close.

The Chi e f Command e r's rec e nt overseas tour included Malaysia (Feb 13-15), Fiji (Feb 19-26) and New Zealand (Feb 26 - Mar 22)

the role of paid SJA drivers and attendants. In the afternoon the Chief Commander presented trophies at the Waikato-King Country District cadet competitions at nearby 'Mystery Creek', and in the evening met many young members at a barbecue for cadets, adult and their families.

District Supt Mrs Daphnie Bluett, who recently took a cadet competition team to Fiji, and District Commissioner Barry Cowley with the Chief Commander

THE Order of St John in New Zeal a nd' s Waikato-King Coun t ry gree t ed the C hief Commander , Major General Peter Leuchar s, in a specia l wa y. Outs ide the Headquar t ers buildin g in Hamilton, Mrs Ma r g a re t Downes, Sup t of Tokoroa Nur sing Cade ts , gave him a Maori welcome. You know, no seto-nose, as we saw Prince Charles and Princess Dia n a on TV during their re cen t visit Do wn Under.

After meeting th e adm i nistra t ive st a ff o f the local A s soc i at i on , Brigade and

Demonstrations Ambu la n ce Tran sp ort (S J A in New Zea land run s the co untr y's a mbul a n ce service), a group of retir ed Briga

C h ief Commander.

members had af t ernoon t ea

Amon g t hem was Mr E Ho uston, who ga ined hi s or iginal fir st aid cert ificate 72 yea r s ago

(Leh ) Supt

That evening General Leuchar was introduced to a New Zealand dinner (Iamb?) which included a de sert known as Pavlov a (editor: 'afraid no one has told us \\I hat Pavlova's pud is), at which guests were able to discuss all aspects of St John with the Chief Commander.

The fo ll owing day, as well a meeting the committee members and staff of the local Hami lton sub-centre, General Leuchars toured the ambulance station, saw their communications system and learned about

On his way to his next port of call, the Chief Commander stopped off at Te Kauwhata (population 500) for the dedication of a new ambulance. The ambulance crews in this spar ely populated area are all volunteer Brigade member. SJA Waikato-King Country - where the most popular verdict on this visit was 'Wa n't he ea y to peak to, and 0 intere ted in \\ hat we were doing?' - enjoyed meeting the Chief Commander. And they only hope he enjoyed meeting them. (Editor: And we enjoyed receiving your report, Waikato-King Country, the only one ent to u from thi tour.)

SEEN what? The St John Ophthalmic Hospital tape-slide programme, of course! This uperb programme, produced by Sound & Vision Communications, is proving very popular and both the video tapes and the original equipment, with myself in tow, are being borrowed regularly. Want to borrow me? For 1 hear on the grapevine that there are a few readers who still don't know what they are mis ing, so here's a quick rundown

This fu ll-colour programme lasts for about l2minutes, showing some 250 slide in three projectors. Readers not in the know wil l be saying - so what's new about that? The answer is the way the slides are hown. The projectors are linked to a micro-processor, and a taped commentary a lso carries pul es wh ich, when put thro ugh this microprocessor, te ll s each projector when to change its slides and when to fade in and out. Because o ne, two, o r t hr ee projecto r s can be used si mul ta neo us ly, spec ia l effect are n ot on ly poss ibl e bu t are very good. One examp le is the f rui t shown in the garden, which suddenly t urns in to a St John cross: and

Chief Commander

another is the 'Outreach' van, whic h is heard to start up and t h en moves toward t he audience. C lever? This moveme n t, created by dis ol ving s lides int o eac h ot h er , a lso ensures co n ti nu ity with no ne of t he an noying jerks between slides wh e n a s in g le p r ojec t or is used. The equipme nt goes into a b out h a l f a dozen pac kages, whi ch are ea il y transported by ca r.

We also have a limited number of video cassettes - both VHS and Betamaxavaj[able for loan. If you would like to bor r ow them, please tate which sy tem you require, and it would be helpful to give plenty of notice 0 that I can avoid disappointing anyone. For those special occasions (training days etc), where you have a group audience the original equipment may be borrowed, the only rule being that someone from Headquarters -u ually myself - comes with it! The advantage, of course, is that I can usually answer any questions ... Please also contact me if you require po rer leaflet ,etc; they are all available on reque (. Those w ho have seen rhe programme will, I think, agree that this i a marvellou , production (well done, Sound & Vi ion). P lease tell everyone who hasn r seen it \ hat they are missing!

For f ur ther information and enquirie p lease get in touch w ith me eronica Sh a r pe, i n t he Public Affair Department, Or der of St J ohn, 1 Grosvenor Cre cent, London SW IX 7EF or telephone 01 235 5231.

(Above)

The

speaking at the dedication ceremony of an ambulance at Te Kauwhata

ST JOH N OP H THALMIC HOSPITAL

PRECIOUS

I hear that the Prelate of the Order, Lord Coggan, heard from a friend recently in the USA praising the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem for the service given to the Re v Robert Chang, a Presbyterian minister from Taiwan.

After suffering problems w ith hi s eyes for most of his life t he Rev Chang was examined by Dr Bisle y, the ho spital's warden, and was later successfully operated on at the hospi ta l free of charge.

The Re v Chang is now back in Taiwan with that precious gift of sight.

HELP

The Hospitaller , Sir Stephen Miller, tells me that the Matron of the St John Ophthalmic Hospi ta l, Mrs Parks, is very concerned about getting essential items from London out to the hospital. For instance there are some bed-covers that need to be taken out. The cost of mailing such items is prohibitive, so would anyone going out to visit the hospital please ring the Secretary-General's secretary at St John Gate to find out f there is anything the y could take with them?

LOOKING AHEAD

Jun 1 Derby Day

Jun 11:

Jun 13-16:

Jun

Jun 20-Jul 3: Wimbledon

Jun 25: 2.30pm Festival Service, Sl Paul's Cathedral

Jun 29: Garden Part y, Buckingham Palace

CHAT

Leo Budd, new cadet advisory officer at Headquarters , writes:

It was ni ce to meet and c hat with Jim of Cadet Chat for the first time w hen he visited Headquarters the other day. Jim, th at is Coun ty Staff Officer (Cadets) (A) J. J. Bond BA, from Essex, has just mo v ed home and job and is now within the Greater London Area as a Deputy Headmaster (Englefield School).

One of the first items I was shown and given to take home to look at when I first

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

FROM PACIFIC

Divisiona Officer Mrs H A. Broughton SRN RCN of the Brigade in the Solomon Islands (see Overseas News), receives h er nurs ing bursary (£450) from Lady Moyra Bro wn, Supt-in-Chief, at Headquarters during March. Mrs Br oughton was unable to get to London earlier whe n the other bursaries were presented She is using the award to study occupational health in the UK for six months

visited HQ last September was a bundle of R eviews, and what better way to find out what's happening w ithin the Cadet Divisions - and in fact the whole organisation. What a good job Jim is doing in his Review column, Cadet Chat. But is he being supported? He is a ways asking for contributions, but he is just not getting anywhere nea r eno u g h articles.

Jim surpr ised me when he stated that only about 2070 of our cadets actually get to see Cadet Chat, Jet alone the Review. Of course he colu mn is mainly for cadet officers (ideas, etc,) but wouldn't it be nice to have our cadets also contribute? So how about divisions making photocopies of the Cadet Chat page for the cadets; thus letting them give the ir ideas, projects, sche me s, jokes, cartoons, etc, to Jim for the article?

I have no t iced t hat in many Cadet Chat

John Webb HVir Supplies) retires

'THE end of an era' is a very overworked phrase. Bu t it is right that we sho uld apply it to the retirement on St John's Da y of John Webb; for it is nearly a quarter of a century since he was appointed to take charge of t he St John Stores Depar tment, as it was then called, and his re ig n t here has indeed been an era in itself. What changes we ha ve seen, and what growth; for t hi s has been a period of unprecedented development in the organisation and methods of commerce, and our Supplies Department has hurried forward with the times.

When John took over, in 1959, it was like a village shop. Small a nd friendly, it knew its customers and their needs, and was known and trusted b y them. But this was ill suited to the growing requirements of St John Ambulance or to su rvive in the more competitive conditions that lay ahead. John saw this very clearly and set him se lf to modernise every aspect of his operations.

Provided at la st w ith new and better 128

articles Jim has mentioned liaison with other yo uth organisations on projects. This is certainly encouraged b y the H eadquarters of the organisation, but mu t of cour e be carried out at lo cal level. I've seen orne of this in action.

Some of our counties are quite active in sharing ideas, others having no such connections. We have some nice new map on the wall of the Cadet Office, showing what is going on within our St John Ambu lance region and cou nti e; the se certainly draw one's eyes quickly to trend , facts, etc.

I was rather surprised to see that 21 counties are not participating in any Duk e of Edinburgh's Award Schemes, whi le (h e counties that are ha ve some 460 cadet participating.

La s t year (1982) 657 cadets were a warded

accommodation, he created a thoroughly modern business eq uipped to meet the widen ing demands of our members all over the world The be st was never good enough if it could be improved.

Nevertheless, alarmed by the ever ri s in g prices in the early 1970s we had a trouble shooter in from Marks and Spencer to carry out a thorough inspection. Hi s report, when it ca me, was no s urpri se to some of u s. 'There is not much wrong here,' he said. 'We could not match these prices in Marks and Spencer.

What a tribute that is to John Webb and the staff of his Department, who have worked so hard and so cheerfully to give the best possible deal to St John members, both at home and overseas.

Retirement mean s different things to different people. To John and Thelma Webb (she is our County Superintendent in Bedfordshire) we know it will mean ever greater activity, and a whole variety of

John at a recent Nott ngham

in teres ts. We wis h them many long and happy years of it.

John' s deputy, Brian Rockell, will be the new Director Supp li es. N.M.

BY THE EDITOR

Grand Prior Badges: Ambu lan ce 144 , Nursing 513, all very good, yet I notice t ha t tw o counties had no awards!

A map that is not very in spiring to look at is the one s howing Brigade stre ngth of nursing and ambulance cadets and their loss of numbers -a problem that is on all our minds We must all know that the best recruiter is a happy and contented member; an d that member is the one who fee ls he or she is achieving something, and that their leisure time is being u sef ully filled - both to their advantage and to the advantage of the community they have chosen to se rve. But is this happening? Are our young people encouraged to make full and enterprising u e of their leisure ime? Within St John our cadets can certain ly be encouraged to do so in a disciplined atmosphere, which s of course essential.

I do not at the moment know a lot about our enterprise grou ps , but looking at those maps of ours it doe seem that where these groups of young people are operating, the drop in numbers i very much less. In fact, there is an increase. County Nursing Officer Elizabeth Stewart, of Oxford, started this scheme a few years ago - perhaps we hould all have another good look at it.

WHITSTABLE's NEW HQ

Whitstable Division, Kent , has just opened Its new Headquarters (right). The HQ s nursing room (far rig ht ). (Below) at the opening ceremony (L to R) : Rev R Meredith (former Pres ide nt of Whitstable) ; Mrs Aurea Lew is, County Vice - President ; Mrs Connie Jewiss , County Supt; Dr D Barton Ass County Surgeon; Mrs M. L Leschallas, County President The Mayor of Canterbury; Mr Robin Leigh-Pemberton, Lord Lieutenant of Kent and President SJ Council ; Dr E B. Lewis County Commissioner; and Mr L W. Ashman, Deputy Commiss ioner (Seated) Mr Wallace Harvey; The Mayoress of Canterbury and Mrs R. Leigh-Pemberton

IN SCHOOL

(Le t) Training day at Melksham, Wilts. (see story RADIOS for ). (Photo: Graham Vowles)

RADIOS FOR Wiltshire is very lucky in having recently been donated over £1,000 worth of mobile radio equipment!

Mr A. F. Bareham, Radio Communications Officer at Headquarters, travelled from the [sle of Wight with his wife, who is County Superintendent of the island, to demonstrate the finer points of the radios at a training day held at the Rachel Fowler Centre in Melksham on April 9.

County and A rea staff learned correct radio procedures during the afternoon, and after the training session the radios were promptly booked out for two major even ts

The photograph (above) shows ASO Arthur Whitcher, North Area Training Of ficer and Mrs Bareham listening in to ASO Keith Howell, West Area Training Officer and organiser of the Training Day, whilst he tries out the radio outside the Rachel Fowler Centre in Melksham.

CHARLES JOYCE

Charles Joyce was born on Sept 14 1905. He w ent to the school at Winstanley Road in Battersea and left at the age of 14. He then

joined the London Di str ict Messenger Service which was the precursor to the service later developed by the Post Office of telegram boys. As a London messenger he found himself associated with other members of the Order of St John, all of whom had given long and va luable service, including Fred Crimmen who gave 50 years service and George Gough, who is still employed with t he Order of St John ha vi ng completed 40 years service.

Charles Joy ce joined t he Order of St John in the then Stores D e partment in February 1924 at the age of 19 and has since worked continuou s ly for the Ord er. His total service on the date of hi s retirement last April was jus t over 58 years and in that time he has seen many changes. During the wa r he was released from the Order to se r ve i n the Ro ya l Army Servic e Corp and t he story is told that he was so short in sta tu re that he was unable to drive a service lorr y. In t he whole of his long service with t he Order he ha s never failed to turn up for work, although he himself says tha t on one occasion he had a very bad headache, arrived for work a nd was sent home. Again it can be recorded t hat even during bus st rike s and in more recent

c uts retirement cake (see story ) times , tube strikes, he ha s ne ver be e n lat e for work and during the General Strike of 1925 he delivered parcel s to t he Di v is ion s of St John in the London area r idi n g hi s Own bicycle Durin g the ea rl y p a rt of t h e war he did fire watching at St J o hn 's Gate and during one of the 'near mi sses' h e saw many of t he windows blown out.

Charles Jo yce has ma ny stories and recollections of people during his service with the Order o f St John in the vi tal period of it s existence s hortl y after the end of the first World War up to the present time.

In 19 8 1 Charles J oyce was distin guished by being awarded t h e British Empire Medal for hi s services to the Order of St Joh n.

ISLAND ACTIVITY

SJA Gu ernsey's PRO Neil Tucker writes: Nearly 16 thousand hour s of voluntary duty were c omplet e d b y SJA divisions in Guern ey last year , and two competition teams from t he isl a nd rea c h ed the n ationa l finals in Croydon.

At t he joint a nnu a l general meetin g of the island's five ca d et division it was reported that cadets had provided help at ho sp ital s, nursing home s, centres for the handicapped , hospi t al radio services and perf ormed many other dut ies, in addition to en t ering co mpetition s, yout h service events and co mpletin g profi c iency subjects.

Dedication of an ambulance fo r Windsor Division (L to R) the Hon Mr s J. Beau mont IVice Pr es), Mrs Shaw and the Rev D. Shaw, Dr Alan Glyn MP

0 / 0 J. Glass , Lady Rosula Glyn Pr es Nursing DivL Dr S. Storey IPres

Ambul ance Div ), Dr L Kader (Commander), D S Mrs M. Acres, and DI S M ,

On e of t h e most interesting activities had invo lved learnin g ho w t o co mmuni ca t e w ith deaf and deaf and blind peop le, a nd one of the most strenuous had been 'yomping' over the We lsh mountains on a s u rviva course during the s ummer camp.

The three nur s ing cadet divisions completed over 5,600 hours between them, and t he Guernsey Am bulance Cadet Division's competition team had been runners-up in the finals.

The best cadet in the is land during the yea r was an n ounced during the AGM as Cadet Leader Kim Wilkinson, who received t h e Phyllis Tou zeau Trophy.

In case the year looked too much like hard work, reference was made [0 the numerous social gathering the cadets had enjoyedsuch a fancy dress parties, a bonfire n ight party, and function which had helped to raise money for the Ophthalmi c Hospital in Jerusalem At th e end of the AGM, t he Parents and Friends committee presented t h e cadets with a cheque for £4,000 to help in their activities.

The adult divisions all reported an increase in duty hour, and the Guern ey 'o rthern ursing division co ngratu lated its team on

(Below) Miss Shirley Goldthorpe Director of the St John and Red Cross Service Hospitals Organisation (centre) visit in g Munster Germany, last year for the opening of two new welfare rooms for the use of relatives visit ing patients in the British Military Hospital. Miss Goldthorpe is presenting a St John plaque to Miss Lucy Richards lIeft) w ith Kathy Brown (right), welfare officers at the hospital, and Majo r Jonathon Coe, Irish Guards, whose battal ion provided much help

(Left) Staff Offi cer for Cadets Kei th Fothergill receives a c h eque for £4 000 from M rs M olly Calloway on beha lf of the cadets

Par ents & Fri ends Committee

(Ph oto: Guernsey Press Ltd)

GUERNSEY

Commissioner Harold Touzeau (Photo : Guernsey Press Ltd)

co m i ng third at the national finals. In addition, one di v sion was a bl e to report a successf ul first year as operators of a new mobile fir st aid post for use throughout the isla nd

MOUTH - TO - SNOUT

SJA South Australia's magazine Spotlight tells us that retired SJ A officer Ra y Nathan has pro ved that mouth-to-mouth resuscitation can also be u sed to revive anima ls Last year Ray successfully revived a 36-hour-old piglet through mouth-to-snout resuscita tion and electric shock treatment, The piglet, one of a litter of seven, had been suffocated by its mother and was turning black when Ray disco vered it. I knew from my years with St ] ohn that h um ans can be revived, so I thought "why not ani mal s" " he said.

Hi s first attempt failed to return the piglet to normal co lour, so R ay knew he had to try somet hin g e lse. He la id it against an electric fe nce - through w hi ch a charge is sent every 30 seconds - and turned the current up a high as it would go. At the third charge, the piglet's heart started beating again, and Ray then continued with mouth-to-snout

resuscitation until the animal could breathe on its own.

For the next few hours, he laid the piglet on its back and helped it breathe by moving its front legs and pressing on its chest. It had a few hours intensive care, but was back feeding from its mother five hours after the incident.

The piglet has now returned to normal and is in fact the best of the litter. Ray said 'it didn't taste too good' while doing the mouth-to- sno ut resuscitation. ( 0one wanted to come near me for a while after, and I don't think my wife kissed me for a few days.'

WED.

•

Divisional Officer Brenda Gingell and Stephen Viney - now Mr & Mrs Viney - m ake a pretty picture under the arch of roses made by cadets of Luton , Beds. Brenda , a needlework teacher, designed and made her own dress and those of her bridesmaid, and made the cake -a good housewife to be, obviously. The couple intend to settle in Johannesburg, where Brenda will rejoin SJA

(Right) Charles Joyce

Right) Cadet Leader Kim Wilkinson, Guernsey 's Cadet of the Year, receives the Phyllis Touzeau Trophy from Bailiwick

Farewell ... Lady Westbury

SUPERINTENDENT-

IN-CHIEF

Lady Moyra Browne

WHEN Lady Moyra Browne DBE, SEN, retires as Superintendentin -Chief on St John's Day 1983 she will have completed 33 years ' service in St John Ambulance Brigade

She joined the Craigs Court Nursing Division, London District , as a nursing member in 1938. During World War II she served full-time in the Civil Nursing Reserve, except for one year as a student nurse at the Westminster Hospital. She qualified as SEN in 1946 . From 1940 to 1943 she was also County Cadet Officer, Sussex, returning to Craigs Court Division as Lady Ambulance Officer during her year at the Westminster Hospital in 1943. After the War, Lady Moyra joined Brigade Headquarters as Staff Officer to the Chief Officer, Nursing Cadets, from 1946 to 1952, when she resigned owing to family commitments.

In 1945 Lady Moyra married Sir Dennis Browne KCVO, the distinguished paediatric surgeon, and until his death in 1967 she accompanied him on many operating and lecturing tours all over the world, acting as his secretary and nursing assistant. She has a son and daughter, and four grandchildren.

From 1952 until 1964, Lady Moyra worked for the Victoria League becoming Vice-Chairman of its Central Council in 1961. For her services to Commonwealth friendship she received the OBE in 1962

In 1964 Lady Moyra rejoined the Brigade as Staff Officer to the Superintendent-in-Chief, becoming Deputy Superintendent-in-Chief later that year. In 1970 she succeeded Lady Brecknock as Superintendent-in-Chief.

Throughout her 13 years in the appointment, Lady Moyra has involved herself fully in all aspects of the work of St John. Her experience of the Brigade at every level has been of immense value to successive Commissioners-in -Chief. She has travelled a grea t deal , devoting many weekends to visiting camps, competitions, training days and conferences. She has always retained her early interest in cadets, who owe it to her active encouragement that their diamond jubilee came to such a spectacular climax in 1982.

Lady Moyra has undertaken a number of overseas tours, including visits to Australia, Canada, Kenya, Cyprus and Fiji, and service hospitals in Germany. She has been to Northern Ireland five times, visiting hospitals and training conferences and encouraging St John members working under difficult conditions.

Lady Moyra as a young St In 1980 Lady Moyra organised a St John nurse atthe beginning of John Ambulance Year of Nursing, to the war boost the many aspects of nursing open

to members and to widen interest in the subject. The year it self gave many members the chance to serve full-time in hospitals at home and abroad. It has also provided the Brigade with on-going assets: three annual nursing bursaries, through the generosity of sponsors; continued exchanges of members with some of the hospitals involved; and a marked increase in the number of male members who want to take the nursing certificate.

Lady Moyra was made a Dame of Justice of the Order of St John in 1970 and a DBE in 1977.

Everyone in St John Am bulance sends their best wishes, Moyra - and au revoir.

. Welcome

..

LADY Westbury will succeed Lady Moyra Browne as Superintendentin-Chief o f St John Ambulance on St John's Day 1983.

Lady Westbury was born in London in 1924, the daughter of th e Hon. Robert James and Lady Serena James, and spent her childhood in London and Yorkshire.

She was a St John Ambulance Cadet from 1934 to 1939.

Her Grandfather, the 10th Earl of Scarborough, was Lord Pri or of the Order of St John from 1923 to 1943

Her Mother, Lady Serena James, was for many years C o un ty President of the North Riding of York shir e , and is now a me mb er of Chapter General.

Before her marriage in 1947, Lady Wes tbury taught s mall c hildr en at the Convent of the Assumption in Kensington In Octob er 1947 she married David, now 5th Baron W estbury, who is Chairman of the St John Public Affairs Policy Committee and Command er , St John Ambulance, Humberside. They have two sons and a daugh ter.

Since 1951 Lady We s tbury has lived mainly in York s hire where she became Vice President of the former East Riding of York s hi re in 1954 and subsequently County Pre sident of Humber s ide when t he new count y was created in 1974 She has been a JP s ince 196 2 and ha s ser ved on Yorkshire Hospital Committees and on both co un ty and national committees of the Women 's In s titute s

Sheila Puckle MBE TO

SHEILA Pu c kle who ha s bee n Prin ci pa l

Admini st rati ve Offi cer (N ) at H eadqu a r te rs sin ce 196 8, retir es on St John 's Day.

'E ducat ed in Swit zerland a nd C he ltenh a m Ladies Coll ege Sh e ila o bt a in ed a BA Honour s degree at London 's Uni ve rs it y c Jla A r.... College in and Egy ptolo gy ju st befor e the war. Sh e joined t he Arm y in 193 8 to retire in 1968 with t he rank of Lt C olonel , a ft e r distingui s hed service at the Staff College, the Ministr y of D e fence, in Hon g Kong and staff duties at BAOR HQ s.

Although primaril y concerned with the female side of St John Ambulance, Sheila's e xceptional admin abilitie s s oon be cam e obvious and among other work she organised the St John team s sent to Nigeria after the Biafran war, the reception of Ugand a n Asian refugees and later others from C y prus. In 1980 she organised our Year of Nursing, and her mo st rec e nt success wa s the Cadet Spectacular at the Albert Hall last year, which would probably not have taken place but for Sheila 'volunteering' to run it.

Sheila has an invalid mother at home who she takes care of, and in addition to her HQ work she is a NCO in the Division which meets at Grosvenor Crescent. She does regular public duties after a full day's work in the office, and holds the Brigade Instructor's Certificate.

Sheila will be a great loss to Headquarters, where she achieved an immense amount of work, but we shall still be in regular touch with her as she hopes to continue her voluntary activities with London District and this month will be launching the St John Fellowship for retired members, in which no doubt she will play an active part.

ri o us, with a ll those a m bulan ces and a pol ice e cor t.

As t he a mbul a n ces m a noeuv red i n to posit io n in fro nt of th e T own H al l, t he reason fo r t hi s ento ur age wa soon revea led - the six ve hicl e wer e to be d ed icate d by th e Vene rabl e Renni e Simp s on , M VO , MA

Sub Pr e lat e o f th e Ord er a nd C h a pl a in t o

H M Th e Q uee n A fter an a ppr op r ia te a nnou nce ment b y [h e T own C ri e r (yes, Cheste r st ill has one ) a so le m n p rocess io n emerge d from th e T ow n H a ll le d by t he

Ches hir e Co unt y F lag a n d a n Assista nt Dir ecto r of Ce re mo n ies of th e Ord e r , A r t hu r Gree n. Th e pr oce sion i nc lud ed t he Mayo r of Ches te r, C llr D avi d Cotg r eave, D r O P Edmo nd s, SJA C ommand e r Ches hir e, Mi ss M. E Dea n, Co u nty Vi ce Pr e ide n t, and M r R A. F ie ldin g , Co mmi io ne r We tern A rea - all were wear in g ma ntle of th e Ord er. T here wa a lso Lt Co l G B P owna ll , Co unt y Co mmi io ne r, M r B. Sm ith, Co un ty Sup t, Mr W . Ke lsa ll , C ha ir man St Jo hn Co un ci l, Dr B. G. G re lt o n- Watson, Co unt y Pr e ide n t, a nd t he R ev f\[ alco lm J

Frodsham's other vehicle. with Paul Minlski and Lynn Radc liffe (d rive rs)

en

Not one, Not two but • SIX ambulances

for Cheshire

J o ne , Area Vice Pr e ident Four Western Area d i\'i ions - Frodsham an d Weaverham, with two ambulance each, and Che ter and R uncorn with one eachh ad raised a ll the money to b uy [he ehicles, and much time and effort had gone into eq u ipp i ng [hem to [he h igh tandard

Run co rn Combined Division s ambulance was manned by Mr & Mrs Albert Johns

demanded by St J ohn Weaverham Quad Div ision had been lucky enough to have one of their vehicles donated by I C I Ltd. Cheshire's Western Area now has 14 ambulances available for public duties.

T he dedication ceremony created some much needed publ icity with such questions being asked as 'What is St John? Are thfY a ll volunteers or what? How can one join?'

A buffet lunch for all Brigade members and fr iends, provided by t he four divisions, was held in the Mayor's P arlour. A final lOuch of goodwill came from BASF(UK) Ltd in the form of a case of wine for rhe occasion. This airing of SJA activities in the centre of Chester was partly in response to the Cin-C's concern that St John were their own \vorst e ne m ies when it came to publicity o r the lack of it. Th e co-operation from loca l a uthorities and [he police lOwards thi citycentre activity at the peak busy period was mo [ encouraging and hopefully will prove beneficial lO SJA.

R. rl. Fielding

iVesrern rlrea Commissioner

Weaverham Quad Division ' s other ve hicle with Susan Barnardo and Alan Williamson

One of Weaverham Qu ad Division's vehic les, with DIS All

Hu lse and Gillian Atki nson

One of Frodsham Combined Divis ion's vehicles, with Derek Mille r and Gillian Worrall (both drivers )

WHILE writing this month's offering I am about to move home - having had moving day put off twice! M y thanks go to Mrs Anne Sheehan from Herne Bay for the article 017 programme planning which follows Also this month some ideasfrom fain Armstrong on 'Puffing It Over'.

Junior pocket book

Jennie Eaves, Staff Officer Training and Cadets at Brigade HQ, tells me that these books are now available from the Supplies Dept code P09950 at 19p each. These books are a useful way of recording the progress of Juniors through divisions and give something to work for.

Contributions

All your ideas are needed - please write to 'Jim', 3 Brandreath Road, London E6 4QB. Programme planning

Anne Sheeham writes: lain Armstrong has some good suggestions. Another idea for a programme plan is shown on this page. I find it easier to read things if they are all going the same way! By writing down each night that you meet you can see at a glance when school holidays are coming along, and important dates such as enrolment evenings, inspections , e tc can be emphasised in a different colour. I include o t her important dates on the right side in ye t another colour. It all makes for eas y re a ding. This programme , usually planned halfyearly, beginning September to February , then March to July, I pin on our notice board. Also all of my NCOs ha ve their own copy Divisional evening

Of course, each evening has to be more precisely planned. I keep a weekly programme book which looks something like this:

7.30

OK ,

Our

Some

ACTIVITY: D vide your cadets into two

ca tch es Even m y older cadets like this game (I've even tried it with an adult division When I was in London and it was hilariou s !)

PEN AND PAPER GAME: How man y wo rd s can you make out of St J ohn Ambulance.

POP QUIZ: Your ca det s will work out the qu e tion s for yo u! Di vid e the Di vis ion into teams, each team working out t heir own questions for the others.

Putting it over by lain

Armstrong

'Looki ng fo r new ways to do old jobs means progress. '

Teaching

'To be simple about an y thing, yo u ha ve to know a great deal about it.

H ave yo u ever read the Ma nu al fo r

teams. On e team forms a c irc le wit h one ca det in the m id dle. The other team forms a line at the edge of t h e hal l.

The team with the circ le takes it in turn to throw a bean bag or soft ball backwards and forwards to the per on in the middle. Each throw which returns safely back to the pe rso n in the centre counts 1 As t h e ball progresses round the circ le the team cou nt I , 2 3, etc. If they drop the ball they start again. Mean wh il e t h e other team starts running around the circle in turn. If they are small teams, the running team can go around the circle tw ice. W h en each team member has finished going round, they ca ll out FINISHED.

Thi s can get quite exciting, especia ll y if the throwing tea m is getting to a high co untin g numb er and someo ne drops the ball! Make sure the team in the circle are not too close together, if space permits. Then, each team changes over, the running team become s the circle tea m , and the idea is who can reach the highe st number of

In tructors (obtainab le fro m t h e Suppli es Depa rtm e nt )? It is a very well produ ced handbook cover in g many aspects of teaching and is we ll wort h a read.

H ow many methods do you use for teaching? Are yo u stuck w ith the o ld ideas of standing and talk in g and u in g a blackboard or chart? Do yo u se nd your division to work in a du ty corner with bandages? Well , if you do , plea se never invite me to your division!

Yo u r method of teaching will depend on a number of facto rs:

(a) The subject (b) The age grou p (c) Equipment you ha ve (d)Your knowledge of the s ubje ct

There is a va market in which you could p ur chase numerous a ids for teaching , b ut of co ur se we very often do not h ave a vast bank acco un t to go to the market, so we mu st be continuous ly looking at other means that are wit hin our reach - and I s hall come onto an idea that has just come to mind while typing t his.

HALF YEAR PROGRAMME

Outside

make them in the di vis i on? It will ti ll co t a little of course, but nothin g like buying

GUERNSEY

Home • IS the sailor

At the schooner Sir Winston Churchill's first port of call - 5t Peter PortGuernsey's Janet Bartlett (front) with Capt Mark Kemmis-Betty meets her own Commissioner, Harold Touzeau and Ba illiwick Supt Mrs Mary Jones. Just can't keep away from home (Photo: Guernsey Press)

NOT MANY people trave l oversea to join a sai l training hip and find thal their voyage takes the m back home agai n! But thi happened 10 a yo ung St John sai lor from Guernsey who hould ha ve known betterfor it was her seco nd [rip on a STA sc hooner Nur ing member Janet Bart ett trav e ll ed from her home near St Peter Port to Port s mouth to join t h e S i r Win ton Churc hill. After an intro du ction to the permane nt crew and a to ur of th e hip he was hown t h e route the vesse wou ld take to its fi r t destination.

To most of the company this wa a mall, foreig n (?), unknown (?), and in ignificant (?) landing - ca ll ed St Peter Port! Janet ay she fo und it a little d if ficult to match the enthus ias m of the other crew member on hearing t he news!

On a rriv a l at St Peter Port he found t h at the local St John PRO had b ee n to ld of h er Voyage o f di covery, and she wa dul y

Po siti oned by th e pres s for a photogr ap h a nd an int erv iew, a nd then com ma ndeered by th e

t h em complete. And ju st think of the fun yo u ll ha ve!

The idea

You dec id e t h at there is a need for a set of sl id es on the su bj ect o f Th e Unconscious Casua lt y.

The planning

You neecl a gro up of a bout s ix interested member. Some type of came ra that will take a 's lide fi lm' (most do). A sl ide film costs about £4 to £6, in c luding d eve lopin g it. You may want to use so me cas ua lty 'make -u p'.

W ho to contact

A relative or frie nd or a member's relative who i a bit of a whizz-kid at photography.

Local camera club

Local retai le r of pho[Ographic equipment

Sc hool teac her

Pulling it over

This may be the ideal time to involve the proficiency s ubject of photography. Also it may be usefu l to bring in so m eone from Casua lties Unio n.

You wil l need to plan the s lide s you'll i1eed to te ll your story. Think of about 10 to 15 s lid es for eac h set. Think about the points you want to put over. Let the members do as much as possible on their own. Prepare lectur e notes or a tape recorded commentary.

Try to make the staging of the action shots as re a istic as possible. Don 't get bogged down indoors for pictures. Get outside and use props

You ma y find it's possible to produce a number of differen t sets of sl ide s for use in the division or for lending out to the local Scout group, etc. This is an idea that could usefu lly develop in many

BBC local radio tation to give'an inter iew on the a ir. T h e Captain also agreed [0 ay a Fe\\' word about the voyage on Guern ey's radio station

After a day in the Channel I land the hip ailed for France, a nd the Guernsey lass [Ook her turn at watch - ke epi ng, spud -ba hing, and galley \\'ork, before enjoying a spe ll on dry land.

Lookout

After another channe l cro ing the ves e l arr ived in Cornwa ll , an d Jan et [Ook h er turn a tarboard lookout. 'A s h ip wa potted on Ihe horizon,' she reports, and the watch leader confidently a id it wa probabl y a ca rgo hip. After a gla nce hrou gh the binoculars we a ll fe ll about in hy te ric , for the cargo h ip wa a sub m ar ine on exe rci ses.' She then h ad to ra k her brain [0 deal with bearing of t he u n , rec ording the hip's head' a n d ca lcu latin g the error of t h e compa 'After th i ce rebr a l act ivit y we \ ent [0 another - the hip ' quiz. I was a member

Other injormation Book s - there are numerous books on photography, so pop down to local library. Also Kodak produces leanets on photography which are suitable for children, so write for details: Kodak Ltd, Sales-Service Library , Victoria Road, Ruislip, Middlesex. ,{ of our watch' team and we gOt off [0 a very poor stan. Some brilliant answers [0 the first aid question re cued u however, and we went on to win a Mars Bar!' l\lore channel cro ing follo\\ ed, with a vi it [0 Baveux to ee the famou lape try. Unfortuna-tely, no-one had predicted the museum \\'ould be clo ed. Ne\'enhele s, an enjoyable hopping expedition \\ a ubs t ituted and then it \\'a back acro 'La iVIanche' for the la r time. 'That afr rnoon,' he report, 'we had a ra e, male \. female, to et the two [Opma t ray ail, and we won! But probably only becau e rhe Bo " n ga\ e the boys the wrong sail.'

On the la r da. rhe young 're\\' were up at 5.30am for breakfa r. pa king belonging, a nd a general clean up to 1ea\ e rhe hip well, shipshape, of course. The Captain apologised to Janet for not taking h e r home, and the brave young ailor departed to find her \\' ay back - acro the ea aga in 1 ell R. Tucker Public Relarioll Officer

XERCISE ELIX

Avon members prepare for disaster

by CLIVE ROOKE, County Training Officer

Pictures by MYRA MEREDITH, County PRO

(Below)

AT THE end of July 1982 Avon St John Ambulance were invited by the County Ambulance Service to a meeting called by t he 219 (Wessex) General Hospital RAMC (V) to discuss the staging of a major incident in the county in March 1983.

The main objectives of the exercise were: to test the Army medical services under major disaster conditions; establish a field hospital to act as a receiving unit; and give the opportunity to test the county emergency major incident procedures.

A series of meetings with representativ es from the Army, Police, Fire and Ambulance services, St John Ambulance, British Red Cross, WRVS, Southmead Hospital mobile medical team, Casualties Union and Briti sh Rail were held to plan the exercise. This was to be the first in c ident in which St John were to be involved with the County Ambulance Service and the Red Cross working as one unit since the creation of Avon county in 1974.

The incident

A train crash in railway sidings outside Temple Meads Station, Bristol, involving more than 100 casualties 20 of which would be trapped and need rescue by the Fire Service. Further problems were added at the last minute - a goods van containing hazardous chemicals which slowed down the removal of trapped ca ualties and additional rolling stock was placed around the train on adjacent line to restrict movementnothing can be taken for granted with Briti h Rail!

Two weeks prior to the incident I was informed that the County Ambulance Service would be unable to provide the resource s as planned. So a request was made to the volu ntary organisations to increa e their r es ponse - an offer too good to refu se.

Resources

The County Ambulance Service provided: a control unit, a major incident vehicle, four ambulances and crews, eight ambulan cemen/women to act as first aid party leader s, and advisors and four officers.

Red Cross provided: five ambulances and crews, two minibuse and four fir aid parties of four members, and a liaison officer.

St John provided: a contro l unit and crew of three to control both St John and Red Cross ambulances; six ambulances and crews, and four first aid parties of four members; ambulance loading officer and mysel f as liaison officer. The deputy County Commissioner and co un ty Public Relations Officer acted as observers.

The day At 8.15am all St John personnel were assembled at the county HQ in Bristol. On this occasion we did not want to test our callout procedure but gave detailed instructions of the exercise -a written set of in structions had already been circulated to members concerned.

9.08am a call for assistance was received from the County Ambulance control room.

Ambulances and first-aid teams were mobilised from HQ at intervals to their arrival on site and create a more r ea iJ stJc

response. The Red C:oss an identical system from thm HQ In a dIfferent part of the city.

The next two hours were hectic but enjoyable and a valuable t.raining exercise. Perhaps the most encouragIng aspect was to see the three ambulance services working as one. Good relationships were established with the other emergency services and the WRVS who carried out the documentation of patients and as always provided the much needed cups of tea.

Lessons were learnt by all who took part. The standard of first aid and casualty handling was good but iden ification of priority cases and the role s of senior officers on site needed to be improved in the future.

Debriefing

A short debrief was held on site at the end of the exercise by all the 'medical staff'. St John members had a further frank inquest at headquart ers followed by yet another cup of tea.

A detailed debrief of all services invol ved was held a week later at the Army HQ. St John members were praised by the County Ambulance Service with the promise that they would be a ked in future.

The future

The future was to come ooner than expected Two weeks lat er I r eceived a telephone ca ll from the Ambulance Service asking St John members to help in another exercise on a mailer cale. An air cra h at Bristol Airport - Exercise Springtime. Two exercise in two week ! Can we help? Yes, of course we can But, can we?

Solution: Involve the division that were not used in Exercise Felix. Exercise Springtime is another tory with more Ie on to be le arnt but the arne problems - ca ualty priorities and the need for someone to make deci ions, quickly, calmly and accurately.

OBSTETRIC AND GYNAECOLOGICAL NURSING

by Rosemary Bailey & Jane Grayshon, Nurses Aid series, Balliere Tindall, 3rd edition £3.50. (1983)

THIS li tt l e book written for the student nurse has a c heer f ul photograph on the cover s howin g a tudent nur e chatting to an expectant mother, and it is a pity that the nurse was not sitting in a better pO s ition with better posture (we hould, after all, try to practise what we preach!)

211 pages are devoted to ob tetric nur si ng and contraception, and gynaecological nursing (which include a chapter on venereal di ea e) occupie 149 pages. The print is clear and the paper i nice quality; the information well et out and easy to find; the majorit y of the diagrams helpful and uncluttered ; and this 3rd edition has been re-arranged and gives an excellent introductory chapter.

However, the many mi take in the 2nd edition have not been corrected; the results of much current research h ave not been incorporated de pite the claim on the

BOOKS

cover, and I found myself getting increa ing y irritated a r read the book.

The placenta is not a barrier to viruses (p.30), there i a wealth of e idence howing that alcohol affects the growing fetu adver ely in ertain circum tances (pSt), and although calcium can be removed from the mother bone and the bone around the teeth, the fetal demand for cal ium doe not cau e den ta caries.

I gave up counting mistakes after the J 8th.

The midwife has a statutory respon ibility to give antenatal are and advice (liai ing with the doctor where appropriate , of cour e) and unfortunately thi duty of care ha not been made clear.

Becau e the word 'nur e' is u ed in many place where 'midwife' is appropriate the tudent nurse could well be apprehen ive of the re pon ibility he would apparently be expected to shoulder in her ob tetric econdment, which i no longer than four to nine week in her / his three year general

training.

The gynaecological part of the book is brief and clear, albeit rather dogmat ic and simplistic in part. The need for care and concern for the patient in very vulnerable situation is, ho\ ever, ery well explained.

I do not know hoy\' u eful [he book would be [0 St John mbulance personnel a it doe not give (and i not i ntended to give) adequate fir t aid measures for ob tetric and gynaecologi al emergencies which may occasionally come the way of a fir t-aider.

Because the book is so brief and i intended for quick reference, I feel that accuracy of factual information is vitally important, and there fore I cannot recommend it. There are better short text available.

Rita D. Dibble SR ,SCM, MTD Approved Midwife Teacher Books received

The Menopause by Dr Mary nder on. £2.2 5 paperpack. Faber paperba k Sudden Death in Infancy, by Dr Bernard Knight. £3.50. Faber Paperba k.

Casualty clearing station with patients awaiting transport to hospital

TEACHING FIRST AID

from K. K. Bourns, BA , MB, FRCS, County Director

The ability to keep people alive once they reach hospital has altered so much that any person who can be preserved until they arrive in an accident department stands a very good chance of survival. It must not be forgotten that there are fatal conditions in which little can be done, but if the overall survival rate is to be improved then the quality of first aid or initial treatment must reach the highest possible standard. There are two main reasons for expert first aid treatment either in the factory, home or at the road side. Firstly, the injured person must be saved from death. A good knowledge of the essentials of first aid will enable a passer-by to initiate treatment in the right order so that no one need die of neglect. Preservation of the airway, sustaining Ii fe by artificial means practised so often as to be second nature, and prevention of dangerous manoeuvres are the actions that one expects from a first-aider who has devoted time to the enthusiastic pursuit of instruction on life-saving methods St John Ambulance Association and Brigade are devoting time and energy to improving the quality of teaching. Friends and neighbours should gain knowledge of what to do to give their own family and their neighbours the best chance in accidental injuries.

The second reason for first class initial treatment is to improve the quality of life after survival. Recovery comes first as far as life is concerned, but functional recovery is also important. The period of untreated shock must be reduced and the direction of the avajJable blood supply to the vital organs will pre ve nt further damage in these situations where permanent loss of function can result from relatively short periods of lack of oxygen. Not only is first aid likely to save life, immediate application of adequate measures can make a very real contribution to the restoration of a full life as recovery progresses Thus, it is obvious why prompt and efficient first aid is v ital. Lives can be saved and the quality of life can be improved if a person who

comes to the scene of an accident knows what to do. In survey of fatal accidents it h as been shown that some people who did not urvi ve did not have a fatal injury If someone w th a knowledge of initial treatment is available a higher precentage of accident cases s

The teaching of first aid should have a high priority in all in t itu tion of learning, but it should also be includ e d in all ommunityactivitie

St John and other organisations are available and a re eager to help all those who regard first aid as essential in their own circum tance Indu stry is covered by law, but many eery day activitie in the home

and elsewhere where the risk of injury is relatively high, are ne g l ected becau se they are no one's responsibility. We s hould press for inc lu s ion of first aid in sc hool s, centres of education and com munity centres so that everyone who s injured can rest assured that there is 'a good Samaritan' who knows what to do nearby. Members of St John ha ve the knowledge, but they must also have a message, and try to increase the number of first-aiders year by year, both in and out of uniform. Accidents will always happen - may we see that the results are minimised and t he hospital staff given the chance to produce a first class ci tizen at the end 0 f treatmen t.

To hav e no knowledge of initial treatment means that one cannot help injur ed people -a most distressing and tragic situation.

Bristol H. K. Bourns

HEAL THROW AIRPORT

from Dr F. S Peston, Director Medical & Safety Services. British Airways

With reference to the article Changing the Airport into Healthrow by Robin Stride, April Review, which I see was reprinted from Doctor, August 1980 , I am afraid that much of the information contained therein is now grossly out of date and should be corrected.

Dr Peter Cooper, the Principal Medical Officer at the Health Control Unit, retired some time ago and has been replaced by Dr George Faux.

As far a Briti h Airways is concerned, our specialist Medical Unit handling invalid and disabled passengers was given up so me eighteen months ago due to our staff cut-backs and therefore we no longer have such a fac ility in the Central Area. Nevertheless, we continue to handle enq uirie from doctors and ho pitals regarding the suitability of particular patients for air t ra ve on the following telephone numbers: 01-759 5511 ex 2378 and 01-750 5616.

ca rried out by a private ambulance service on the air-side known as the Heathrow Ambulance Service

[ think it is a pity t hat this information was repeated in t he Review wit hout checking the present situation. Perhaps we shou ld have Robin Stride ba ck for another look!

Bucks County Surgeon

PUBLIC DUTY HANDBOOK

F. S. Presto n

from Dr W J Windebank Deputy County Surgeon I have read with interest the comments related to oxygen therapy in the April Review. As a Thoracic Physician with particular interest in respiratory physiology, who has also been in the voluntary first aid organisation since 1953, r would like to s upport the views expressed in the Public Duty Handbook and those expressed by Drs. Rafne and Graham.

Derbys

REVIEWS - BOOKS from Ben Jarman

I have a large collection of Sf John Reviews dating from about 1953 to 1979 and am wondering if any member is interested and would like to make me an offer for the lot?

There are several other first -aid books, etc, and I wish to dispose of these to make room. Perhaps these could be collected by a Brigade member living say, in Yorksh i re. r shall be very happy to give full details 5 Harrison Place, Glusburn, Ben Jarman

The actual loading and unloading of invalid passengers is now Keighley, W. Yorks,

The biggest population

Recent statistics of the most populated countries of the world are: China 975 millions, India 676 millions, USSR 266 millions, USA 222 million s, Indonesia 144 millions, Brazil 122 millions and] apan 117 millions. The forecast 0 f life-expectancy revealed Iceland as having the highest (76 years) and Afghanistan the lowest (37 years)

A bridge in the desert

In 1971 the rich industrialist Robert P. McCulloch, bought, as it stood, the wellknown London Bridge for 2.4 million dollars He sent it, numbered stone by stone, to the United States and had it rebuilt in t he Arizona desert. The American re view Newsweek declares that 'To the great majority of the people the idea seemed absurd; there was not even a rivulet running beside the city of Lake Havasu, the "insta nt

city" which McCulloch had set up some years before.' But things have changed. The town, which has grown until it has a population of 17,000, now has an arti ficial water-way which runs under the famous bridge And the place h as begun to occupy the second position as popular attraction for to urists visiting Arizona surpassed only by he Grand Canyon.

British horse power

In the wake of continually -ri sing taxes and increase s in the price of fuel many British farmers are leaving off using tractors and going back to usin g horses. From 5,000 work-horses in England in the '70s t he number has grown to over 15,000 today. Instead of having to invest up to £20,000 in a tractor farmers can buy a horse for less than £1,000. Moreover, the cost of a set of tyres for a tractor, which is more than £200 per tyre, bear s no comparison with a set of horseshoes costing about £20.

Slaughter on the roads

HAY . 1

NtSEDM UCH .f{) AND r GIvE VAL

Information originating from the Council of Europe shows that Greece had the highest ratio of automobi le accidents in 1980 with 195 deaths for every 100,000 cars. Ireland occupied second place with 95, Belgium had 91, France 90, Holland 64, Italy 58, and England 46. The corresponding figure in the USA was 37 deaths for every 100,000 vehicles with a single driver. Regarding the high inde x for Greece, a spokesman for the Prime Minister said, 'It is 100 per cent certain that we have the worst incidence of accidents in Western Europe and the USA. We cannot deny that Greek motori sts are extremely

temperamental. They have the mi taken impre sion that everyone ha s the intention to c hallenge them and how them up and fro m t hi s fooli h idea they feel they have to go one better (han the other and thi e t up a vicious circle of illegalit y and recklessness.

Animal victims

According to t he periodical Der Tagesspiege/ of Western Germany, more wild animal die in road accidents in the Federal Republi c of Germany than are killed by all the hunter s of the country. I t tate t hat 80,000 deer , 120,000 rabbit s, 3,000 red tags, 2,000 \.vild boars, 250,000 toads and millions of other amphibians, not to mention reptiles and birds, are vict im s of traffic on the roads of Germany every year.

Smoker's face

Many doctors belie ve that smok ing may make the sk in of a moker give the

appearance of an older per on. Albert Kligman, a dermat?logi t of Philadelphia, has stated, 'The k1l1 of smokers is s imply not as good as that of non-smokers. But we have on ly been able to give per onal ob ervat ion it ha not been po ible to fo llow on with a tudy in which comparisons can be made.'

The immunologi John Gerrard a Canadia n, made medical reconnai ance' on 200 men to see if moking had affected their yslems of immunity. He found that in nearly every case it wa s unne cessary to ask the subject if he moked becau e a he aid I could ea ily indentify by hi anyone who had been a smoker for a long time The face of the smoker is not ve ry different from that of the non- moker at 30 yea r s .of age but at 40 and 50 years of age t he dIfference are very obviou .'

Long-lasting pesticide

Quite a number of scienti fic speciali in soil ana l y i think that mo t pe ticide decompo e in the so il and leav e ba ic co mponent s uch that t here is no further danger to human or animal life. But scient ists of Penn sy lvania Univer s ity now announce that certain pesticides which are widely use d do not disintegrate easi ly in the soil. 'They discovered,' states the Ne\V York Times that pe ticide s such as DDT, Sevin a nd 2.40 are bound to polymeri ze or combine with other molecules in the ground and produce new components, which can be toxic chen:ica l s, far more lon g-lasting than the Ong1l1a l substance. Such tran formed components a lso tend to adhere to oil or humu and this cou ld easi ly produce effe t unknown and unpredictable in the su rrounding material.

Nottingham

The annual Nottingham conference - have you booked for this year's? - is well publicised in Brigade Circulars and in the REVIEW For those who would like a personal opinion, however, CAROL YN WAY here gives the view of a Guernsey member on last year's conference.

THIS WEEKEND course in September had a rather unfortunate beginning for u ,a once in the grounds of ottingham Univer ity it [Ook us about half an hour to find the hall we were looking fornot much fun on a dark wet night with u itca e apparently becoming heavier and hea ier, and no-one we spoke to able to confirm even that there wa a St John conference taking place that weekend!

Eventually we found our hall and had a meal. We were unfortunately too late to watch the films ' You can save a life' and Dor et Air Di a ter' which were an optional extra for the weekend, but we did ha ve an enjoyable evening relaxin o and meeting so me of t he other deleo-ate '" mo t of whom eemed to be fir t-timer' or el e had been at least ten time before!

Unfortunately Saturday morning was wasted as far as the new delegates were concerned, a it was devoted to di cu ion entitled 'Whither ottingham where people gave their opinions of the conferences in the pa t and made suggestions for improving the format.

The lunch, a were a ll the meal throughout the weekend, was abundant and delicious.

The afternoon tarted with an audiovisual pre enration abo ut the Ophthalmic l!-0 pit a I - thi wa doubly interesting, fir tly because of the information it

contained about the Ho sp ital, and secondly because of the technique used to give the illusion of movement when using slJdes. (See p.127 Ha v e yo u seen it?)

The second item was a talk by Dr G. Murray Mackay on 'road accidents and injuries'. This was an inte resting talk, but it was a scientific analysis of causes and types of injuries and perhaps a little in vo lved for so me of he delegates.

Afternoon tea and an excellent dinner followed, then in the e ening there was a dance in one of the halls of residence. Thi s was an excellent opportunity to meet people from allover the country and discuss some of the pecial problem and advantages of variou areas. A few things that I particularly remember include hearing from an Area Commissioner \ ho had to dri e for an hour each wa y to attend officers' meetings, eeing the pass that a orthern Ireland member had to ca rry to say he was entitled to wear a black uniform, and hearing from many member about the problem of communications, items being i sued from Headquarters but sticking at area or county level. (Ed: and not appearing in the Reviell'?).

Sunday tarted with an interdenominational service which wa well attended. The syndicate leader then had the unenviable ta k of presenting the conclu ion that heir yndicate had reached to the entire conference.

ext came the mo t eagerly awaited part of the programme the 'Open Forum ', where any member ould pur question on an St] ohn to pi to representati es of HQ taff. Thi was a popular meeting with orne intere tinoque tion and an wer 0

The conference fini hed with a wellde er ed and much appreciated lunch. (Reprinted from SJA Guernse) 's Blllletin)

Matlock,

hire

W. J. Windebank

NEWS from SCOTLAND

H o te l A pri vat e dinn e r in Abden H o use on the e ve o f th e in sta llat io n gave t h e executive of fi ce r s a nd t h e Prior-Designate an op p or tuni ty t o meet t he Grand Prior and to pay t ribu te to t he ret ir ing Prior of Scotland. Am o ng t hose in ve ted with t hei r in ignia in t he Gr a nd Pri o ry Church, Clerkenwel l, on Mar c h 24 was Sq u adro n Leader I. McCabe of In ve rne ss, a Nu rsing Officer of Princess Mar y's R A F N ur s ing Service. Miss McCabe , in ves t ed a s an O fficer, is based at the RAF H os pit a l, E ly A m o n g tho e present at another \"ery

WALES

er fo r Wale s v is it ed G we nt Count y Ba nd Di vis io n and prese nted t hem with 20 ne w b ug le c ord s It was th e fir st time that Dr Pr ic e , Chi ef Co mm iss ion e r , had vi s it ed the Di vision and on a rri val t hey p layed a se le ct ion of tune s and marches for him . He then made an in s pe c t ion follo wed b y a p rese n tation.

Th e New Co m mi ss ion er for G we nt, D r J ohn Llo yd , a lso a t tended the di vis ional visit. A t the pre se nt at ion Mr s Gleny s Bell wa s pro mo te d to Di vis ional Super intendent and the f ormer Super intendent, Mr Malcolm Bell w a s promoted to Assist a n t Commi ss ion er.

The Di vis ion ha s eight bell lyra player s who, apa rt fr o m p lay ing in the band, make m a n y v s it s t o lo c al ho spit a ls playin g in t he wa rd s for the pa tient s. Thi s began four year s a go wh en th e Di vis ion started pla ying ca r ol s in four local ho s pi t al s

The band pla ys all over Wales but, like m a n y Di vis ion s , it spend s more than it a cquir es. A the moment a more modern ambul a n ce is ur gentl y needed by thi s ver y active Divi sion.

The Di vis ion ha s four Grand Prior Cadet s, whi ch s how s that it is in volved in many other a cti vit ies, includin g a n annual camp attended b y m ost of t he m e mber s

140

uccessfu l recept ion he ld at Th e Burn, G lene k on Apri l 2 1 were t he new P rior , t he Vi coun t of Arbuthnott, a nd t he C h ance ll or, Mr W.A .P. Jack. Such gat herin gs h ave done much to increase good fe ll owship and to bind toget h er as we ll as in c r ease t he member hip of h e P r iory' youngest bra nc h In E din burgh t he success of the canal barge St J ohn C r u ader in bring ing ome joy in to the live of t h e han di capped i being fo ll owed up by training of pilots on a second boat 'The Janet Te ford', which owe mu ch to the students and sta ff of Telford College.

was he ld in Uga n da towar d s t h e e n d of las t year. T he p h o tog rap h h ows th e a m b ul a nce n use at a resc ue exercise in co nj u nct ion w it h t he Uga n da Fire B ri ga d e in Kampa la o n Febr ua ry 28 1983 in th e presence of t he H o n Dr J ohn Luw uli za Kirunda, Min ister of I nte rn a l Affa irs.

Au str alia

AT t h e conclus i on of 'Opera t ion La m ington', Mrs M im Arno ld of Monas h ACT was presented wit h a St John p laq u e by the Briti h High Commissioner in Canberra, Sir John Mason (p h oto right).

With the aid of 26 helpers from t he Church of Latter Day Saints Mrs Arno ld arranged the concoction and packaging of 14,000 lamington s which were so ld to rai se 1,043 dollars for the St John Assoc iation in the ACT. Prior to the 'Operation', Mr Arnold pre-sold quantit ies of lamington s on visit to government dep artments, private f irm s and office block

Mrs Arnold r ece iv ed her first certifi cate from St John in Queen land in 1954. She is now an in tructor an d lecturer with the As ocialion in Canberra.

For the benefit of readers unfamiliar with lamingtons , they are mal l iced cake rolled in coconut. If you'd like to try them, the recipe is given on the right. Good cooking.

ambulance sent from the UK to Kampala to repla

Th e Queen, dUring a viSit to the Solomon Islands last year, is surrounded by enthusiastic young first-alders during outdoor demonstrations In the capital, Honiara. Trying to calm down the enthusiasm IS (left) Div Officer Mrs Hilary Broughton who is employed by the Islands Medical Service , one of the winners of this year's SJA professional nursing bursaries She was In London recently to collect the bursary

The annual inspection (below) of the Brigade in Malta by the SJA Commander, Mr E.H.W Borg. IRight) A casual ty being lowered from a building by the lad der -hinge method (Photos: The Times of Malta )

OVERSEA S

New A mb ul ance fo r Uga nda ON Octobe r 2 1982 Mr Joh n Kintu (Exec u tive Sec r eta r y fo r SJ A Uga nda) ar r ived in Momba a to (ake d e live r y of an anonymous gift of a reco ndi tioned ambula nce which had been shippe d out from UK to rep lace t he amb ul a nce whi ch had be en hi jacked by an a r me d gang in Kampa la a year prev io us ly a nd of wh ic h no f ur t her race co ul d be fou nd Mr Kint u drove t he new veh icle bac k thro ugh Ke n ya to Ka m pa la, a d istance o f we l ove r 50 0 m iles an d it was at o n ce p u t in to u e fo r tr a ns p ort in g pa tien ts to hospita l its fir s t impor t a nt pu bli c d ut y be in g a t he Eas t a nd Cen tr a l Af r ica C ha ll enge Cup Foot ba ll Tou rn a m e n wh ic h

Solomon Islands

News from Divisions/Centres

OBITUARY

The jud ges: (learn Ie I) Dr W J. Wi ndebank of Derby; indilidual Ie IS Dr Dorolhea Coles, of Bramp o n and Dr I. I\ ackenzie of Liltleo\e r.

Award for the highesl individ u a core wa made 10: Joyce l\ l acLuca. 0.201' B.P C hcmi a s Tea m wi h m ax mum marks of 60.

Team Te s T he ea m are wa ki ng Ihro ugh a close d hoppi ng cen re o n a Sun day morning w hen one of IWO men who al'e re deco r alin g a sh op froll! co lap e afler receh ing an e ec lr ic sho ck f ro m a fau ll Y power 100 1 and, in collapsing, knocks hi s \\ orl-.ma e fr o m a add er Thi s di slr acl Ih e driver o f a h osp il al car re l urning 10 il

depO , ca usin g il 10 cr as h nl o a r oa ds de la m p l anda r d.

On exa min ali o n o he ca u a lies i wi ll be e abl h ed I h a :

Th e 'shoc k ed m an h as su f f ered ca diac arre I ; hi work-ma e knocked From

Ihe ladd er has susla in ed a c ose d frac tu re o th e righ f orearm , n vo vi ng Ihe e bow

JOIl1I, and s a di ab el c w ho deve o p sy mpl oms and igns of hypog l ycaemia partwa y Ihro

WE DON'T LIKE YOU

(5) 16. Frequent response to 31 Acro ss (6) 17 Run ba c k and sing for a healing profess ion. (7) 21. Return a mollu s c with a not e for a herb. (7) 23. Lose weight to manipulate a fracture , di lo c ation or hernia. (6) 25. Bone f orming the side and cre s t of the pel v is. (5)

28. The Spani s h manu s cript for trees. (4) 29. Filamentous epid e rmal appendage. (4) 31. [Jlnes s due to in v a ion of bod y b y patho ge ni c organisms (9) 32. Crippled a large number in a strange deal. (5) 3 3. Vegetable in medullary ca v ities of long bone (6) 34. Thin ela ti c li s u e from amber men (8)

Down

1. Detoxify an addict by withdrawing drugs. (3-3) 2. Per piration o f f e ar and myocardial infarction. (4-5) 3. Lean work for surgeon (4)

4. The itch that is in scab s (7) 6 Modify men appearing in m a ll advertisement. (5) 7. Solution of sodium chloride. (5) 8 Science dealin g with classification of disease. (8) 9. Riddle in the cinema. (6) 15. South American state providing an antiseptic balsam. (4) 18. Primitive and offensive to good taste. (4) 19. Each aim is different in a locali e d deficiency of blood supply. (9) 20. Condition characterised by a lac k of pigmen t ation in the skin. (8) 22. Drug administered to induc e vomiting. (6) 23. Arm once broken in a love st ory. (7) 24. Great 19th century surgeon has bride wild about nothing. (6) 26. Deduce from main ferment. (5) 27 Ve r y small prefix. (5) 30. Blister. (4)

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No.5 (83)

Across : 1. Hospita l; 5 As leep; 10. Co' cci; 11. Ventricle; 12 Ulna; 13. Once; ]4 Sopor; 16. Lip ase; 17. Tartars; 20. Osteoma; 22 Tend·on; 24. Hands; 26. Toys; 27. Urea; 29. Epidermis; 30. Cape' r 31. Ra' nu l a; 32. Aneurysm

Down: l. Hiccup; 2. Second intention ; 3. iri s; 4. A'd'vance; 6. So ·res; 7. Encephalography; 8. P leur isy; 9. Infect; 15 Halo ; 18. Rin g; 19. Coch lear; 21. Asthma; 22. Trypsin; 23. Sacrum; 25. Spe ll 28. Ecru.

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS

Officia l St John Ambulance Sweatshirts. Made in Great Bri tain and screenprinted with your divisional name and Sf J oh n Ambulance Brigade Motif. £6.95 each, minimum order o nly 10 shirts, under our special 'St John Ambulance Brig ade Scheme' For full details write or telephone to Karyn Mye rs, Printemps Ltd. (The Schools Specialists), Turpins Yar d, Oaklands Road, London NW21YB. Tel: 01-450 9588.

ST JOHN REVIEW

MY ATTENTION bas been drawn to tbe fact that in some instances Presidents are not aware that badges of certain ranks of presidents sbould be backed with colours, i.e: District/County Vice Presidents -- Blue backing. Area Presidents and Vice Presidents Green backing.

(Both of which can be obtained from Supplies Department.)

A printing error in the 1980 Ambulance Dress Regulations may have led to confusion about this. The following amendment was issued in May 1983 Brigade Orders. 'Ambulance Dress Regulations Revised Edition 1980, page 10, under Presidents and Vice Presidents, delete "For Badges see page 16" and substitute "For Badges see both columns page 20".'

Brigade breaks with nearly 1 00 year tradition

UNIFORM

The choice from present optional styles is YOURS

THERE HAVE BEEN many requests and suggestions for change of uniform coming into Headquarters over the past few years and a recent finding from a MORI poll comments tbat uniforms are not popular and tbat ours is old fashioned and 'stuffy'

I recall tbat prior to a visit some years ago to Pertb in Australia, I read in the minutes of the first AGM of St John in that city in 1904 that an offer bad been made by tbe Royal Pertb Jockey Club to pay for uniforms for first-aiders, as it was considered desirable tbat they should be readily identifiable. Today this is even more important. In the various environments in which St J obn Ambulance exercises its skills tbere is a need to be readily seen and recognised.

In public order situations uniform is essential for personal protection and indeed we have proved many times that one of our main roles is to extricate the police when they have been hurt. So clear indentification is essential, not least so tbat the public should know that we are tbere. For too long we have been taken for granted. I believe we must emphasise our role at large gatberings, be tbey demonstrations, pop concerts, football matches, maratbons or other sporting occasions, and I say that with some feeling. I agree also with London District that on ceremonial occasions more formal uniforms are suitable. On the other hand we could be less formal - tee sbirts on beaches, woolly pullies, overalls and anoraks. The only reservation is tbat we must be clearly recognised, tbe person in charge clearly defined, and that the members all dress the same. I am quite sure that if tbe reason for uniform is fully explained, tben wearing it will not only be accepted as an advantage, but tbe right to wear it a source of very considerable pride.

I believe tbat there are sufficient options in our present Dress Regulations to meet the majority of the cbanges tbat have been asked for. If a county feels that a less formal uniform is wanted for the county or one of its units, then they may take one of

St John Fellowship

the options to the standard dress as appropriate. It must be accepted that the level of decision will be the level at which the cost must be met. It may be that a judicious mix will fill the bill. For example, officers to wear the present dress with peaked cap while on duty and personnel to wear anoraks, overalls and beret. This is parallel to police practice where the ole wears his peaked cap while constables are in helmets.

There are several points I would stress:

1. You should always be instantly recognisable as trained St John personnel.

2. The officer in charge should be clearly identified.

3. The standard of dress should be appropriate to the occasion.

4. If sweeping change is decided, then the county/district / area/division must be prepared to bear a proportion of the cost if necessary.

5. The interchangeable items (unisex) could produce a common denominator but I believe that the loss of the nursing dress would be a retrograde step as the feminine role in nursing should be emphasised, particularly with cadets.

These proposals were accepted with some enthusiasm at the Commissioners' Conference and the Commissioner-in-Chief has asked me to say that he welcomes the change. He also feels that new members should not be asked to buy formal uniforms for at least two years, unless they wish to do so. If more formal dress is required by the unit concerned, then assistance should be given to pay for it. We of the Committee continue to get proposals leading, mostly, to less formal uniform, and we will continue to look for minor adjustments that could lead to modernisation without massive cost.

This article sets out our policy. There will be no changes in dress regulations in the near future.

Gerald Easton

Chairman R&D R Committee

Will this satisfy those demands for change?

THE FELLOWSHIP BADGE

The badge has the cross in white enamel on a red ground, with the wreath and scroll in silver on black. Both the brooch and lapel version will cost £ 1.60 each.

Branches are asked to order, preferably in bulk, from:

The National Secretary St John Fellowship 1 Grosvenor Crescent London SW1 X 7EF

Please make cheques payable to the St John Fellowship

INAUGURAL MEETING

June 25 1983

Were you there?

A full report on the meeting will appear in the August Review.

(see page 167 for Branch form)

THE CONTROVERSY on the use of oxygen in first aid has resurfaced yet again!

The chapter (Chapter 11) in the longawaited Public Duty Handbook has been severely criticised by Dr Brian Lewis, County Commissioner for Kent and a Consultant Anaesthetist with specia l experience in inten sive care. In his review of the handbook (St John Re view April 1983 page 87) Dr Lewis calls the chapter 'so mething of a disaster area'. The Chief Medical Officer and the Surgeon-in-Chief commented on his opinion and asked for evidence to substantiate it. The handbook states categorically that oxygen is lifesaving only in carbon monoxide poisoning and in a certain rare condition of the lungs.

The Editor of the Review, on the same page, drew the attention of readers to a letter by Dr Peter Baskett, published in May 1982, in which Dr Baskett stated that the use of oxygen in myocardial infarction accompanied by shock, or in trauma with substantial blood loss, and in head and chest injuries was 'of considerable value'.

He might have added that oxygen is of considerable benefit, even life saving, in cases of poisoning in industry, in agriculture and when toxic fumes are present such as in fire situations.

The handbook, in the same chapter, goes on to state that only one fortieth of the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood is in the plasma fluid and that the oxygen carrying red blood cells would be saturated (that is carrying their full measure of oxygen) by expired air resuscitation alone, carried out correctly

But a standard modern textbook on anaesthesia (A Practice of Anaesthesia, Wylie and Churchill-Davidson) expresses, with physiological evidence, that the oxygen carried in the plasma is of vital importance as it is this oxygen which is first given up to the tissues, being replaced from the red blood cells. It is another physiological fact that up to 300/0 of the oxygen in the vessels, after cardiac output, may be in the plasma when oxygen, by mask, is given for any hypoxic (lack of oxygen) condition.

These arguments are very convincing and not remarkably new but , it has to be agreed, that first aid is first aid and not second aid or a paramedical procedure.

There is NO SUBSTITUTE whatsoever, in any circumstances, in FIRST AID for ensuring a good airway, using expired air by mouth, by airway or resuscitation bag and for attempting to restore absent circulation by external cardiac massage.

These basic techniques must be learned, relearned and constantly practised, to be applied by the first-aider when he has no other resources; if he has other re so urce s (that is oxygen) there is still no substitute for the good airway, good ventilation and for cardiac massage when necessary. Rightly or wrongly, and certainly without any authority from St John Ambulance headquarters, most St John ambulances carry oxygen (and many also Entenox). Should there be a directive, therefore, from HQ that all such apparatus be removed from vehicles? And if there were such an order, would it be complied with?

The writer thinks not. St John ambulances are used for transporting all kinds of patients, are called in to replace NHS ambulances when these are not available, and in fact are authorised to carry oxygen when on aeromedical duties. In a national emergency would there not be an urgent directive to equip, immediately, all our ambulances to HS standards?

Dr John Camm, a consultant cardiologist and an Area Surgeon in London District, in a private communication writes that he would be uneasy if any cardiac cases were carried on ambulances without oxygen and that it is standard and good practice to recommend urgent oxygen therapy in myocardial infarction (heart attacks), severe angina and in heart failure. In fact, such therapy can increase survival rate in those cases. He writes in another communication, that he sees no reason why the Brigade should not recognise various skills and levels of training by designating members for various duties. Also that if the oxygen be given by Venturi masks then there would be no danger to patients with chronic lung disease, though pure oxygen is unlikely to be harmful for (he duration of conventional first aid.

It is not within the scope of a 'Talking Point' to take sides on such an issue, but to present points of view and stimulate discussion - and maybe change. It does appear, though, that the time has come for finn, reasoned and modern directive to be formulated at the highest Ie el and distributed to all members and to all grades in the Brigade Either there hould be NO oxygen in use in the Brigade (except under direct medical or nursing supervision in special circumstances) or it should be available officially and designated personnel trained in its u e and benefits. L. P.

London District Finals

Duke of Westminster: A membe r of the St John Co un cil in Cheshire. Donated a boat to the Tideway Thames Division three years ago. He succeeds Lord Napier and Ettrick

Princess Helena Moutafian: Has been giving considerable assistance to St John for fourteen years. In the early days she was closely involved on the National HQ Appeals Comm ittee, but for the last six years a very active member of Prince of Wa le s's District, first as Area Vice President, Northern Area, and then as District Vice President.

Her deep interest in the latter appointment has been with the Tideway Division (with the provision of a boat), Cadets, and the determination in obtaining financial donations from many of her friends for essential equipment.

Derek R. Fenton: His service has been unique, in so far as he joined the Ealing Division as a Cadet and has served in every rank up to Commander.

Probably the most experienced operational senior officer in the Brigade, Derek has for the last twenty-four years been responsible for the organisation of all major duties in London, his first being the fu ne ral of Sir Winston Churchill. London District

NEW APPOINTMENTS

President:

Deputy

During this time he brought into SJA mobile units, radio and modern ambulances, and has developed a very close relationship with the London Ambulance Service, Metropolitan Police and London Fire Brigade.

John Bamford: While City Treasurer of Westminster he accepted the posi tion of Auditor and then Financial Adviser. Following his retirement, he was made

Deputy District President and in

became Acting Director and Commander. Partly to ensure that the vast knowledge and experience of Derek Fenton was retained, Mr Bamford has relinquished the position of Commander and will concentrate on the vital role of Director Association.

John Gerrard: Joined the Brigade in 1936 and was called up at the outbreak of war into the Military Hospital Reserve. On demobilisation he joined the Metropolitan Police and retired as Assistant Commissioner in 1981. His interest in St John was always maintained particularly during the era of public order demonstrations, and when he became President South Western Area in 1975. He became Deputy Commissioner in 1979.

G. L. Smith: From Area Commissioner South Western Area, replaced by J. L. Kibble who was Area Commissioner, South Eastern Area.

Dr E. C. Dawson: Was District Surgeon and is succeeded by Dr R. W. Brotberwood (Deputy), becomes Area Commissioner South Eastern Area. A. R. Willis: Was District Records Officer.

Top

Brotherrood, Glynn Davis (Director, Kodak

d), Mayor of Harrow Cllr John Campbell, Commissioner Derek Fenton, Mayoress of Harrow Commandant Arthur Hammond Met Special Constabulary, Col David Lewis, John Bamford, Commander London District

New unit for Andover

HOW MANY duties have YOU spent in a tent? When it always seems to be pouring with rain and blowing half a gale - and the gale always seems to find the gaps in the tent? Not ideal conditions in which to work. But those days are now over for members of Andover Ambulance and Nursing Division, thanks to a 'Load Lugger'.

John Davis, of the Division, first saw a Lynton Load Lugger at his local Sunday market. Basically, it is a very large box on wheels, easily towed by a 2-litre car. An idea took shape in Mr Davis's mind and he noted the manufacturer's name from the Lugger' s side and went back to his division. An idea for a new mobile first aid unit was born

The next step was to contact Lynto n Commercial Units Ltd with the idea and Peter Williamson arrived from Manchester to tell the division exactly wha his firm could do for them. As it happened, Andover Division was not quite the first to come u p with the idea; Lyntons had already produced a similar unit for SJA Worthing and so knew the kirld of thing St John were likely to wan t.

Mr Williamson described a completely washable unit (even the ceiling is washable ), with fitted bed and space for a trolley stretcher, hot and cold water on tap, gas, blinds, good lighting and a separat e area for members to sit when not treating patien ts, He also showed them photographs and a floor p lan of Worthing's unit. The idea was approved , Mr Williamson went back to Manchester and Andover's members set to work to make their new unit a realit y, launching an appeal to raise the mon ey.

Exhibited

At that time member s had no idea that they were soon to be even more proud of their new unit, for it was to be exhibited at Olympia as part of t he Interior Desi gn International '83 Exhibition.

Bradford SJ Guild (Fellowship?)

AFTER lengthy di sc us s ion s with my colleague D I O Marie Isted , we decided that Bradford Metropolitan Area n ee ded an additional branch of St John to cater for the needs of our friends the retired member s We felt that in many cases County Pool did not provide the answer and most member s who had retired from active service were either forgotten (ex ce pt at Christmas) or not kept su ffic iently in touch with the goings-on of the organisation.

One o f the main aims of St John is to care for our fellow man, so bearin g thi s in mind a new group - the St John Guild - was for med. This new group s hould be selffinancing and self-s upporting

A meeting , t o which member s of other local division s were invited , was ca ll ed and a const itution was set up. The president was to be Dr W. Alderson, the secretary Mr A. Wilkinso n , and t h e treasurer Miss E. Roadhead, who kindly offered her services since she is st ill very active as a di vis ional officer.

Th e civ c

John Davis saw a very large box on wheels and thought

Lyntons specialise in a range of van trailers made to suit the requirements of the small businessman, mainly on the retail s ide. As well as first aid units, they manufactur e kiosks for selling anything from ice cream to fish and chips, ordinary trailers for transporting products from one place to another, mobile offices and exhibition unit s, and mobile accommodation units which can be transported flat and erected on site in a very short t i me Their las t interesting ord er was for five 30ft x 8ft units packed wi th enough consumer durables for four peopl e to last an entire year and to be sent to the Falkland Islands Other uses have been for RAC and AA service centres, and hom e dialysis cabins for the garden where a permanent room is not available in the house. In fact, Lyntons will do almost anything - simply choose the box, give them the requirements and they will do the res t.

Andover Division is very proud of their new mobile unit. Lynton Commercial Uni ts Ltd (Peter Williamson), are at Constabl e Street, Gorton, Manchester MI8 8GJ

Veronica Sharp e Public Relations

READERS familiar with St John 's Gateand anyone who isn't s hould get along there to see the treasures in its museum - may be forgiven for no t ins t an tly recognising th e scene in t he photograph above. It is, i n fact , a view from the library and museum office corridor in the West Tower looking into th e Council Chamber. It doesn 't usually look like this, of course, but shows the extensive electrical and restoration work which is now being carried out. Lack of funds in recent years has meant that essential repairs to the

A prog r amm e of activities was planned

in cl uded visits to the city's law courts, cat hedral , and lectures from Sister E. M. P earso n , a much respected officer from County Pool.

The Guild's main objectives are to provide fellowship to ex- and retired members of the B rigade, continuity of care both to each other and the community, and to carry out t he mottoes of the Order.

Prior to the official opening of our new Guild last April the local press had been informed and an article appeared in the paper. Finance for the Guild came from three s our ces: £5 0 each from Bradford City Ce n tra l Di vision and Stansfield Nursing

Division, and £150 from the old Bradford Corps.

The Lord and Lady Mayoress of Bradford, Mrs Joan Llghtband and Joan Beevers , together with the County Commissioner, Mr C. N. Packett, officially opened the Guild on Friday, April 15. We believe this is the first venture of its kind in the north of England, and look forward to giving it the fullest support Meetings are held once a month on a Friday afternoon and anyone interested in the Guild's activities should get in touch with the secretary, Allan Wilkinson, 62 Harbour Rd, Wibsey, Bradford.

Ken Brearron, D I Supt

restoration fund. We have already received grants from the GLC, the Landmark Trust and the Ancaster Trust, and smoke detectors required under GLC fire regulations have been installed (fitted free of charge) by Chubb Fire Ltd. All of which is a great help, of course, but only a fraction of the vast sum of money required to complete the work satisfactorily,

MUSEUM

NOTES

building have had to be postponed until the ess ential h as now become urgent.

The whole building has had to be rewired and the lantern roof of the Counci l Chamber repaired; man y of the drainpipes require renewal ; so me of the stonework n eeds replacin g; and there are large cracks in the walls, particularly in the West Towe r. I could go on, but quite simply it all adds up to £115,000-worth of work.

To help raise this mone y for these urgent repairs an appea l h as b een launched for a

We were particularly pleased when we heard that an Islington resident, Ian MacDonald, who read about the repair in his local paper when he was about to enter the London Marathon decided there and then to run in aid of the building work. He raised nearly £100 and came along 1O the Gate recently to present the money (in £1 coins) to the Secretary-General, Sir Peter Hudson. St John's Gate, with the Priory Church and crypt, is the most important St John building in this country. Built in 1504 by Prior Thomas Docwra (the 'w' of this Northumberland / East Anglian name is not pronounced, by the way), it was the entrance to the vast medieval headquarters of the Order in England. St John Ambulance began here in the 19th-century It is , of course, still the headquarters of the Order in England, and is visited annually by thousands of people from allover the world. Now it needs support from everyone interested in the work of St John, to en ure its urvival for another 500 years

So please send your contribution to The Gate Restoration Fund The Museum The Order of St John , London ECIM 4DA. Assistanr Curator

The Gate - u nder repairs (left)

runner Ian Ma

VIA CHINA

Readers may remember that the aeromedical team which went to China for a patient (April Review) comprised St John members Dr Tom Evans and Derek Clark, and the personnel manager of the company for which the patient worked, who was referred to in the article as 'Michael'. I've now heard that the story continued after the China trip was successfully completed.

The Chief Commander , Major-Gen

Peter Leuchars receiving a small gift from the Chairman of Council for Singapore Dr Ee Pe n Liang during a Chinese New Year dinner on Feb 17

Michael was subsequently invited by Tom Evans to be his guest at the Order 's Annual Serv ice at St Paul's Cathedral last year and just before the service began Tom casually mentioned that Michael would probably be hearing from St John in Hampshire shortly.

Michael was subsequently ' interviewed ' over lunch by the SJA Commander and Commissioner for Hampshire , as well as the chairman of the Council of St John, and he was then appointed to County Staff. Our Hampshire readers will, of course, by now have recognised Michael as Michael Knott, who took over responsibility for cadets in Hampshire from Mrs Margaret Brookfield, when she transferred to Jersey recently. A former T A officer, and married with a

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

baby daughter, Michael Knott follows in the footsteps of his late father, who was a member of the Order. Welcome home, Michael.

CAR STICKERS

Car stickers are now available free of charge from the Public Affairs Department at Grosvenor Crescent.

There are four different ones:

1. 'Drive like a Saint and you won't need one. St John Ambulance'.

2. 'Learn First Aid - take our crash course. St John Ambulance'

3. 'Drive any closer and you'll need us. St John Ambulance'.

4. 'Remember your breaking (sic) distance. St John Ambulance'.

Let Grosvenor Crescent know which ones

you prefer and more will be printed. Give them away everywhere, it is an excellent way of getting free advertising.

NEW HQ FOR

After several years of hard work and extensive fund rai sing, I hear that the new SJA headquarters for Colchester division s was opened recently by the Lord of Essex, Admiral Sir Andrew LeWiS.

The building , originally a Church of England primary school, had been unu sed for a long period and was in a poor state of repair. But alterations and renovations have transformed it into a fine HQ.

The premises consist of a large hall which can be divided by sli ding doors into two small halls a medium

d hall, and a small room suitable for entertaining or committee

NEW HQ

BY THE EDITOR

meetings. There is also a storeroom within the building for training equipment and the Cadet Band instruments.

A new entrance hall and toilet block ha s also been added, making the building a most useful asset to t he Brigade in Colchester. It is hoped over the next few years to complete the project by building garages for the

After the

by the

Lord Abinger Lord Alport and the Mayor and Mayoress of Colchester were among the many guests who attended the opening.

KNOW ABOUT SPORTS' INJURIES?

T. S. Sonnex, Medical Officer for Arsenal Football Club and T. 1. Ryan, County Commissioner, Oxjordshire, recently carried out a poll. WE RECENTLY asked 250 patients attending general dermatology clinics how

COME

To keep the name of St John Ambulance before

PROJECT

MARATHON

NURSE OF YEAR

they would treat a sprain. They were asked whether they would treat it with hot water, cold water or ice; whether they would exercise it, rest it or bandage it; or whether they would go to a doctor or a casualty· department.

We were also interested in finding out how many had attended a first-aid course and, if so, when.

Finally, we were interested in how many people had had a recent anti-tetanus innoculation - Oxfordshire being a wellknown tetanus area.

The 250 people questioned were between 15 and 79 years old. 41 of them had attended a first-aid course. Of those who had done so, 44OJo gave the correct answer, while 29OJo of those who had not attended a first -aid course gave the correct answer. This suggests that for a simple problem there is among the general public a very low knowledge of

Miss I. Redford,

Wigan building maintenance

correct first -aid procedures. Attending a first-aid course clearly is a help - although there is still apparently room for improvement. Interestingly enough, young people appeared to have more idea of correct procedures than older people, while women appeared to be more aware of the correct methods than did men.

At least 14OJo considered that the GP would not know what to do and 36OJo said that the GP would give an unsympathetic reception. The questions in this respect may have been slightly loaded, but 11 OJo thought that a casualty officer too would not know what to do and 34070 thought they would not receive a sympathetic reception in Casualty.

The majority (85070) recognised that they would have to wait a long time if they went to Casualty with such a problem, and we feel that many would be deterred from seeking

medical aid, thus making it even more important for the general public to be aware of first-aid procedures.

At least 60070 of the people questioned were not currently protected against tetanu s.

GOOD READING

A new book the Champions of the Cross, by the Rev H. A. R. Edgell, Assistant Chaplain to the Order in Norfolk, tells the story of the Order of St John alongside that of the Knights Templar.

I found this imaginatively written book fascinating reading, and it should prove to be an ideal introduction for all ages to the long and varied history of the Order of St John. Simple but excellent illustration s by the author, together with some of the most informative maps I've seen about the Order (ie, the location of Hospitaller houses in England and Wales in the 15th-century), make this essential reading for everyone interested in the activities of St John.

It is available priced £1.50 a copy (plus postage and packing) from St John Ambulance HQ, 59 Kings Street, Norwich NRI lPH.

SJA Desborough's ambulance is dedicated by the Rev Twyford, with (left) Mr Harold Bak er, the Comm issioner, Mr F. Roberts, and (right) 0 /0 N. Amrews. See story MOBILE

SJ

PR

(a

hosts to London '" District's competitions this year (see page 148). presents a £ 15,000 cheque to Supt Arthur Miles to buy a new ambulance for Ealing Division Looking on are Derek Fenton, Commissioner , and Dr John Seccombe Western Area Commissioner. The gift is from the

For cadets .. FUN WITH A PURPOSE . . . by adults

The 2nd sponsored night hike for Northants' Thrapston ambulance and nursing cadets was held over an April weekend. 24 cadets reported to the HQ at llpm, were divided into groups, and allocated fluorescent jackets, maps, compasses - and a list of clues. Meanwhile, adult members who were to act as marshalls were checking details of the night's fun test of ingenuity.

Teams were dispatched at IS-minute intervals, armed with a map reference of their first incident on the 10-mile route, which involved securing an injured person on to a st retcher. The route took them along a disused railway, where they were unexpectedly asked to prepare and light a fire with only four matches

The next incident involved erecting a ropeway, with tripods at each end, across a ravine and safely getting two rucksacks across it. This task, set up by CSO M. Coleman, proved the most popular of the night.

With spirits high they set course for the next check point - but where oh where was the promised soup? With its aroma becoming tantalisingly stronger, all ideas of rest had to be suddenly forgotten as they came upon a road traffic accident. They set about treating the casualties. So realistic was this incident, which was organised by S / M W. Winsor, that several passing motorists stopped to offer assistance.

After a well earned rest in the soupkitchen, the cadets then set off on the last

lap of their hike , which led them through a wood - where surprise, surprise, Humpty Dumpty was lurking, waiting to be found and rescued. By now a steady rain had set in, and it was rather tired and damp groups of cadets which returned to their HQ at about Sam.

However, after spending a few hours in their sleeping-bags revival was swift, for they awoke to the aroma of sausage, beans and eggs being prepared for them by nursing members.

Fun? - yes. Over breakfast a lively discussion soon showed just how much everyone had thoroughly enjoyed this night on the tiles. The co-ordinator D I O M. Croot was pressed to organise another one as soon as possible. And the cadets set off to collect their sponsor moneylater swelling divisional funds by £l30. Fun and useful.

(Right) Winners of the North West Gas regional fi st aid competition finals, held at Winsford on May 12, were Mrs Sheila Roberts (left), of Widnes, and Miss Dia n e Hughes, of Warrington, who received the trophy from NW Gas chairman George Scott

CStJ secretary of Wigan Centre for 25 consecutive years, celebrated the occasion by organising a buffet supper dance, the proceeds of which (£300) she then presented to treasurer Mr B Hickman for SJA

What a good dea SJA Cheshire had

Guests at

Civil Aviation Centre's annual

exercise

buffet lunch at Heathrow Airport), the Hospitalier Sir Stephen and Lady Miller , sit at the controls of Concorde while recentlyappointed Cadet Advisory Officer Leo Budd a former Concorde captain, explains the mass of flight deck controls

(Right) Peter Goode, managing director of '" Hoover, who were

Preparing the tripods for the aerial ropeway - at 2am CSO M. Coleman and (L to R) NI Cs Julia Claxton Ruth McLaren and A C Rupert Bryon

ORDER

I NVESTITU RE

by the Lord Prior, London, May 19

Mrs Catherine Stretton, London's District Nursing Officer with 35 years' service to St John, is invested as a Commander.

Mrs Stretton who is also a member of the Aeromedical Services, lives in Beckenham Kent

COMMANDER (Brother)

Anthony Joseph Montanaro-Gauci (London)

COMMANDER (Sister)

Winifred Ethel, Miss Willis (London)

Gwendoline Ru h, Mrs Morrish (Devon)

Catherine Mary, Mrs Stretton, SRN, RCNT, NDN, FETC (Kent)

Rosemary Davina Mrs Leigh-Pemberton (Kent)

OFFICER (Brother)

Timothy John Edward, The Rt Hon Lord Tollemache (Suffolk)

Cecil Norman Trelfa (Cheshire)

Col Michael Peter Feltham Jones (Hants)

Frederick Harry King (Devon)

Peter John Taylor, MD, BSc, FRCP, FFCM, FFOM

DIH (Suffolk)

Glyndwr Williams (London)

Maj William Kenyon Jewell (Wilts)

Kenneth James Roden (West Midlands)

Mr John Keeley, of Glasgow, who is vice-president of the St Andrew s Ambulance Association (equivalent to SJA in Scotland ). becomes an Officer of the Order

David Frederick Wickens (Oxford)

John Leo Keeley (Scotland)

Kenneth John Courtney, SRN (Devon)

George William Bennett (Yorks)

John Wildbore (Cambs)

Keith Seymour Townsend (Berks)

William Johnston Leake (London)

Albert Edward Nelson (Derbys)

ASSOCIATE OFFICER (Brother)

Lr Col Kulwant Bir Singh Sethi, aBE, MA, BS, FICS ,

MRCGP (Staffs)

OFFICER (Siste r)

Joan Elizabeth, Mrs Walter (Berks)

Mrs Christine O 'Ca llaghan , who joined Newbury (Berks)

Division as a cadet in 1959

(her father was in charge of the adult division) and is now Area Supt (N) W Berks, becomes an Officer Christine's sister runs a cadet division and her husband is on Area staff, and she also has two children, aged 5 Yo and 1

Rose Lilian Mrs CliflOn (Cambs)

Muriel Ethel, Miss Spokes (W Midlands)

Phyllis, Mrs Bright (Essex)

Christine Anne, Mrs O'Callaghan (Berks)

Clara May, Miss Brittan (Cambs)

SERVING BROTHER

Herbert William Smith (Herts)

Lt Cmdr Humphrey Robin Hussey, RN (Cornwall)

John Alfred Matthew Wood (Surrey)

David Brian Shooter (York)

Alan Keith Budd BSc, MB, C hB DObst, RCOG

MRCGP (Berks)

Stanley Frank Flint (Bedford)

Kenneth Ralph Pearce (Avon)

Michael Louis Lewis (Bucks)

Malcolm John Newell (Derbys)

Maurice Kellaway Tuckett (Devon)

George Bowerbank (Co Durham)

Reginald George Boul to n (Essex)

David Geoffrey Fenton (Herts)

Eric Adamson (Bed s)

Cyril ViClOr Shon (Berks)

Walter Ivo Nash Buck s)

Colin Wright (Yorks)

Mr Cyril Short, ret i red corporal of Windsor Division after 44 years' service, is now chairman of Windsor and Eton Association and vice - president of Windsor

Ambulance Cadet Division

Cyril's family has St John connections since 1879 He becomes a Serving Brother

Charles Ronald William Shapter (Devon)

Brian Hays (Cleveland)

James Henry Robinson (Herts)

Peter Marchmont Anderson, MRCS, LRCP (Clwyd)

Frederick John Hayward (Berks)

Richard George Fordham (Bucks)

Frank Dale (Derbys)

Wilfred Joint (Devon)

Ronald Henry Hards (Co Durham) Samuel George Douglas King, CEng, MIProdE,

Secretary-General's Report

1982 has been dominated by events and the economy! Both have given us a good deal of anxiety and mostly , but not always, satisfaction.

For the greater part of the year the Centenary of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem has over-shadowed other activities. Tensions in the Middle East rose to new heights in the late summer and were of such dimensions that over half of those intending to go to Jerusalem in early October to take part in the events marking the Centenary, cancelled their bookings; the annual meeting of the Alliance Orders was also cancelled. However, in the end, over 150 members and friends of The Order arrived from as far afield as New Zealand and North America; 40 of our Confreres from Europe came, together with the Hospitaller of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and about 80 from the United Kingdom. Between 4-6 October there was, apart from da ily tours of the Hospital, an Order Service in St George's Cathedral at which the Prelate , Lord Coggan, gave an inspiring address, an Investiture at the Hospital and an open discussion sponsored by the Alliance Orders, all complemented by the appropriate reception luncheon or dinner. About half of those present then made a short tour of Tiberias, Galilee , the Golan Heights and Acre and after an unseemly struggle the U.K. party left on a British Airways flight fifteen minutes before Tel Aviv Airport was completely closed by the prolonged airport workers' strike.

Many of the major events of the year were held to raise money for the Hospital and to enable us to set up a Centenary Endowment Fund. Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales came to the Barbican, on the night after it had been opened by Her Majesty, The Queen, for a fabulous evening shared with The Prince's Trust. The entertainment had a decidedly American flavour but, alt hough perhaps it was a more successful event for making people aware of The Order than for raising money, those who attended had a thoroughl y enjoyable evening.

Later in the year an d under the patr o na ge of the Lord Mayor, Sir Christopher Leaver, Lord Caccia chaired an appeal to various City in st itution s. St John Ambulance Cadets throughout the country raised over £32,000 towards the endowment of a bed for the Hospital and their Diamond Jubilee year was marked by a highly successful Cadet Spectacular attended by both the Minister of Sport and Her Royal Highness, The Princess Anne at the Albert HaJl on 9 October. The Public Affairs Department and th e Musical Society have been tireless in their fund-raising efforts; our many Confreres and frien d s thoughout the world have been most ge ne ro us in their support a nd in this Centenary year it would be i n v idiou s to single out any for special praise, although our apprecia tion and gratitude to them all could not be greater or more since r e. By the end of the Appeal we should see about £JA million in a cap i tal fund which together

with a gene rou s ann ual grant of so me £350,000 from Abu Dhabi, promised until the Trust which is being set up for our benefit in Amman generates a similar amount of income, could be said almost to me et o ur target.

During the year a fine 12 minute audio-visual presentation ab o ut the Hospital h as be en produced which won tWO major awards at the British Industrial and Scientific Associatio n convention in Bonn. It has also been put on to video tape with both English and Arabic commentaries and can be borrowed from the Public Affairs Department.

As will be seen from the body of the Report, St John Amb ul ance ha s had a busy a nd successfu l year with the Association introducing a new First Aid at Work Training Pa c kage. Excellent new editions of the First Aid Manual and Nursing manual, 'Caring for the Sick', have alsu been published. The Brigade dealt in matchless sty le with the Pope's visit, London Marathon, State Visits, and New Year's Eve in Trafalgar Square.

The Air Wing has maintained the frequency of its missions as a valuable adjunct to the National Health Service in the transportation of human orga n s for transplant, while the Aeromedical Services are second only to the Royal Air Force as the largest provider of air repatriation for sick and injured passengers in the country. The most spectacular repatriation carried out in 1982 was that of Mr Leslie Applewhite, an employee of Vickers who had suffered a massive heart attack in Xian, some 800 miles west of Peking.

On 6th Apri l 1982 His Royal Highness the Grand PrlOr opened the new St John Ambulance Headquarters in Greater Manchester , purchased and equipped largely through the zeal and per Istence of the Chairman of Counci l. His Royal Highnes had planned also to go to Zimbabwe to attend the inaugura meeting of the new Nat ion al St John Council in Harare, to in vest President Canaan Banana, the Patron of the S( John Council, as a Knight of St John and to see something of the work of St John Ambulance in that country. Sadly, and much to hIS regret, at the last moment illness prevented him from making the Journey.

The Lord Prior of St J o hn h as been indefatigable in his travels to see and encourage St John volunteers at work. Apart· from many functions and events within Greater London he has visited Wiltshire, Durham, Cambridge, Kent, Northern Ireland, Jerusalem, the United States of America, New Zealand and Australia.

In the very early stages of the Falklands crisis, and at the IOstigation of HRH the Grand Prior, an atte mpt was made to an a ircr aft w h ic h , manned by expert St John AeromedIcal team s, would be used to evacuate serviceme n

from South America and so reduce the demand on beds in the h os pital ships of the Task Force should heavy casualties be incurred. However, the Ministry of Defence pre-empted us by putting an embargo on any private charter of ships or aerop lan es and so we had to be content with offering our services to the Royal Navy, which co-ordinated the medical suppOrt thoughout the campaign. In the end we were not needed except to meet some of the wounded flown back to England and to provide, together with the Red Cross, two Hospital Welfare Workers aboard S.S Uganda.

1983 will be a year when The Order's finances will be critical. By and large the St John Ophthalmic Hospital and St John Ambulance in the counties should be able to balance the books but to raise funds sufficient to maintain the activi ti es of St John Ambulance in Grosvenor Crescent - and these include co-ordination of the work of the Association and the Brigade, assistance and encouragement to the National Councils overseas, competitions, the Review, St John House and the Registry, together with those activities connected with both 5t John Ambulance and The Order which are charged to the Priory account (Public Affairs and Supplies Departments, Treasury, Chancery and the Library and Museum) - is going to be a great challenge Our reserves are now down to a minimum and although many economies are alread y in force, help in raising money will be needed from every one throughout the year.

Major events for 1983 are the Centenaries of St John Am bulance in Canada in June, Australia also in June and South Afric:: in October and the Grand Prior's Advisory Council in June in London.

Throughout 1982 a host of hard working, selfless and willing volunteers have yet again made their unsung, but appreClated and vital contribution to the work of The Orderas have untold members of the public, companies, institutions and Trusts by their generous donations. We unhesitatingly and with gratitude acknowledge our debt to these, our friends and helpers from all parts of the world, unit ed under the banner of St John.

St John Ambulance members at the 1982 London Marathon when over 1350 people were treated. Over 900 St John vo lunteers were on duty.

St. John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem

Our Centenary year of 1982 has been one of great activity in Jerusalem. Early in January the Out-patient Department's reconstruction was completed, designed to provide a steady flow from the patient's admission to departure following treatment, and the housing of medical personnel was improved so that each Doctor has a cubicle of his own, fully equipped with all the instruments required.

The Dispensary, now officially recognised, was enlarged and a Benchtop Bioflow Chamber ordered to enable our pispenser to make up the drops required for the Hospital on SHe.

A Doctor's Library has been established adjacent to the Laboratory and fitted out as a reading room with a video recorder. Video tapes have been purchased from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, which have been designed as teaching aids by experienced Ophthalmologists.

Gifts of equipment and instruments have been given to the Hospital during the Centenary year, which has brought the Hospital completely up-to-date in the Operating Theatres and also in the diagnostic: instruments required in the Out-patient Department and in the w;J.rds.

In April the Hospital was inspected by representatives from the Committee of Higher Surgical Training, and the Hosp ital has been approved for a further period of five years as a Training School for Senior Surgical Registrars.

The Outreach programme began in earnest in January 1982, under the direction of the King Hussein Fellow, Dr Lee Chumbley, with the assistance of Dr Ian Thomson, a new member of the Hospital staff. Monthly visits have been made to the Beir Zeit Clinic and weekly visits have been paid to the Hospital at Rafidia in Nablus. A statistical survey is now in progress which will enable us to design more accurately a preventive and curative programme for 1983.

The statistical analysis of the work done in 1982 shows that there is little change in any department of our activities. Although there is a minor fall in numbers due to the slackness in the Out-patient Department during the Lebanon crisis, figures compare favourably with 1981.

Our Warden, Mr Geoffrey Bisley, FRCS, comp leted his third year of service at the end of 1982 and will be replaced in February 1983 by Group Captain A. H. Morgan. Mr Bisley writes "I wish to place on record what a privilege it has been to be in Jerusalem and to be associated with such a splendid staff." Weare all indebted to Mr Bisley for expert piloting of the Hospital through the very difficult period of his first two years and for ens urin g that the Hospital began to perform a much-needed service to the population of the West Bank by establishing the Outreach programme.

Miss Ena Burke, our Sister Tutor, left on 18 October and was awarded the MBE in the New Year's Honours List. Sister Manarious has taken over her post. Miss Cornelia Funck

joined for a 'year from Bonn, and was a popular member of staff. The fourth and fifth groups of Nurses went through the Ophthalmic Nurse Training Course; there were 13 students from the Sina School of Nursing, who attended for a month's experience, and there were 48 trainee health workers, who underwent instruction together with 6 students from the Caritas Baby Hospital in Bethlehem. Miss Weal from the Royal Navy left us and was replaced by Mrs Barbara Johnson. Miss Bleasdale from the RAF also left us but no replacement has yet been found for her. It has been difficult to find Sisters for the Hospital during 1982 due to the Lebanon crisis.

During the year Squadron Leader Richard Downes served with us from August until the end of the year. The other expatriate surgeons were Dr Lee Chumbley from the USA, Dr John Byrne from Australia and Dr Ian Thom son.

Dr R. Mesurier (RAMC), Dr John Bakhai (Royal Nav/) and Dr John Harvey (Canada) completed their year of service.

The highlight of 1982 was the Centenary celebration starting with an impressive service at the Cathedral of the Church of St. George the Martyr on 4 October, when the Preacher was Lord Coggan. This was followed by luncheon in the Hospital garden and tours of the Hospital. On the following day an Investiture was held in the Courtyard, when the Warden had the honour of being received and invested as a Knight of Grace by the Lord Prior of St John, and many devoted and long-standing members of the Hospital staff were invested. This was followed by the unveiling of the 'Lyle Ward' by the Lord Prior in the presence of Great Officers, representatives of Chapter-General and other mem bers of The

Yet again, the Ladies'

Ladies' Guild

ST. JOHN OPHlliAl)4\C

Library and Museutn

Although 1982 was a year of financial stringency, we managed to make some important acquisitions, particularly a fine painting of St John's Church in the 1930s by Rex Vicat Cole (towards the purchase of which the Curator herself made a most generous donation), and a collection of 17th Century letters written by members of the Merles Beauchamps family, who were Knights of Malta. These letters supplement the already important archive covering this family's relationship with The Order in Malta. The St John Ambulance Association in Cambridgeshire made a most welcome donation of £500, enabling us to buy costume display figures for the St John Ambulance Museum.

As always, the Library and Museum have benefited from the generosity of many supporters and donors, and only space prevents us from listing them. However, we cannot let this opportunity go by without expressing our sorrow at the death of Mr E. A. Alliott, a benefactor and friend.

The St John Historical Society is flourishing; lectures have been well attended and visits to Swingfield and Sutton-atHome in Kent and to Ansty in Wiltsh re were very successful. A workshop sponsored by the Societ y came forward with the

St. John Atnbulance

idea of a 'teaching pack on The Order's history and the preparation of one is under way.

The staff have been kept busy with the tasks of answering enquiries, giving lectures and showing the Museum to visitors, amongst whom was HRH Crown Prince Hassan bin Tal of Jordan. Sets of slides on the history of The Order and St John's Gate have been prepared, and the Curator has written a new guidebook to St John's Gate. She has also been appointed to the London Museums Consultative Committee as one of the two private museums' representatives The Assistant Curator and Museum Assistant put together an exhibition on the history and the work of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital to coincide with the Centenary celebrations. This was displayed at St John's Gate and then went out on loan. The Exhibition is available on loan.

For the Hospital's Centenary, a replica of the ear ly 16th Century pro cessional cross used in The Order's ce remonial was mad e by Peter Shorer to be carried in Jerusalem - the original was too fragile to be taken. A cope, designed by Sir Ninian Comper and made by the Sisters of Bethany in 1907 did, howe ver, make the journey in a special packing case given by the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Introduction by the Chief Commander, Major-General P. R. Leuchars, CBE

1982 has been a busy and challenging year. For the Association, the introduction of the First Aid At Work Teaching Package, to meet the requi reme nts of the Health and Safety Executive, ha s proved less traumatic than anticipated thanks to th e preliminary measures taken to prepare the necessary text books and to qualify sufficient instructors. In due co urse Brigade Members wi ll also qualify and requalify by passing this statutory course. 1982 also marked the publication of the new First Aid and Caring For The Sick Manuals prepared in conjunction with St Andrew's Ambulance Association and the British Red Cross Society. T he se excellent text books are a n important contr ibuti on towards the education of the general public in First Aid and Nursing.

For the Bri gade, the "S p ectac ul ar" at the Albert Hall, reported in detail elsewhere in this Report, was undoubtedly the highlight of th e Cadet Diamond Jubilee Year. On the adult side, the number of hours of voluntary duty undertaken, h e cases treated and accidents attended never fail to impress me. I am concerned, however, that fewer ad ult Members are attempting to accomplish an ever-increasing work load. Indeed money and manpower remain the sole limiting factors to the boundless tasks awaiting us and our first priority is to reverse the disappointing financial and recruiting trends of the past years.

In conclusion I must pay tribute to Lady Moyra Browne, who retires on St John's Day 1983 after 13 years as Superintendent-in-Chief and 33 years in the service of St John. Her experience, energy, and dedication have been an inspiration to us all and on behalf of the Foundation as a whole I wish her every possible happiness. I would also like to welcome her successor, Lady Westbury, County President Humberside, whose associations with the Order and devotion to our cause in Yorkshire need no introduction from me.

ASSOCIA TION

The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981, coveri n g First Aid at Work, became effective on 1 July 1982. In anticipati o n of greatly increased competition in the field of industrial First Aid, the Association introduced the First Aid at Work Training Package on the same date. This was achieved smooth ly and effectively and there is no doubt that the pri.'l1ary aim of improv ing and maintaining standards of instruction has been achieved. This package is unique to St John i n that it seeks to t each First Aid by a properly designed system of objective training and has been devised by ex perts both in First Aid and mod ern training systems. It has alr eady proved very popular in industry and is supported by the Health & Safety Executive.

Examination results (including Refre she r certificates) show that whereas the recent trend of red uctions in the level of Adult First Aid training has been continued in 1982 (down by 15 per cent on the 1981 figure) there has been a significant increase in intensive First Aid at Work training (up by 28 per ce nt on the 1981 figure).

During 1982 continued progress was made in the Emergency Aid Training for Schoolchildren carried out at the Butlins School Venture Weeks.

The new fourth editions of the First Aid Manual and the Nursing Manual were published during the year and a new publication, Emergency Aid in

Within our Cadet movement, 44,000 strong, our Cadets enjoy the physical challenge and mental stimulation for which the young crave. Our aim is to help produce wellbalan ce d yo un g people - we do not on l y teach first aid as you wi ll discover as you read other sections of this report. We at St J ohn Ambulance are proud to belong to a quite unique organisation wh ich dedicates itself to the service of mankind.

Painting 0/ St John 's Church in the 1930's by Rex Vicat CoLe.

St. John Cadet Spectacular 1922 DiarnondJubilee 1982

NURSING AND WELFARE

Welfare activities

Brigade members extended their welfare activities in 1982 without any lessening in their commitment to First Aid and Nursing. The entries for the annual Sir Keith Joseph Welfare Cup Competition revealed excellent co -operation with the statutory services and with other voluntary organisations

A notable development has been the increased co ntribution by Cadets. These boys and girls aged 11-18 do an immense amount in their spare time for the elderl y and for young disabled people. Their concern continues when they transfer to adult divis io ns. During 1982, as a follow-up to the International Year of Disabled People, 34 young members took a party of 32 yo ung disabled people to camp at Avon Tyrrell - a great success which it is hoped to repeat in futur e years.

The Falkland Islands campaign

As the fighting ended, the Ministry of Defence invited the Joint Committe of St John and the Red Cross to send two Welfare Officers out to the hospital ship SS Uganda. The St John representative, Jill Marshall, has since returned to serve at Musgra ve Park Hospital (Military Wing), Belfast.

BRIGADE

TRAINING AND CADETS

1982 saw considerable changes in the staffing of the Training and Cadet branch St John Ambulance now employ two full-time Staff Officers reporting to the Chief Staff Officer. There is also a newly-appointed part-time Cadet Advisory Officer whose responsibility it is to liaise with other youth organisations and to advise on Cadet policy matters.

St John Ambulance Cadets are observer members of the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services and the Council of Physical Recreation as well as having links with most youth organisations.

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fulf at a Monster Children's Party.

Special Ventures

St John Ambulance Cadets of both sexes took part in the Sail Training Association's two-week schooner training cruises and this year the STS 'Sir Winston Churchill' was chartered entirely for St John Ambulance

Fifteen yo ung St John members were invit ed to Bri s bane for official dut y for two weeks at the Commonwealth Games.

At the Roy al Tournament in July the Banbury Cadet Band gave an outstanding performance at Earl's CO Urt before Their Royal Highness es, The Duke and Duchess of Kent.

Leadership and Adventure Training

An Expedition and Mountain Leaders co ur se was held to train members in the running of adventure training within Counties and a Potential Leaders co urs e to provide leadership training for 16-21 year olds. Both courses, held at Eskdale, Cumbria, provided training sk ill s such as rock climbing and canoeing. Two Outward Bound courses were held at the Outward Bound School at Aberdovey, Wales.

One adult and three Cadet teams of twelve members each took part with some 20,000 people from a ll over the world in the Nijmegen Marches in the Netherlands this year. In order to gain their medals, Cadets were required, depending upon age, to co mplete a 30 or 40 km walk each day for four da ys.

Nottingham Conference

Another succe ssf ul Conference was held in September at Nottingham University, this year's theme 'W hither Nottingham?' being designed to seek opinion on the format of future annual meetings.

Methods of Instruction

Six Weekend Methods of Instruction co ur ses were held at various ed ucati on and training centres. Those who passed the assessment test were awarded t h e Brigade Instructor's Certificate and thus qualified to teach in whatever s ubj ect they specialise. To date there are 243 currently cert ificat ed Brigade Instructors, including 25 Advanced In str u ctors. Methods of Instruction courses are open to anyone over the age of 16 years.

Duke of Edinburgh A ward Scheme

To date over 500 young people aged bet wee n 14 and 25 have participated and over the past five years 100 Awards have been gained.

Proficiency Scheme

The Proficiency Scheme exists for Cadets and young adult members (ex-Cadets) up to the age of 21 to study subjects outside First Aid and Nursing in order to widen their interests and abilities. On obtaining passes in 12 subjects 780 members were awarded the Grand Prior's badge and Certificate this year, 649 of these going to Cadets.

Cadet Quiz

The ann ual Cadet Quiz, held during Brigade Finals in Croydon, was won this year by a team of four Cadets aged under 16 from Oxfordshire. They competed against the team from West Midlands over three rounds of First Aid and Nursing knowledge tests judged by senior medical personnel.

Formation 0/ the St Joh n CTOSS towaTds the end 0/ the 'Spectacular'.

Without doubt, this event was the most exciting of the year. After a great deal of consideration it was decided to celebrate this Jubilee Year with a Spectacular and it was held in London's R oyal Albert Hall on 9 October 1982 Some 1,200 Cadets took part in the show which was directed by Major M. Parker , MBE, Producer of the Royal Tournament. He was aided by many of his Tourn a ment team and also the Director of Music, Scots Guards, and by the televis ion stars, Isla St Clair and Bill Pertwee.

Without their help this memorable event co uld never have taken place.

The County contingents were trained and accompanied by their Officers and many parents, who also made their splendid costumes. All the Cadets gave magnificent performances attended in the afternoon by the Minister of Sport, Mr Neil Macfarlane and in the evening by Her Ro y al Highness, Princess Anne, Commandant-in-Chief of St John Ambulance and Nursing Cadets. In spite of numerous panics and worries trying to organise 1,200 youngsters who had a few hours to rehearse, it was an outstanding success due to the hard work of everyone involved.

A St John Nursing Cadet with her arms

Overseas

AIR WING

Earl y in 1982 we carried out our first pancreas mission and we also saw our aircraft on two heart missions from Harefield to Ghent and a liver team from Cambridge to Brussels. Thereafter our missions continued fairly regularl y ending with a total of 45 completed missions

Thirty-one pilots flew 147 hours co v ering 21,406 nautical miles Most missions were carried out at night , often in very extreme weather condit ions, and fi ve invol v ed fl y ing to Europe . T he team of 12 controllers , fi ve of them ladies , continue to co v er every minute of the y ear, either from the Control Centre or from their homes

The character of the Air Wing s work is changing now that kidne y s can be stored safely for a much longer period, enabling them to be carried b y scheduled routes Onl y 21 kidne y s were transported in 1982 as compared with 29 in the previous y ear , but there was an incre ased need to transport surgiGal teams, which means using larger aircraft on man y flights.

The outstanding co-operation given by man y airfield s cannot be over-emphasised, part icularl y th e facilities given by th€ Ro y al Air Force and the Royal Navy. Our deepest appreciation must be given also to the st aff of the Third Air Force U.S.A F. for the efficiency and courtes y shown when the y are called upon to optm the airfield when it would normally be closed.

We were much saddened by the tragic and untimely death of Wing Commander H. H. Drummond, AFC, OStJ, DFM , who took over the administration of the Air Wing earl y in 19 72 and literall y dedicated h is whole life to ensure that the Wing was efficient. During the ten y e ars of h is stewardship the Air Wing gained an international r eputation for reliabilit y and dedication of the job i n hand. As lon g as the work of the Air Wing continues the name of Har ry Drummond will be perpetuated

AEROMEDICAL SERVICES

In spite of the recess ion in th e trav el industry, the number of flight s carried out to repatriate the sick and injured increased overall in 1982, but there was a sharp drop in road ambulance operations , mainl y due to the transfer to St John Coumy organisations of calls not requiring patients to be collected at, or delivered to, airports A total of 723 operat ions were completed - 34 per cent by scheduled flights and road ambulances, 29 per cent by air ambulance aircraft and road ambulances, and 37 per cent by road ambulances only, to and from airports.

The majority of patients were suffering from multiple injuries, heart attacks, strokes and psychiatric illnesses Most originated in Europe, but all parts of the world were visited. Unusual cases included the return of: a young man from Xian, 800 miles west of Peking, after a massive heart attack; a lady from Leningrad during which the aeromedical attendant joined a Finnish air ambulance crew as crew member, a psychotic Korean deposited to Seoul and, sadly, young drug abusers from Katmandu and Goa.

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The work of Aeromedical Services s judged mainly o n the skill and care provided directl y to patients and their families by volunteer Brigade members : the Doctor and Nurs e Aeromedical attendants, who fa ce probabl y the most demanding task in their profession, and the drivers and nursing crews of Count y road ambulance unit s who lo o k aft er patients on the cru cial first or last stag e o f their journ ey. E ve n so , they could not pro v ide the effi cient servi ce th ey d o without the consid erable help of man y other s: the co ntr o ller s of aeromedical equipm ent at the fiv e ambulan ce airfi eld s; th e lecturers and demonstrators at aeromed ic al attendant s' tr ainin g sessions; the co-ordin ation of C o unt y r oad ambul ance unit s; the headquarters staff; and last, but n o t leas , th e membe rs of the Aerom edical Panel. A unique h o nour w as t h e pr ese nt at ion b y th e Automob ile A sso ciati o n of their Silver Medal for 1981 , for ser v ices to m o torists , now proudl y displ aye d in th e Aerom e di cal Se rv ices Operati o ns R oo m.

MEDICAL

In April Mr. Ph ilip N ew m an retired from Ch airm anship o f t h e M ed ic al Bo ar d Th e C hi ef Co m man der ex press ed th e appr eciat on of everyo n e at St Jo hn A m b ul an ce for the se rv ice he h ad gi ven so un stintin gly fo r five years The ne w Med ic al Boa rd C hair ma n s D r E lston G r ey-T urn e r , CBE, MC , TD , MD w h ose car eer h as inclu de d bein g an H ono r ary

Ph y sici an to H er M ajes t y The Qu ee n , M as er of h e Soc iety of Ap o thecarie s, Sec r etary- Gener al of th e Sta ndin g Co mmitt ee of D oc tors o f t he EEC, and - fo r w hi ch he is p ro b ab ly bes t known - Se cr eta ry of t h e Briti sh Me d ical A ssociatio n

The M ed ic al Co n feren ce at Nott in gham was aga i n admirabl y o rgani se d b y i t s C om m itt ee un der t h e Chairmanship o f Dr R J. D o n aldso n T h e 25 0 del egates included not onl y St John Ambul a n ce p er so nn e l bu t di st i nguished members of the Arm ed Fo r ces, nati o n ali sed industries and professi o nal b o dies Apart f r o m St J o hn Seminars, ses s ion s i ncluded "A cc id ents" an d "A Ne w Approach to First Aid " and culminat ed in a k ey n ote add ress by Barone ss M cFarl ane of Lland aff , Pr o fe ssor an d H ead of t he D epartm ent of Nursin g, Uni versit y o f M an c h es t er

In the Spring, the Medical Bo ard again r ec ei ve d a reque s from St Thomas 's Hospital Medi cal Sc ho o l and a n ew request from the London Hospital M edi c al Sch o ol, to pr o vid e a First Aid cours e fo r first year students. Courses w ere run successfully at both Hospitals resultin g in 56 student s recei v in g First Aid certificate s Sub sequentl y, th e L o nd o n Ho spit a Medical School changed it s sy llabus to includ e resuscitati ve First Aid for its fir st y e ar stud ents with adv an ced training for its clinical student s It is also of interest that 20 o f the medi ca l students trained to date have attended meeting s and publi c duties with London D is trict Brigade units

The Board discussed whether St John Ambulan ce could, or should, teach not only First Aid and Nursing in developing countries, but also preventative medicine and hygiene. At the end of the year, the Chi ef Command er invit ed the Board to undertake a wide ranging study o f the future r o le of St John Ambulan ce in the next decade and thereafter.

Visits

Th e Chi ef Commander carried out an exten s iv e tour of E as t a nd Central Afri c a during M a r c h and Apr il, vi siting U ganda, Tan z ania, Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Hi s v isit t o Ha r are in Z i mbabw e did much to so ften th e wid espre ad di sap pointm ent exper ie n ce d by St J o hn m e mbers at the canc ellat ion of the G rand Pri o r 's vi sit du e to Il l-health

At about the same tim e th e Co mm iss o ner-in-Chi ef vis it ed th e St J o hn Ambulan ce Bri ga d e in Cy pru s and Malt a, spen din g n ea rl y a w ee k in eac h co untry.

The Sec r et ary O ve rseas Rel ati o n s to o k a Fir st Aid tea m o f 15 Brigad e m e mbers fr o m all o ver th e co unt ry t o Br isb a n e fo r the Co mm o n wea l t h Gam es in O ctob er. T he y co ntr i but ed sig nif ica ntl y to th e P ubl ic Dut y co mmitment at the Ga m es and r ece ive d a gr eat welcome fr o m lo c al SJ A mem bers. N ew Z eala n d an d P apu a New Gu in ea al so se nt tea m s.

At the r eq u es t of he J o r da n ia n G overn m e nt , a nd fina nce d by th e m , t wo Br ig ade t ra in i ng officers visite d A mm an in Se pt emb er in o rd e r to a dv ise t he m o n t h e settin g up o f an amb ul a n ce serv ice fo r t he M in is t ry of D efe n ce. T hi s pr ove d a rewarding exe r cise and sho uld serve to reinforce th e al ready cordia re atio n s h ip be tween SJ A a nd Jordan.

A n ex p erienced ins t r u cto r from Yorksh ir e carr ed out a va l uable t rai n ing mission to Zambia and M ala wi.

New C ouncil s

Two co n sp icu o us ac h ieveme nt s d u ri n g t h e year we r e the recons ti tut ion of th e Na ti onal Co u ncil in Swaz ilan d , after a dormant period of some years, and t h e fo rm ati o n of a new Council i n the So lomo n Isla n ds. The fut u re of St Jo h n in b oth these countries looks p romising.

In a different category was the disso lut ion of the Commandery i n Ce nt ra Afr ica on 31 D ecember 198 1 and its subst itutio n , in ve ry s im ilar fo r m, by th e Na ti o n al Co u nci l of Zimbabwe t h e fo ll ow in g day An enco u raging develo p ment is the int rod u ct ion of a p ilo t Pr i m ar y H ealth Sche m e in ru ral areas.

Ove r se as aid

The St J o hn Cou n ci l in London h as recently reviewed the sca le and basis o n wh ic h ai d to Overseas b ra n c h es of SJ A has been gra nt ed, and h as ag r ee d to the all ocatio n of a fixe d

Overseas Conference

t

nt and o t her as p ects of the programme. In February, Pr ofessor Sohr a b Darougar of the Institute of O p h th al mology sup ervised t h e first instructional classes taught in Arabic. The grad u ates, including four teams for village-level de p loyment, were then t r ained in t h e field, where they screened some 2,500 villagers. An important psychological aspect of learning rei n fo r cement and morale building was that in th e fi rs t week of field t r aining the st u dents screened and identifie d b lin d people who could have thei r vision restored , followed t he villagers' progress t hrough t he distric t clinic, and wit n essed t heir r eturn to th e village as sighted persons.

Dr Pe t er von Bra u n, Director IPD, visited Oman several times to supervise and exte n d the Sight Project. The coming year will see a major expansion, with a budget of around £400,000 and a st aff of about 35 full -time people incl u ding oph t halmic surgeons. Additional part-time personnel will be involved in the Sight Projec t including approximately ten sur geo n s.

The Minister of H ealth, Dr Mubarak Al Khadury, has assigned a h igh priority to St J ohn's work in Oman. Seyeral othe r orga n isations are now co-operating with the effort including t he Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour the National Insti t ute of H ealth Sciences (which has made How to Save an Eye an integral part of its curriculum), the Sultan of Oman ' s A r med Forces, the World Health Organisation , United Nations Development Programme and UNICEF.

The Joint Committee and Service Hospitals

The International Year of Disabled People, 1981 did much to heighten the nation's awareness of disabled people , and this has continued into 1982 Appropriately Mais House was opened as a Home principally for war-disabh!d ex-servicemen as well as their widows and others needing care. Thanks are due to the Trust created by the late Miss E A. Day for a most generous donation of £30,000.

The Joint Committee's long association with the services was extended this year when Welfare Officers Barbara Taylor and Jill Marshall joined the hospital ship SS Uganda to with the care of war casualties during the South Atlantic cnSlS.

The Kings Fund, which is administered by the Secretary of State for Social Services and two fellow trustees is to be closed shortly. The work of that charity in the care of the war-disabled and the bereaved will be divided between the J oint Committee and the Royal Patriotic Fund. The trustees of Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, continue to donate substantial funds towards the Joint Committee's work for the war-disabled and their widows.

The Hospital Library Conference which took place during the year recognised the growing popularity of video and audio equipment in the hospital welfare services and th e Hospital Library Service is now lookin g ca refully at the cost implications of supplementing library books with video services.

Our tradition of support to the nursing profession continued this year in the form of a scholarship grant t o th e National Florence Nightingale Memorial Committee. A discretionary grant of £5,000 was given to the Chaseley Home for Disabled Ex-servicemen and continuing grant-aid to the Residential Paraplegic Settlements at Lyme Green, Macclesfield, at Kytes Estate, Garston in Herts, at Norwi c h and the Barrowmore Village Settlement near Chester.

The Joint Committee was pleased to contribute equipment to the St John Ophthalmic Hospital to maintain its continued drive to remain as up to date as possible.

PRIORY FOR WALES

The guest of honour at the a nnu a l Festival held in Cardiff on 10 July 1982 was, appropr iately in the centenary year the St· J o hn Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem, the Hospltaller of The Order, Sir Stephen Miller, KCVO, MD, FRCS, and we were once again delighted to welcome Mrs Ruth Parks, MBE, Matron of the Hospital. In the Parish Church of St John h e Baptist, a tablet in memory of Lady Curre, a benefactress of The Order of St John in Wales, was dedicated and unveiled by the Prior.

During the year the Priory presented two wheelchairs to the Hospital and a f urth er cheque for £2,000 was handed over by the HospitalJer for Wales, Mrs George Williams, dun ng the centenary celebrations held in Jerusalem in October.

qne of the major highlights of 1982 was a visit by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Gloucester, Commandant-inChief of the Brigade in Wales, to St Davids on 25 September, she a rescue demonstration at Whitesands Bay uSing the St John lTIshore rescue boats in Dyfed and the Porth mawr Surf and Life-Saving Club. After lunch the Duchess attended a Rededication Service and Investiture in ?t Davids during which Mr Meurig Williams was ITIstalled as Balltff of St Davids.

With the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations !981 becoming law, we now have throughout Wales 180 Instructors registered to teach the First Aid at Work syllabus. Courses on the new Package were also organised for doctors and nurses.

Priories and Cotntnanderies

PRIORY OF SCOTLAND

1982 was a year of achievement in the Priory of Scotland. Funds for the extension of the SJ John Nursing Home in Aberdeen were successfully raised and Sir Maitland Mackie, Chairman of the Order Committee, received a Knighthood in the Birthday Honours List. In Glasgow the Langside Home, threatened by the expiry of the lease, has been assured of new premises by the enthusiastic and generous response of the large St John Association and their friends to an appeal lodged by the Order Committee in Glasgow.

Attendance at the Festival of St John in Stirling in June was very good despite the weather. In October the Priory was represented at the Centenary celebrations of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem, to which it made another practical gift in the form of further laundry equipment.

Throughout the year there has been a total of 1354 individuals examined; 506 were examined under the old Regulations between 1 January and 30 June, and 848 under the new Regulations from 1 July to 31 December, with a total of 1,338 passes.

Public duty is the essence of Brigade work, and this put a sev.ere but successful test during this year with the ViSit of HIS Hobness Pope to Cardiff. This unique event needed the most detaIled organisation the Brigade has yet proVided. Over 1,000 casualties were treated by more than 700 St John personnel, drawn from every Co unt y of the PnnClpallty and a few of the English Counties.

198.2.b.rought triumph and glory when the Glynneath N urSlTIg DlVlslOn and Pontardulais Cadet Division brought back the premIer trophIes from the Brigade Finals in London lTI May.

PRIORY OF SOUTH AFRICA

The Prior, Mr T. H. Coulter, received the OBE in recognition of his many years of service to the British Embassy, the Consul-General and to The Order of St John. The appolTItment of the Most Revd Philip Russell Archbishop of Cape Town, as Priory Chaplain and a sub-Prel;te of The Order was confirmed by Grand Priory. Towards the end of the year, Mr Ian Stuart Haggie was appointed Almoner.

1982 was also, however, a year of loss Death took from us Mr Green who virtually founded The Order and its Association in Glasgow; Mrs Hay of Seaton, Mrs Boyd Anderson and Mrs. Edith Henderson, all Dame s of The Order; Miss Phyllis Crush and Mr W. A. P. Milne, who es tablish ed The Order and its Association in the Galloway area.

1983 looks i ke being a year of change. In April the Viscount of Arbuthnott will be installed as Prior of Scotland by HRH The Grand Prior, taking the place of His Grace the Duke of Hamilton and Brandon The Festival of St John to be held in Perth on 24 June will be the last to be organised by the Rev. N. M. Bowman, who retires after more than five years as Priory Secretary.

12 Preparations for publication of 'T he Knights of St John', dealing with the history of The Order in Scotland , were brought to a successful co nclusion.

H.R.H. The Duchess of Gloucester, Commandant-in-Chie{ol' the Bngade in Iv. I·r. h' B ') a es aJ.er walC mg a rescue demonstration at Whitesands ay

Two Investitures were held this year, the first on 27 April at St George's Parish Church in Johannesburg and the second at St Cuthbert's Church, Port Elizabeth on 28 September in conjunction with the annua l Ambulance Conference and Council and Priory meetings

Mr Gerald Easton, Assistant Commissioner-in -Chief St John Ambulance, paid an informal visit to the Priory on 24 February.

A vitreous infusion suction cutter was installed in Durban this year, donated by the St John Ophthalmic Foundation after an appeal by Professor H. H. Welsh of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Natal.

During the year St John assisted South West Africa/Namibia and Swaziland. In South West AfrICa 42 teachers were trained to enable them to teach First Aid in some 70 primary schools, where it will become a co mpulsory subject. In Swaziland, St John ran a month's full t.ime course to enable the new St John Council to start operatlons w ith a nucleus of qualified instructors. A notable achievement was the preparation and running of a comprehensive corresp?ndence course for Brigade members and aspiring Brigade offICers.

The St John Ophthalmic Foundation's activities are centred on the St John Mobile Eye Unit, established in 1976. This Unit has now carried out almost 80 tours, screened some 75,000 people and performed around 1,200 operations. The Unit continued to work in close association with the Natlonal Council for the Blind, making monthly tours to rural areas. The Foundation is assisted by a government grant and the National Council for the Blind contributes equally to the Unit's support.

The Foundation was also involved in a new association with 'Operation Brightsight', run by Lions International. This operation depends on the donatlOn of used spectacles which are scientifically analysed, graded and stored III a spectacle bank. These are then issued to organisations supplying glasses to those in need. Many pairs are sent to the St John Mobile Unit for use on their tours.

A National Centenary Appeal Committee was formed in January 1982 to formulate plans for the centenary year in 1983. We will mark our Centenary by expanding our range of services, financed by a National Appeal, aimed at raising R1 million over a five-year period.

PRIORY IN NEW ZEALAND

We were delighted to receive a visit from the Lord Prior, Sir Maurice Dorman, and Lady Dorman during November and December. All who had the privilege of meeting Sir Maurice and Lady Dorman were impressed with their warmth and dedication to the work of St John.

Sir Alan Gandell, our immediate past Chancellor, was promoted to Bailiff Grand Cross in The Order of St John during the year, the first to receive this honour in our Priory for over 30 years. Sir Alan was invested by the Lord Prior in Wellington Cathedral during his visit to the Priory.

Our present Chancellor, Sir Randal Elliott, an Ophthalmic Surgeon, an d Lady Elliott, an Ophthalmic Nurse, who have both worked as volunteers in the St John Ophthalmic Hospital attended the Centenary celebrations. To mark the occasion, a special Maori carving in the form of a plaque, carved by our Librarian Dr John Boyd, was presented to the Warden on behalf of the Priory in New Zealand. In addition, as a special centenary project, over $20,000 (NZ) was raised by members of St John to purchase special equipment for the Hospital.

To assist towards our First Aid training in industry we received a grant of $100,000 (NZ) from t h e Accident Compensation Corporation. This is of tremendous practICal encouragement for our work in industry and will help greatly towards the sa larie s of o ur newly-appointed Director of Training at Headquarters and of the Tutorial Officers employed by our Centres. A further grant of $20,000 was received from the Lottery Board of Control towards the salary and expenses of the recently appointed Youth Training Officer, based at Headquarters.

Statistics for the year show that the Association issued 21,427 First Aid Certificates, whi l our ambulances covered 4,610,200 kilometres and handled 249,000 cases. Total strength of the St J o hn Ambulance Brigade is 11,462 and members gave over 805,000 hours' voluntary service to the public.

PRIORY OF CANADA

During 1982 Miss Yvette Loiselle, who joined the Brigade in 1944, was created Dame Grand Cross in The Order of St John. She is also the first woman Chief Commissioner in Commonwealth history.

Despite economic condit ion s, 1982 has been a good year for First Aid training. Preliminary reports show that 334,914 Canadians were trained in First Aid including card iopulmonary resuscitation. To ensure co ntinu ed growth in an increasingly competitive market a National Marketing Office was established to help provincial efforts and the results are already very exciting.

Over 3,500 senior citizens participated this year in the Health Maintenance course Available next year will be a Home Health Care textbook to supplement the multi -med ia programme 'There's No Pla ce Like Home for Health Care'. Responsible for the development of this award-winning programme was Miss Margaret Hunter who has now unfortunately left St John after 17 yea rs of magn ifice nt se rvi ce.

A National Health Care Committee was set up this year with Mrs Ginette Rodger, Deputy Dire ctor Association (Health Care) as chairman.

The annual Margaret McLaren Bursary Appeal raised $33,000 during 1982, with 43 bursaries awarded in all levels of student nursing education. An additional fund of $10,000 was donated in honour of Kay Gilmour (Dame Grand Cross) by her family, which will provide another bursary each year.

The Brigade con tinued t o hold its own, with 14,125 members in 604 divisions giving over l' 8 million hours of voluntary service and treating an estimated 20,000 casualties. Brigade members now re-qualify annually in First Aid.

A St John Ambulance Cadets Anniversary Fund was init iated to mark the 60th anniversary of the Cadets in Canada and the Centenary of the St J ohn Ophthalmic Hospital. By the end of the year the 2,500 crusaders and cadets were within reach of t heir $10,000 target. Approximately $1,800 from this was used to purchase two phoropters, which were forwarded to the Hospital.

The Hospitaller in Canada announced the appointment of Dr Gregory Hay as Resident Canadian Surgeon at the St John Ophthalmic Hospital. Dr Hay is a graduate of Queen's University, completed his internship in New Zealand and was most recently Senior Registrar for Flinders Medical Centre in Bedford Park, South Australia.

After 10 years as Priory Secretary, Brig-Gen. D. W. Cunnington, GM was suc ceeded in 1982 by Brig-Gen. James A. Cowan. In addition to a distinguished military career, Genera Cowan als o holds co nsider ab le administrative qualif ication s.

Preparations for the 1983 Centenary of St John Ambulance in Canada accelerated this year. We are looking forward with great anticipation to the 1983 Overseas Confere nce and the Canadian visit of our Grand Prior, HRH The Duke of Gloucester, in June.

PRIORY IN AUSTRALIA

It was with regret that the Priory lost the services of one of its great leaders, Sir George Stening, who retired after fifty years' distinguished service to the Order, 21 of them as Chancellor. The Hon. Sir J ohn Young has accepted the appointment of Chancellor to succeed Sir George.

Partly due to the effects of recession and drought, there has been only a small increase in the number of First Aid Certificates issued in 1982; however, there has been an increase of 200 per cent in non-certificated and special courses. Work has continued on the complete revision of the Australian First Aid Manual to be published to coincide with the centenary in 1983. One of the Association's more successful projects was the production of an excellent First Aid Kit for motorists, enthusiastically endorsed by government bodies and road safety organisations throughout Australia.

Brigade numbers have remained basically static with over one million hours of voluntary duty given and 94,689 casualties treated. Changes of membership varied significantly from State to State, but with most showing increases in the numbers of recruits. One of the year's highlights was the participation of Brigade members from Canada, UK New Zealand, Fiji and New Guinea at the Commonwealth Games in Brisbane. To commemorate the occasion, the British contingent presented to the Priory a handsome engraved glass plate.

In co-operation with the Royal Australian College of Ophthalmologists, a Fellowship has again been provided for an Australian eye surgeon to work at the St John Ophthalmic Hospital. In addition, Priory was delighted to be able to fund a short visit to Australia by Dr Tuck Tuck , who worked for three months under the aegis of Professor Crock and Professor BiJ]son in Sydney.

COMMANDERY IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Grateful acknowledgement is made to the Western Australian Turf Club which provided a trophy for the St John Ambulance Welter on 20 March. The race attracted a reasonable attendance and generated a gross income of oyer $2,000; part of this was included in the $700 donation to", ards the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem.

The Annual Church Service, conducted in St Andre", " s Church on 6 June, was well attended and marked by the parading of new Order and Commandery standards.

On 18 September an Investiture was conducted by the Knight Commander, His Excellency Sir Richard Trowbridge, KCVO, KStJ, when 28 honours and awards were conferred.

This year the Commandery Museum and Library benefited from gifts of considerable historic value made by members of The Order and by relatives of deceased members. This ha s stimulated a great deal of interest in the early history of The Order and the number of visitors to the Museum has increased s ubstantiall y.

From 14-17 October the Commandery received a visit from Group Captain J. A. G. Slessor, Secretary Overseas Relations from St John Ambulance in London. He visited the 15

Miss Yvette Loiselle.

Association headquarters in Belmont and attended a Brigade function at Commandery HQ during which he officially launched the 'Mother of the Year' fund raising quest.

The Associatien once again had a successfu l year, with 12,263 students qualifying in First Aid to 30 June-an increase of approximately 33 per cent over the corresponding period in 1981 and of 46 per cent over the 1980 figure A series of training courses for potential lecturers and demonstrators was also held, with 556 people qualifying.

Delegates attended the Association Standing Committee meeting of the Priory held in Sydney in June, during which the Western Australian Association policies for First Aid training were adopted as standard practice by all Australian States.

The Association Ambulance Serv ice transported 47,209 by ambulance in the metropolitan area and 19 ,082 by clinic bus, with an average of 130 calls per da y

Brigade members marched in the Anzac Day Parade on 25 April. The thirty members on parade treated only a few minor casualties. In September/October 395 members, together with professional doctors and nurses attended the Royal Agricultural Show, treating 920 casualties over the tenday period. In all, 3165 hours' service was provided.

1983 is the Centenary of The Order in Australia-we look forward to special events to commemorate this milestone in our history.

COMMANDERY OF ARDS

On 12 February 1982 members of Chapter attended a Service at Rathmullen Parish Church, County Down, at which a wall plaque was unve iled to com memorate the dedication of a former church on the site to th e Order in 1213 AD the plaque having been presented by t he Commandery to the Parish. The Parish are now anxious that the connection with the Order should be maintained by a member or members of the Order attending a service on the Sunday nearest St John's Day. Miss Bo yce, District Superintendent read the lesson.

The Association maintained its classes over the year, and over 5,300 Certificates were issued. Plans are in hand to commence Health & Safet y At Work classes from 1 Jul y 1983 , when the scheme applies to Northern Ireland.

The Brigade has maintained its coverage of public events during the year, and in particular, of the first Belfast Marathon. Our ambulances covered a considerab le mileage despite r ising costs. The general state of readiness of members has been maintain ed agai nst a background of co ntinuin g terronst actlvlty.

A team of 44 cadets travelled to Lo nd on to take part in the Cadet Spectacular at the Royal Albert Hall on 9 October 1982. Their exhibition of Irish dancing won general acclaim, and we felt privileged to make a community contribution to this Diamond Jubilee celebration.

Kenneth Walton (Cheshire)

John William Hopkin s (Cleveland)

Ronald Andr ews (Avon)

John Charles Hir st (Devon)

Ronald William Cassell (Kent)

Alexander George Bak er (Surrey)

Per cy Frederick Drury (Isle of Wight )

Brian Reginald Chadd (Worcester)

John Ta y lo r (Glr Manchester)

Raymond Ernest Br ow n, BS c, CE ng , MfChemE, ACor (Co Durham)

George Edward Kerslake (Devo n)

Gilberl Jam es Dodd SRN, BTA (Cambridge)

John Vicror James Mavety (Berks)

Col Derek Dearing Rothschild, OBE TD (Londo n)

Geoffrey James Dear, LLB (London)

SERV[NG SISTER

Jennifer Ann, Mrs Biddle (Avo n

Constan ce Mary, Miss Di eck mann (London)

Lilian Anne , Miss Waton SRN, SCM, QN, O H NC,

HV Cert (Cleveland)

Kath leen Lilian, Mrs Goodyear (Devon)

Dor othy Edith, Mrs Roddy (London)

SJA Music Makers

John's Band

WHEN Tamwor t h (Staff s) Cadet Division's drum and bugle band was formed in 1947 one of the fir st applicants to join was a cadet named John Alldritt. Today , John is the Div / Supt of Tamworth Combined Division and is still a member of the band More than that, his daughter Mychelle and son Gary are also members of the band, having joined as cadets as John did all those years ago In 1972 the band changed to piston bugles, which meant more work for John Alldritt as band engagements increased. In 1978, with donations from the King George VI and the Queen's Jubilee Fund, the band bought enough instruments to become a brass band. It was now too much for John to teach and run the administrative side of the band (in addition to being Div / Supt), so he looked around for some help. He was lucky. He George Beeby, an Army bandsman Just about to leave the Service , who became the band's instructor. George is

(Leh) Mrs Carrie Dawes retired Divisional Off ice of Salford (Lancs) Combin e d Division who for 10 years has escorted the disabled on holiday. becomes a S er ving Sister (Righ t) Alastair Bru ce, who as a Lieutenant Scots Guards was in the Falklands war , is presented o the Lord Prior by Rear Admiral Royer Dick as personal esquire to Sir Peveril P owlett

Audrey Rose, Mrs Cox (Avon)

Joan Emily, Mrs Lane (Ha nt s) Iris Kathleen, Mrs Braund (North De vo n )

Jo yce Barbar a, Mrs Godden (Mid d x)

Edith May, Mrs Gosselin (Jersey)

C lara Mrs H o dgki ss, SEN (Worcester)

E dith May , Mrs Hayes (Avon)

Mary Bertram Miss Conway (Mi ddx)

Jean, Mrs Bolton (Lanes)

Agnes Louise May, Mrs Tibbles (Beds)

Audrey May, Mrs Evens (Devon)

Gladys May, Miss Stannard (Middx)

Joyce May, Mrs Norman (Jersey)

Margareue Daisy, Mrs Hanrahan (Devon)

Kethleen Mrs Hamson (London)

DorOlhy Mary, Mrs Hobbs (Bucks)

Gai l Mrs Pearce (Cornwall)

Angela Dawn, Mrs Burgess (Kent)

Wendy El iz abeth, Mrs Pugh (Avon)

Myrtle Alison, Miss Eburne (Dorset)

Eileen Mar y, Mr s Forrest (Middx)

Alice Elizabeth, Miss Savage, BA, SROT (Worcs)

Peggy Georgina, Mrs Pease (Esse x)

Margaret Annie, Miss Irving (Middx)

Freda

Beryl

Florence

Joyce

Glad

Nora Mary Anne, Mrs R yan, SRN, QN

Carrie,

Rosemary

Mrs

Sheila Maureen, Mrs eedham, SRN

Audrey

Barbara

ESQUrRE

Rear Admiral R oyer Dick, Bailiff Grand Cross, presented Alastair Bruce (Hants), on his appointment as Personal Esquire to Sir Peveril William Powlett, Knight of Grace.

Mr N. C. McClintock, Knight of Justice, presented his personal Esquire, Alexander Edward Franklin McClintock (London), to the Lord Prior. Col K. \Y. icholls Palmer, Knight of Justice, presented his personal Esquire Anthony James Martin (Suffolk), to the Lord Prior

now t he bandmaster and together with John they have really put Wilnecote SJ Band on the map.

Not only does the band now lead all British Legion parades in the area, but they also lead the carnivals civic processions, St John Area parades, give concerts locally, play carols at all the lo cal

Tamworth Band today.

3rd

Gary on his

hospital, and perform at a host of local function.

A busy St John band in other \ ords , which creates a lot of goodwill for St John Ambulan e.

St

John Ambulance members on duty in London during The Pope's visit in 1982.

Florence Lilian, Mrs Wilcox (Devon)

Annie, Mrs Percival (Lanes)

May, Mrs Matthews (Herefordshire)

Beryl Mrs Nicholls Palmer (Suffolk)

Mary, Mrs O'Neill (Hants)

ys, Miss Hoyle (Lancs)

(Essex)

Mrs Dawes (Lancs)

Elizabeth,

MaygJothling, SRN (Herefords hire)

(Hens)

Rosina, Mrs Goodwin (Middx)

Anne, Mrs Richards (Middx)

John Alldritt (front row,

from leh) with his son

right

on the prom, in the sun ALL RIGHT, I admit it. I'm hooked. I'm not the only one, but that's no excuse. Maybe if I tell you how it happened, it may save someone from falling into the same trap. For once it gets hold of you, you have to keep going back. Back to what? To helping at a holiday home for the disabled, that's what!

It was back in 1981 - the Year of the Disabled, remember? - that I decided to answer an advertisement in the Review asking for volunteers to help at Lulworth Court, Westcliff-on-Sea, the holiday centre of the Queen Elizabeth's Foundation for the Disabled. It was, I thought at the time, the least I could do to offer my services for a fortnight. So it was in the early afternoon of a sunny September Saturday that I found myself travelling along the AI2?, on the last leg of my journey from Oxfords hire, quietly panicking that I may be letting myself in for something really terrible. What if I couldn't cope? What if I was not suited to the work? What if ? A week is not too long; anyone can withstand a week doing almost anything. But a fortnight! What about the weekend in the middle? What about driving a wheelchair?

I stopped myself turning back and threaded my way through the streets to the Esplanade. There was Lulworth Court. No parking! That's a good start. Eventually I found a gap in a line of parked cars - half a mile away. I struggled back to Lulworth with my case getting heavier <.tnd heavier and went in. Nobody about. uh yes, there's someone in the kitchen.

'Hello,' she said. 'I'm Ita. Would you like a cup of tea?'

Would I like a cup of tea? Can a duck

158

swim? 'Yes please. I'm Norman.' The fresh tea began to invoke life and the Deputy Superintendent appeared and gave me my chalet key, a list of instructions on routines, fire precautions and evacuation techniques. Then Dave arrived, also of St John Ambulance. We chatted. 'Do you two know each other?' asked Sadie, the Deputy Supt. 'No, we've only just met.' Later in the week while Dave and I were making a bed - as taught - we were asked the same question by an Auxiliary. We ended up teaching him the St John way!

Soon a few more people arrived, most in wheelchairs, and began to congregate in the Day Room to watch the football results. Well, here we are. My first contact - and I'm officially on duty so there's no escape. Suddenly a bell rings violently. Oh no - fire practice already. Now what did the leaflet say? There is a carrying sheet under each bed

- slide the guests down the chute in Room 3. But we are downstairs. Quick, wheel the guests outside. What's this? They are all trying to go the other way. 'Tea-time' someone hisses. Thank goodness. I reach for a chair.

'Who are you?' asks the occupant. 'Have you just arrived?'

'Yes. I'm Norman. What's your name?'

'I'm Charles. And that is Arthur.' Arthur and I exchange pleasantries 'If you push me through I'll look after you.' He'll look after me? It takes only five minutes to push Charles the 15 yards into the dining room . These doorways are only just wide enough (Soon it will take about five seconds). The guests are now seated at the table, except those who cannot feed themselves, and several helpers zoom in to see to them. The other helpers pass the teas, keep tea cups filled, pass cakes, etc.

Then it is our turn. We sit around introducing ourselves. About half the helpers have arrived today, the others have already been here a week. The permanent staff tend to huddle at the far end of the table, and with one ear cocked we hope to catch a few titbits of information, technique, etc. No such thing. They are discussing their next off-duty period. The Superintendent is on holiday for a few days, so we will have to wait to see him One thing that strikes me is that there are no uniforms and everyone is on first-name terms - even now I would be hard put to remember many surnames Then some of the guests wish to go to bed. Charles and Arthur are the first, and Charles insists that I help them. r need not have worried, both can help themselves to a large extent and they provide an excellent introduction to work at

Lulworth. Maybe the reason I found this so easy was that Charles, Arthur and I considered ourselves missionar ies from the North and could converse in our own language. (Trouble at t'mill, etc).

During the next two weeks, which seemed to fly past, we practised all manner of nursing procedures. Except this time the 'patient' was not pretending - he could not help himself. We gave bed-baths, helped guests to dress, gave them breakfast, helped them into wheelchairs and delivered them to the Day Room. Ten guests and three, maybe foUf, helpers; the same for the girls. Some guests needed minimal help, others needed every help imaginable. By the time the beds were remade it was coffee-time, one morning with cakes brought in by a group of YOPS (Youth Opportunities Scheme) making a video film about two of their colleagues working at Lulworth. Then we ran errands, wrote postcards, took guests for a walk along the front or to the local shops. In the afternoon, if the sun shone, it was across the road to the specially build Menzies Shelter, where guests can sit and watch the Thames flow past and sun themselves. In the evenings there were trips to the cinema, theatre, pub, etc. In 1982 an entertainments officer was enlisted and trips are now available morning, afternoon, and evening to places as far away as Colchester and even London

All too soon the two weeks were over DUring the stay we have worked earlies, ? until 1; split, 8 until 2, then 5 until bedtime

Tea time outside Lulworth Court

'Having a good time ... John prepares for his King Canute impression Let me get at that sea

ClO-ish); lates, 2 until bedtime; had a day off; helped in the kitchen; and me at least 40 disabled guests. All of them characters. There was John who sat outside all da y; Albert who could not keep still and had to be given a drink with his head held in a wrestler's style head-lock (being Welsh he said it reminded him of the 'Pontypool Front Row'); Tim who indicated 'yes' by opening his mouth and 'no' by putting his tongue out - that was the only communication; Chris who was an expert on Space Invaders and the Sun crossword; Albert (the second) who was not allowed matches and was always looking for a light for his pipe; Ron who was never up before 11; Tim, the Superintendent, who never drove the ambulance less than twice around roundabouts and insisted on wearing a bright yellow wig; and many more. I travelled back to 0 fordshire feeling totally happy and wondering how I could possibly have worried about working at Lulworth. It was about this point that I began to realise that I was becoming an addict.

Well, that's my story. 1 \ ent back in 1982 and ha ve booked again this year. If anyone would like to try the same experience, despite my warning, then write to Miss Mary Hum at the Queen Elizabeth's Foundation for the Disabled , Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 OBR. I guarantee you'll enjoy yoursel f and you'll be able to put a lot of nursing procedures into the proper use. And what' moreyou'll get hooked!

PROFESSIONALS

from Mr D. V. Woodhams, County Director

I regret the tone of Mr Nicholl's letter (May Review) Professionals

Please and have written to him with a view to obtaining specific information.

In order to settle the dust may I say that in Oxfords hire it is quite difficult for a lay instructor to conduct a first aid course without a doctor giving the medical lectures and when I do approve the lay instructor must request individual permission I have only a limited number of lay instructors who would obtain such permission.

The St John Ambulance Division to which Mr Nicholls belongs ran their last Association course in December 1981 - the lectures were in fact given by the Divisional Superintendent who is an experienced lay instructor and about whom I have never had a complaint.

Incidentally, I am not in total agreement with the premise that all medically trained lecturers are more efficient than all lay lecturers and I am further not entirely convinced that the technicalities of asthma should be a matter of study for amateurs - which is in fact our designation vis-a-vis, say, the professional first aid and l or medical services.

In my view we should be able to recognise and treat - if we get too deep mistakes are likely.

Having said all this I thoroughly agree with Mr Nicholls that if there is teaching such as he describes it is not likely to improve the public image of St John Ambulance and even less likely to swell the ranks of the Brigade.

Oxfordshire D. V. Woodhams

from Anthony Thomas, County Staff Officer

While agreeing with Bryan Nicholls that lay instructors should confine their teaching to subjects on which their knowledge is adequate, I suggest it is more important that all who instruct in Brigade and Association courses should confine their teaching to the material and syllabus as defined in the relevant current manual. I have heard a doctor - not a Brigade surgeon - telling his class to apply butter to burns!

Perhaps Bryan is not aware of the recent vigorous campaign of revision, update and re-assessment aimed at lay-instructors, in which has been defined what must, what should, and what may be taught, and during which it has been emphasised that people raising questions on medical or other matters, outside the scope of the course, are advised to seek answers from doctors or suitably qualified teachers.

It is unfortunate that not all the professionals - doctors and nurses - who are so helpful in teaching our classes, can also take the time to ensure that what they teach is in accord with the manuals upon which their students are examined.

Oxford Anthony Thomas

from William J. S. Till Ambulance Member

I would like to express some understanding of Bryan Nicholls' letter (May Review) and respond by saying that as an AIM I have had a similar experience while on a two-day seminar in connection with my job. The standard of the first aid lecture left a lot to be desired, and my loyalty to the Brigade caused me to prompt the lecturer from the assembly (which wasn't easy) to correct some vital omissions he had made in his lecture, particularly on resuscitation.

From a personal view point I have my own opinion where the problem lies, and it is not just the fault of Brigade members irrespective of rank. If we desire change for the better, then it is up to us to say so and up to the Order, Association and Brigade to listen and respond. I make no apologies for being what some may regard as fanciful.

With the best will in the world, ambulance members cannot be expected to maintain a high response reaction at all times without the incentive to do so. Regardless of how long an AIM has served the Brigade the best he can work for, at divisional level, is a first aid certificate and an advanced nursing certificate A laymen from industry can attend a 4-day first aid course and at the end of it be regarded for three years as equally qualified as an ambulance member who may have served his local community week in and week out for ten, twenty or more years. The AIM's service could at least be demonstrated by working for higher qualifications than a 4-day course man could ever achieve.

What I and, I'm sure, many other members would like to see is a systematic progression from initial first aid to paramedic over a

period of two to four years, for those who wish to pursue it; ie-

Initial first aid (valid for three years)

Advanced first aid (valid for three years)

Initial paramedic (valid for two years)

Paramedic (valid for one year)

The same progression would be applied to nursing. Members could then advance to first aid paramedic, nursing paramedic or both. Those achieving paramedic status would be entitled to wear an additional insignia on their uniform. All progression from initial first aid WOUld, of course, be marked with an appropriate certificate and mufti badge.

First aid or nursing paramedic qualifications would, I believe , be worthy of a special annual ceremony, maybe in the presence of the first Chapter General of the year, to present illuminated certificates, uniform insignia and mufti badges.

Anyone teaching initial first aid would eventually have to have a minimal qualification of 'Initial Paramedic' and anyone wishing to lecture to the public or teach advanced first aid would have to have a 'Parame dic' qualification.

Providing initial first aid and nursing qualifications were maintain ed members cou ld pursue, also with certificates, other specialised subjects within the Brigade, ie, comm uni cations, vehicle maintenance, etc. The possibilities are endless.

If the powers-that-be could commit themselves to a programme like this, without taking tentative steps over a 20 year period, I am sure that members would have the enthusiasm and the ability to respond.

I am also sure that some members would respond to district and national anatomical brains trust competitions once the standards were higher, as they do for first aid competitions.

I should imagine that within five short years of the introdu ction of such a scheme the St John Ambulance Association and Bri gade would be the finest organisation of its kind in the world bar none. Hackney Divison William 1. S. Till

USE OF CB RADIO

from Mr A. F. Bareham, Radio Communications Officer

I trust that Mr Springer's letter regarding the use of 'Radio' (April Review) has not caused undue alarm within the Brigade since much of the content is misleading; to put the record straight:

1. The use of CB Radio for Brigade purposes has not been ruled out; the problems associated with its use are continually under examination to find a solution acceptable to all interested parti es.

2. The cost of advising every Brigade unit individually of changes relating to licence conditions, specifications and type of approved equipment, etc, would be prohibitive. These changes are notified periodically to County HQ. The appointment of County Radio Communications officers is a matter for decision by Commissioners

3. References to a maximum power output of 5 watts (Public Duty Handbook) as compared with the 6Y2 watts claimed by Mr Springer for his Pye Cambridges are misleading. He is comparing the measured RF output at the aerial socket (6Y2 watts) with Effective Radiated Power (5 watts). To put it simply erp. is the effective power radiated by the aerial after allowing for losses due to feeder cables, connectors, aerial ground plane and any mismatch between the output stage of the transmitter and the aerial system. The specification for the pye

Cambridge gives the RF power output as 7 watts and having regard to the age of Mr Springer's equipment he is doing well to get a measured power of 6 V2 watt s. Nothing has been taken away from him by way of effective power. It is a matter of understanding the terminology

4. It has not been said by this Headquarters that Mr Springer 'must get rid of his lovely Cam bridges which he can buy for £45 to £50'.

Home Office specifications MPT1301 and 1302 are now mandatory for all new eq uipm ent, but non compliant equipment already licenced to the Brigade, eg Pye Cambridge, can continue to be used on a concessionary basis until a date to be determined by Home Office. It was for this reason that I recommended to the 1982 Radio Communications Officers' meeting that units should be encouraged to set aside funds for the eventual purchase of compliant equipment. The Home Office has not been specific as to the end date for noncompliant equipment, but I suggest that 5 years could be used for planning purposes. During this period I anticipate that much of the non-compliant equipment in use by the Brigade will have been scrapped because it will have reached the end of its economic life in terms of reliab i lit y and maintenance costs.

5. As to the current cost of vehicle mobiles to replace equipmems such as the Pye Cambr idge , pye Westminster, etc, a figure of £320 each, plu s VAT, including vehicle installation kit and aerial should be used for budgetary purposes.

6. The question is often asked why information relating to the Brigade Radio Communications network is not published in the Review; the security of our network rests on the details being available on a 'need to know' basis and it must be recognised that the Review is read outside the Brigade. I know of no organisation or authority who publishes details of their network.

I trust this sets the re cord straight. All enquiries about he Brigade Radio Communications should, in the first instance, be addressed to County Headquarters, if they cannot provide the answer it will be referred to Headquarters.

Headquarters

HEED SOCIAL CHANGES

from Mr B Molloy, Commissioner

A. F. Bareham

I would like to support Mrs M. Seymour for the views expressed in her letter headed Equal Opportunity (May Review). We have had similar problems recently regarding fin ding the requisite composition for mixed competition teams. Two thirds of the adult divisions in our county are either combined or quad.

To answer this and a number of other current problems, at the 1982 Commissioners' Conference, and again this year, I suggested the prefix 'ambu lan ce' and 'nursing' be abolished in favour of 'member'. Likewise, there would simply be divisions. The two senior ranks in command would be the best persons available, irrespective of sex.

The compilation of annual returns (BF21 and 22) would be more SImple. There subsequently would be a reduction in the number of officers, but perhaps the quality would improve with competition for promotion.

One colleague at the recent Commissioners' Conference suggested that tests at competitions be of a general nature instead of the classified rule existing.

Another anomaly I suggest is that cadets and nursing members have a committee structure from County to Region and thence to National Hq, whereas the men have none. In my region all the county nursing offIcers are men, and we now have in the co untr y one commissioner and at least two deputy commissioners from the 'fair sex'.

I think the time has come for the Brigade to take note of the social changes about u s and adjust accordingly. At a recent regional one member went even further and suggested one type of dlVlslOn only, catering for the 8 to 65-year-olds.

Humberside B. Molloy

COMPETITION FORMAT

from E. l. E. Hearne, Area Staff Officer the first Brigade competitions were held there was a distinct dIVISIon between male and female competitors, as were the rules Male members did not take nursing, and the role of the female member was usually within the first aid post only.

Due to the influence of two world wars we now see women doing Jobs which were once the preserve of man, and indeed the reverse IS true. Equal opportunities and all that. In St John we have seen more

Gtr Manchester

Philip Naughton of Atherton and Tyldesley

(ITom Ron Pipes)

and more divisions becoming combined, with male and female members. Most male members now take the nursing certificate and on duty we see males and females doing the same jobs. (At our race meetings, nursing members are often out on the field with members.) But come competition time - and the old segregatIOn IS back.

May I suggest that the four competitons become two, and instead of separate team tests we have one. (In our Area we put all teams through the same test, as they are all St John members. This makes life a little easier for the organisers, keeps down expense, and requires less stewards, time-keepers and judges.)

If it is thought necessary to keep separate trophies, perhaps it would be possible to award the best all malel all female team a trophy, or simply place the redundant trophy in the Gate's museum.

Endless upset is caused by the existing rules , more so as one set governs adults and another cadets in the make-up of teams. If this were changed to a team of four members plus a reserve, the aggravation would cease. Also the individual test could be part-nursing and part-first aid. No doubt these suggestions will cause some criticism, but the existing rules are also very much under fire from members.

Windsor E. L. E. Hearne

SJA AMBULANCES

from Mr G F. Brown, Divisional Superintendent

I am in the process of restoring a series A2 Bedford ambulance which was purchased new in 1956 by the Littleport Isle of Ely, Division , The vehicle was used for a number of years by the division (which no longer exists) for work on an agency basis with the Isle of Ely County Council (which also ceased to exist when boundary changes were effected).

As the vehicle had been exceptionally well looked after, and the last few years in the Cambridge Area HQ garage, I have nearly completed the work required bar the repaint. Here I have a problem. The original 9/1 St John device which was on the sides of the vehicle had the word 'Brigade' after St John Ambulance, which they no longer have. Can any Review reader help me to obtain two of the former

Kent's teams for Brigade Finals

devices? If my memory serves me correct these devices were a transfer and never made in self adhesive PVC. Alternatively does anyone know of a firm which would make up a small order of the former device on adhesive PVC?

If any readers have spare photographs of Brigade ambulances, old or new, I would be most grateful for a copy. If sufficient numbers roll in, together with brief histories, I may find it viable to produce a publication dealing solely with these vehicles

Before signing off I would like to say how pleased I was to get a copy of the new Public Duty book. I found it to be an excellent publication with only one chapter at variance with popular medical opinion, but this item has already been mentioned in your pages by others.

In closing, do Headquarters staff realise that aU the new regulation s concerning First Aid - First Aid at Work, Basic Nursing, Associa tion versus Brigade, and Brigade proficiency - are causing Div Supts a great deal more work. I wonder how many over recent months have found it impossible to cope with the new demands on their 'free' time? I would like to hear the views of other divisions' officers on this topic Keep up the good work of c ommunicating Review You're worth every penny.

5 The Green, Somersham, Combs G. Frank Brown

HOW'S YOUR COCKADE?

from Mrs M. Bassford

During November 1979 I o r dered and received from the Supplies Dept an officer 's grey and white cockade, but have since been inform ed that it is incorrectly designed. It has two white stripes down the centre of the ribbon instead of one white edge.

I would be grateful if other officers would check their hats and inform the Supplies Dept if they find they ha ve the same problem, as there must have been several issued around that time.

It takes an observant person to spot the mistake - County Cadet Officer Maureen Thorpe spotted mine. So cockade spotters everywhere , tell me I 'm not the only wrong one!

Northampton Muriel Bassford

lain Armstrong writes on WHAT TO DO SHEETS:

THERE can be no question about the importance of knowing ho w to use the telephone correctly, whether it be an emergency or not. Learning how to use a phone should be high on our list of priorities.

Programme ideas

Visit a telephone exchange.

Visit a Fire or Ambulance station to see how they deal with emergency calls.

I have been told that lo cal Telephone Area

Offices have a pack of posters and booklets for schoo s about the correct use of the phone, 999 calls and the history of the telephone. You will find the address of the office in your local directory.

Make a map of your local area showing public telephones and nOle the information given in the kiosks about their location, etc.

Telephone kiosks often fall foul of the vanda l. Carry out a survey of those in your area and starting with a mark of 100070 deduct marks for broken windows, missing directories, poorly fitting door, etc. Put the results on your map (previous idea), and why not let the local Telephone Head Office have the resu lts of your survey? Can your division sugges t ideas or produce a poster to help deter vandalism?

Find out about aids to help the disabled use the phone. How do they go about getting them and do they have to pay for them?

Operator services. What numbers do you dial for: directory enquiries, operator, and repair services? When should the e people be contacted.

GAMES In the dark

How to dial 999 in the darkness or in a smoke-filled room. You'll need an old phone and a blindfold. There is a correct procedure for a 999 call. See if your member can work it out for themselves.

Tone up

Tape the various telephone tones: dialling,

pay, engaged and ringing. Make four cards each marked with one of these tones and place one in each corner of the room or hall.

With everyone in the centre of the room, play back the tape (stopping when appropriate) and everyone must t ry to identify the tone on the tape with the cards.

Number find

You'll need groups of about three cadets, each with a copy of the same telephone directory (Yellow Pages wiU do). Call out places, such as a shop, school or swimming baths, and the groups must tr y to find the phone number. Points are awarded for the first correct number.

String phone

Make string phones using tin cans or empty cartons.

A thought

Can anyone suggest something we could do

Pen Pals

THERE MUST be many cadets interested in the International Friendship qualification for the Orand Prior's Badge who have not yet got an overseas penfriend.

We have a successful drive on 'matching-up' cadets from South Africa, Australia and Canada a year or so ago, but our pool of UK cadets has now dried up; this in spite of the fact that I have a substantial list from Australia seeking pen friends. But the scope is much wider than this. There are branches of SJA in about 40 Commonwealth countries, and the large majority of these have cadets in varying quantities, the greatest number being in the 'old' Commonwealth, plus Malaysia, Kenya, Fiji, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Singapore and, very recently formed, the Solomon Islands. Names of cadets wanting penfriend s should be sent to me, giving age, interests and hobbies, and preferred country. We will then do our best to match them up. Write: Op Cpt J. A. G. Siessor, Secretary Overseas Relations, St John Ambulance HQ, 1 Grosvenor Crescent, London SW1X 7EF.

with Busby? (Apart from having him, roasted, for dinner).

We hope Cadet Chat will include similar 'What to do sheets over the next few months , So if anyone has ideas for one, or can produce one, please send it to me, cl o Jim , 3 Brandreath Road London E6 4QB.

HOW GOOD are you at working out abbreviations? When confronted with the initials IBM Celia, our Centre Secretary, decided that the answer must be Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles and I for one thought this a brilliant solution, but how wrong can one be! IBM or International Business Machines is the largest computer firm in the world with forty-two branches in the UK. 'But what,' might you ask, 'has this to do with the St John Ambulance?'

In view of the increasing legislation and social changes within a business environment, last September IBM's Data Processing Division in Leeds organised a day of Health, Safety and Security in the Business and Home for 200 company personnel and their families. Displays, demonstrations, films and advice on these topics, with particular stress on hazards and how to avoid them, were put on by the local Crime and Fire Prevention departments, Chubb Ltd, and St John Ambulance Association. SJAA Leeds' lay instructor

Bernard Leake was available and as Walter Brock and Brian Ogle (both lay instructors) were willing to give their services between duties at work, we managed to cover the full period between us.

IBM occupy three floors of an office block in the centre of Leeds and shortly after 9am I duly arrived with my wheelchair. The security officer opened one of the large glass doors and wheeled me into the reception area. IBM's Mike McLaughlin also anticipated my arrival and after welcoming me whisked me at great speed towards the tinted glass lift, and in next to no time I found myself on location - in the three conference rooms on the seventh floor, where I met IBM's Betty Smith and Barry Hirst. When Bernard and Brian arrived, we set about arranging our display material. Resusci -anne was placed in a prominent position for demonstration purposes. The environment for IBM's work force is extremely pleasant, most un-office-like, with fitted carpets, comfortable chairs, soft colour schemes and potted plants. My only problem, as always, was an inability to open the strong regulation fire doors - however assistance was always at hand. I was also impressed to learn that in the event of a fire the firm had drawn up a plan of how they would evacuate me from the building.

Tight security

At lOam the first guest arrived, each carrying an identity fob which included a photograph of themselves. Security was obviously (and necessary) very tight. As I was sitting ahnost at hand level, I found myself trying to fit the photograph to the facenot always so easy. Needless to say we, as visitors, wore special identity discs too.

Films were shown throughout the day, the first being 'Don't let him die'. Bernard went along to answer queries while I remained on duty at the stand. Several people congregated and I dealt with numerous questions about the Association, the Brigade, courses and first aid in general. Although not inundated with customers we were kept 'on the go' throughout the morning and as lunch time approached Walter and Brian appeared, as

A DAY WITH IBM

Wheelchair bound

ELIZABETH COWLING

reports on an l ",'Association "Centre's activities

did other folk, and a crowd gathered to watch a demonstration of artificial respiration.

In order to keep continuity we divided into two groups for lunch and while enjoying a light bite in the cafeteria, I looked down on the big wide world below. The statue of the Black Prince in City Square looked minute as did the cars and buses; the buildings looked like models and the panoramic view of Leeds was fascinating. I'd not been at such a height in a built-up area since my last trip, many years ago, to the top of Blackpool Tower!

Once again it was 'all change' - Walter took charge of the practical demonstrations while I resumed my duties. Eventually there was a lull and so I accepted an invitation to look round the exhibition.

In the adjoining room I entered a competition in a mock-up office area and after reading the rules I looked for the twenty Health, Safety and Security hazards. Several were obvious - paper left on top of an electric fan heater, boxes balanced

OVERSEAS

Australian bush fires from the Chief Commissioner, SlAB Australia SOMEWHAT belately, I am forwarding a brief summary of Brigade involvement in the Ash Wednesday bushfire disasters in Victoria and South Australia, in which we were really deeply involved.

The basic statistics are appalling. In Victoria 47 dead, 1,719 houses and 82 commercial properties destroyed, 1,238

precariously on top of a cupboard, a length of uncovered wiring trailed across the floor. Others were more difficult to find. The young man working at the desk was unable to see what was going on behind him (he had his back to the door) and he would certainly get a shock when deciding to stand or attempting to alter position as one of the castors on the base of hi? chair missing! There was an amazmg varIety of fire extinguishers on display to suit both the individual and size of room, and as for the selection of safety locks I have never seen so many with what seemed to me complicated combinations. Kebury Security Systems are prepared to fix an alarm system to any house deSign, and I studied several plans - all of which seemed pretty fool-proof. All this prompted me to check that my own very ordinary back door key was still in my handbag, and I hoped that I had remembered to close all the windows at home!

Fire deaths

The Fire Prevention Department displayed both interesting and factual charts drawing attention to the causes of house fires, and the statistics of children who die each year due to the latter is quite horrifying. Laboratory hazards were also highlighted as well as those within an office environment.

The Crime Prevention Department drew attention to the intrusion of burglars car and bike thieves, muggers and opportunists, et c. 'had a go ' at trying to break, with a hu ge hammer (I used my left hand), a sheet o f polycarbonate glas s. Needless to say I wa s unsuccessful, but it certainly had a shattering effect on one's nerves a s simultaneousl y a piercing burglar alarm began to dea fe n everyone in the vicinity

Many coloured charts and visual aids wer e displayed at our stand (these may be borrowed from the Centre) and the twel ve films shown by the different organisa tion s were particularly reali sti c (Two young ladi es found' Handle him with care' just a little too much for them).

The event certainly achieved its aimindeed IBM is to be congratulated on arranging such an enterprise - and as the y drew to a close we all agreed that if onl y one or two had benefited and been made mor e aware of the importance of health, safety and security, the holding 0 f this event wa s more than worthwhile.

involvement include at least 8,000 man-hours of service, with 700 hours of Brigade vehicle usage, and at least 4,250 casualties treated. Expenses in first aid supplies, fuel and vehicle repair costs, together with Brigade members personal outgoings for travelling time, work lost, and replacement of personal kits have yet to be assessed.

I feel the Victoria District Commissioner, Major General F. E. Poke, expressed a wide spread feeling when he wrote in an Order of the Day that 'voluntary service has once again been the keystone of the operation,' and 'although unpublished, members of the Brigade rendered outstanding service to firemen, victims and members of other organisations.' He remarked also that 'they performed their duties in the very best tradition of the Order.'

The South Australian District Commissioner, Dr E. E. J. Ancell commented in his newsletter that 'the disastrous fires and floods , with tragic losses in lives, property and stock, brought out the best in Brigade members under most difficult and trying conditions. The willing response and dedication to duty shown by all was a joy to see, and a rather humbling experience.

In a personal letter to me he said he would like to expre s the sincere thanks to all St John people in South Australia for the offers of assistance they received from St John in Sydney, Brisbane and Darwin. He said that they felt that in such times the calibre and dedication of our members for the organisation and the general concern and care for other shows through

In South Australia 153 regular and 146 volunteer personnel were involved, 950 patients were healed and 48 transported in the Adelaide Hills area, and 576 treated and 28 tran s ported i n [he Sourhern area (totals 1, 526 and 76 respec t ively).

The day, held on the Domain, the city council's park, and at which the Governor General Sir David Beattie was the inspecting officer, was divided into two areas of responsibility. The parade and the Brigade displays.

farms damaged, 23 dairies destroyed, 85,000 hectares burnt out with the loss of 7,000 cattle and 18,000 sheep.

The South Australian death toll was slightly less at 30, with 163 houses destroyed, and a larger area burnt out in districts as far apart as 135 kilometres north and 480 kilometres south east of Adelaide, involving a much wider dispersal of resources.

In Victoria significant figures of Brigade

short story may convey something of the spmt of those days. At the height of the fire a fi.rst-aider found himself surrounded b; police, fire engines , smoke, burnt people, and was up to his armpits in dressings All of a.sudden, a young policewoman came up to him and threw her arms around his neck 'If I weren't so damn busy,' she said, 'I'd ask you for an autograph,' and rushed off. those momentous days, a careful review of procedures has been instituted with, for example, a paper 'Standard Operating Procedures of the SJAB in DIsaster or Potential Disaster Situations' being a valuable contribution. There is no doubt that every incident of this nature provides experience on a very large scale, and the response by Brigade members at all levels has been most gratifying.

New

Zealand

Auckland SJ AB review on March 6, which the Chief Commander attended, was only the second review of this District in the last 90 years, the first being 89 years ago. So you can imagine this was quite an important event for St John Ambulance Auckland.

Assistant Commissioner T A. Hamling we i· comes the New Zealand Minister of Health, Mr A Malcolm, at the review

The whole day seems to have been very successful but, as we so often hear about SJA events in the UK, publicity was disappointing. To quote the repon: A tremendous amount done, but unfortunately a lot not reproduced by the news media.'

The Secretary General. Sir Peter Hudson who has recently been on a v sit to the Priory of Canada brought back thiS photograph of New Year s Day 1983 celebrations in Halifax Nova Scotia Members of the Order including Dr Beecher Weld (right ). were accompanied by this magnificently attired knight (he

AMBULANCES

Hi-Lines (as above, centre) P Regd

IVs (as other two vehicles) P. R, S, Regd

articular surface of the humerus at the elbow joint (8). 9. Salin e solution isotonic with body fluids is free from disorder (6) 10 Toot hlike process of 22 Across (8). 12. Occlusion of the teeth (4) 13. Stat e of the Union (4). 14. Lacking leniency when distal part of sternum is amputated (5). 16. Uncomfortable place to sleep on a digit (7).1 7. Part of femur, humerus, and radius (4) 19 Palindromic sense organ (3) . 22 . A co-ordinate for a cervical vertebra (4). 23. Meeting of old colleagues concerned with healing of fractures? (7) 26 Apple in the throat (5). 28. I join with qualified dispenser for the little devils (4). 29. The border is in centre of ledger (4) 31. Serious sensory loss h as safe ends (8). 32. Sign of twins (6). 33 A leg ball for the central part of the forehead (8). 34. Rush ones progress through life (6).

Down

1 Consists of a diaphysis and two epihyses (4.4).2 Uppermost bone of thoracic cage (5.3).3. Short test of ones knowledge (4).5. Broad cast treatment? (5-7). 6. Retinal nerve endings warning of storms (5). 7. Relax the bowels and make the cough more productive (6). 8. Eager for spirits such as rum and whisky (6). 11. A major treasure in th e library of the Order at St lohn's Gate (6.6). 15, Wild mountain goat (4) . 18. Excretory opening of the alimentary canal (4). 20. Part of an organ for the trachea (8).21. Of poor quality and lower in positio n (8). 24. A vector of rabies (3.3). 25. Collection of prohibitions for nutritious tropical fruit? (6). 27. Perceive one of the faculties (5). 30. Blood products used in prophylaxis, therapy, and diagnosis (4).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 6 (83)

Across: 1. Ductless; 5. Carbon; 10 Yolks; 11. Asclepius; 12 Ur'sa; 13. Bile; 14. D'well; 16. Fevers; 17. Nur'sing; 21. Lettuc'e; 23 Reduce; 25. Ilium; 28. EI'ms; 29. Hair; 31. Infection; 32. La·m·ed; 33. Marrow; 34. Membrane. Down: 1. Dry-out; 2. Cold sweat; 3. List; 4. Scab' ie' s; 6. A' men' d; 7. Brine; 8. Nosology; 9. Screen; 15. Peru; 18. Rude; 19. Ischaemia; 20. Albinism; 22. Emetic; 23. Romance; 24. Br'o'die; 26. In·fer; 27 Micro; 30. Bleb.

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS

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For full details about the packs contact the sole U. K. agents.

WE DON'T LIKE YOU

missing out on the chance of winning a prize in our SUPER "WORD BUILDING" COMPETITION. It needs a fair degree of intelligence, which makes it ideal for a team effort.

£ 5,000 must be won by voluntary FUND RAISING organisations. ONE HUNDRED CASH PRIZES OF £ 50 EACH will be shared among the winners. There is no charge for entries. Find out how your local St John Ambulance Brigade can participate by sending for our superb FUND RAISING FOLDER NOW! IT'S FREE!

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But the most important feature is that new RESUSCI BABY provides instant corrective feedback since it can now use the same Signal Box which is used with our RESUSCI ANNE

ST JOHN REVIEW

manikins This means that anyone owning th e RESUSCI ANNE models may use the Signal Box with RESUSCI BABY.

Our new RESUSCI BABY is available in thr ee models:

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more

SJA on show in Dyfed p 181

The Proof of the Pudding is Sussex p 1 83 Adventure Time p.184

Nationvvide raffle counties keep ALL proceeds from tickets

THERE is to be a nationwide raffle in

of the Order of st John and the draw will take place at the St John Ro yal Ball in London on December 7 1983.

There is a really first class set of prizes, including: 1st Prize A NEW TALBOT HORIZON LEI. 1 CAR (as cover photo)

2nd Prize One week s holiday for two at THE HOTEL INTER-CONTINENTAL, BANGKOK

3rd Pri ze One week's holida y f or t wo at THE HOTEL INTER-CONTINENTAL, NAIROBI

4th Prize A two week holiday for two at THE F ARRINGDON HOTEL, ISLE OF WIGHT

5th Prize A two week holiday for t wo in AN APARTMENT IN PORTUGAL

The tickets are 50p each and are available in books (as many as you want) of five from: The Public A f fai rs Depart ment, The Order of St John, 1 Grosvenor Crescent , London SW1X 7EF (tel: 01 235 5231).

This is a marvellous fundraising opportunity for all St John Counties , because YOU KEEP ALL THE PROCEEDS FROM THE RAFFLE TICKETS YOU SELL.

To all Divisional Superintendents

THE REVIEW BOARD which o verlooks the publica t ion o f the Sf John Review feels that gr eater interest would be stimulated in the Review and all aspects of first aid i f divisional superintendents of both Ambulance and Nursing Di vi sions could hold, say, a short monthly session in which the con t ent s of the Review were discussed among all the membersh i p, Certainly the Board think that ever y member o f an y Di visi on , both Cadet and Adult , should have the opportunit y to see the Review and that it should be on display and open f or perusal by all who attend.

Could I also remind you to encourage everybody from cadet to the highest ranking officer that the editor welcomes communications from all on an y top ic on work and social activities in St John?

At St Paul's for the Order Service

THE INAUGURAL meeting of the newlyformed St John Fellowship, which has developed from correspondence in the Review, took place at Sudbury House, Newgate St, London EC 1, on Saturday June 25, after the St Paul's Service. 43 representatives from 15 counties attended. Opening the meeting, the Chief Commander, Maj -Gen Peter Leuchars, said that the Fellowship would meet a real need. For many members service in St lohn was a way of life, offering a special kind of satisfaction and comradeship. It was therefore a sad blow when they reached retirement age or had to give up for health or domestic reasons. Surely then we need some form of Old Comrades Association from which no-one need ever retire?

General Leuchars referred to the draft constitution attached to the agenda (published in the May Review) and emphasised that none of the groups of retired members which already existed in many counties need alter their local name or organisation; he hoped, however, that they would form the cornerstone of the new Fellowship and enrol as branches of it.

The Chief Commander concluded with: 'In my view, if the Fellowship is to flourish it must offer its members opportunities for practical service to St John. It is that opportunity which most miss on retirement and, heaven knows, St John needs all the help it can get. Therefore it is my hope that the branches you are going to raise will play an active part in your co unties. I have in mind fund-raising, perhaps for yo ur lo cal diVision, f0r a new headquar ters or an ambulance. Why not adopt your local Brigade band? You may be able to help them

S J FELLOWSHIP (for

retired members)

Chief Commander emphasises vital role it could play

with instruments, uniform and engagements. I hope, too , that you will be able to provide backing for St John activities in the counties.

Imagine the boon to County Staff if the Fellowship would take on the catering at a cadet rally or competitions There is no end to the support which can bring the Fellowship, literally back in touch with St John.'

Central Committee

The election of the Central Committee, which then took place, produced:

Chairman: Major General Desmond

Gordon (C-in-C 1973-78)

Vice-Chairman: Lady Moyra Browne (Supt-in-Chief 1970-83)

Treasurer: Mr Gordon Munro (formerly Chief Accountant to the Order)

National Secretary: Miss Sheila Puckle (PAO(N) Brigade HQ and member Westminster Div 1969-83)

Initial Branch Representatives: Devon, Mrs V A Trebilcock; Hants, Miss M Holley; Humberside, Mr C Jackson)

Before handing over to the new chairman, General Leuchars gave a £500 cheque to General Gordon as a grant to put the Fellowship on its feet, a generous gesture which was warmly applauded.

General Gordon thanked the Chief Commander for his support and donation, and then said that he knew what it meant to members to retire from the active side of St John and hoped that the Fellowship would help them to face that moment, knowing that they would now never need to lose touch.

has lift off

The constitution was then discussed and adopted, subject to the following amendments:

Objects

A fourth object was added to those listed in the May Review (page 97): 'd. To support the activities of the Foundations of the Order. '

Administration a. Central Committee

Ill. The maximum number from anyone county was amended to one. iv. On the resignation or death of a member, the Committee should coopt a Branch member untillhe next Annual General Meeting.

v. A Quorum of the Central Committee should be be five members. It was further decided that the next Annual General Meeting should take place on St John's Day 1984 in London, if possible at Sudbury House at 4.15pm.

Su bscri ptions

It was decided that Branches should not pay any subscription to the Central Committee for the present.

Any other business

All Branches were invited to report interesting activities to the ational Secretary, at 31 Malvern Court, Onslow Square, London SW7 3HY for publication in the Review. It was agreed to publicise the formation of the Fellowship in every pos ible way, especially locally, in order to make it known to the thousands of existing retired members. The Chief Commander agreed to reach Divisions through Brigade Orders. At the end of the meeting, Fellow hip badge were sold at the amended price of £1.30 each.

Members of Chapter-General process into the Eqyptian Room at the Mansion House for the Order's General Assembly on June 25

1982 WAS THE centenary year of St John Ophthalmic Hospital of Jerusalem and in October members of the Order gathered from all quarters of the globe to celebrate its inception and its survival. An inspiring service in St George's cathedral was followed by an investiture in the patio of the Hospital, and later a garden party was held in the grounds when the Lord Prior was presented with gifts from representatives of the many Priories which have supported the Hospital over its first 100 years. Members of the Order were able to witness for themselves the Hospital in its splendour, examine its sophisticated equipment, meet the staff and appreciate the work carried out in their name. A backward glance to the past was altogether appropriate on this special occasion and the Lord Prior, in the presence of members of Chapter General, unveiled a plaque assigning the name of my predecessor, Mr Keith Lyle, to one of our wards in appreciation of his long and distinguished service as Hospitaller.

The Hospital is as busy as ever despite the turb ulence of the area in which it lies. In January we bade a grateful farewell to our warden, Dr Geoffrey Bisley, who served us so successfully for three years. In early February Dr Anthony Morgan, Group Captain RAF, took over the post, and on my recent visit in May of this year I found him well established and in complete charge.

During this last year our Hussein Fellow, Dr Lee Chumbley, from the United States of America, Dr Byrne from Australia, Dr Thomson from the United Kingdom and Dr Gregory Hay from Canada have worked at full stretch. Drs Chumbley and Thomson have done yeoman service in analysing the incidence of eye diseases as found in the Hospital itself and the population of the West Bank. 6,000 individuals have been examined and the statistical analysis of this work will enable us to take rational steps to serve the area ophthalmologically. A protocol for the comparison of two different treatments for trachoma (still the world's

172

Our Hospital • IS nearly bankrupt

greatest blinding disease) has also been established and the results of this endeavour, carried out with the help of Professor Darougar and his team of virus experts at the Institute of Ophthalmology, London, will form an important guide to the therapy of trachoma wherever it exists.

Mrs Parkes, our matron, attended the centenary celebrations of the Order of St John in Canada earlier this month, at the invitation of a division, which honoured her by naming itself the Parks Division, an indication of the high regard in which she is held.

In summary, we have a staff fully occupied, thoroughly happy at all level s, carrying out acts of mercy for those who are in need of ophthalmic care.

Let us turn to the future.

Briefly confreres, the Hospital is well nigh bankrupt. The annual cost of running the Hospital is now in excess of one million pounds per annum or £85,000 per month, a sum which has been reached gradually over the last decade as inflation has given way in the West Bank to hyperinflation In the centenary year the Order aimed at raising five million pounds sterling, but in the event less than half a million pounds was collected. In May of this year the Order had enough funds to keep the Hospital at work until October 1 1983 and only due to a personal gift of £280,000 sterling from His Majesty King Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan do we find ourselves able to continue until December 31 of this year. The immediate cause of this crisis is a fall in the price of oil. The Government of Abu Dhabi

regular contributions amounting to £600,000 per annum from friendly Arab Governments or wealthy institutions. Voluntary contributions however, are still essential as the Order must continue to be responsible for £450,000 of the running costs and this brings me to the pertinent question, 'What can you do about this crisis?'

A committee of 'Friends of the Hospital' has just been formed under the chairmanship of Lord Caradon, a former diplomat who knows the Middle East and its people, cherishes memories of the Hospital in its early days and understands the importance of its survival. I beg you all to become a Friend of the Hospital, giving a set sum annually no matter how small. I would rather have 50,000 contributors of £1 per annum with its implied base of loyalty and good will than two covenants of £25,000 a year,

ALL OUR READERS will wish to join in congratulating the following members of the St John family who on the occasion of Her Majesty's Official Birthday were honoured in recognition of their outstanding services to the Order of St John and its Foundations:

OBE:

Dr J. B. Bramwell

MBE:

Mrs C. A. A. Everard

Sir Stephen Miller

promised the Order an annual subsidy of £300,000 to support the Hospital, and this sum due in December 1982 has not been paid. It must be made clear, here and now, that unless the costs of running the Hospital are underwr itten by October 1983 at the very latest , a decision to close will be made and the Hospital will be run down as from January 1 and its doors shut forever in June 1984.

You may ask, what are we doing about this crisis? Firstly, we have been in touch with the Government of Abu Dhabi through His Majesty King Hussein and others and pleaded for a revision of the decision to witho ld the annual payment of £300,000. Secondly we ha ve been in touch with the United States Embassy in London, through the good offices of Professor Mellows, described our plight and asked for help.

Thirdly, with a view to establishing an endowment fund of five million pounds sterling, we are in touch with Arab Embassies, Bankers, Oil Companies and individuals of affluence in all parts of the world, explaining our situation and begging for quick consideration of our impoverishment and for immediate action. It has been explained to all our contacts that it is impossible to run a Hospital without a regular and dependable income and I stress the words regular and dependable.

The total running costs of the Hospital are now beyond the capacity of voluntary contributors and the mainstay of future income must of necessity come from interest earned by a minimal endowment fund of five million pounds sterling, or alternatively from

although in my present state of mind I would welcome both. After all, the majority of the members of the Order of St John are like myself - we do a day's work and part of our off duty or spare time is enjoyably spent helping the Order of St John. I am keen that such members should become closely associated with the Hospital and identify themselves with its aims, and I would ask you not to allow the size of your gift to influence your desire to help Please use the form available from HQ's PR Dept enabling you to become a Friend of the Hospital, merely by committing yourself to an annual gift, no matter how small or how large, so long as it is within your budget. If a sufficient number of the members of the Order can bring themselves to support the Hospital in this way, this magnificent example of disinterested service so proudly

BIRTHDAY HONOURS

BEM:

Mrs M. M. Garnier

Mrs C. F. Jessop

Mr E. K. Rogers

Miss Betty Wright

Dr John Bramwell has for the past 33 years been an actively supportive member of the Warwickshire St John Council and County Commissioner of the Brigade for the past seven. In the latter capacity his tireless devotion to his duties and his friendly personal leadership have been an example and an inspiration to all who serve under him. In particular, the meticulous care and efficiency with which he plans and supervises the carrying out of large public duties, at each of which several hundreds of casualties are treated - such as the Royal Show held annualJy at Kenilworth and the Pope's visit to Baginton in May 1982 - has amply demonstrated the Brigade's ability to give free and devoted service to the community in the highest traditions of the Order. Besides his direct involvement with St John, and besides having started the Stratford-upon-Avon Old People's Welfare Organisation (now Age Concern) in 1954, he has for many years played an active part in a most impressive number of voluntary charitable organisations in and around Stratford.

Mrs Anne Everard was for 24 years a most inspired and inspiring leader in St John Ambulance in Kenya and Uganda until in 1978 she returned to her native Jersey where for the past four years she has been County Nursing Officer for the Bailiwick. After working for six years with Nursing Cadets in Kenya she moved with her husband and family to Uganda,

fostered by the Order of St John over the last century may yet be saved.

If you happen to have very rich friends or can influence any rich Corporations, tell them of the example set by our young Cadets who endowed a bed during their Jubilee year and thereby earned our undying gratitude. May I remind you that a bed may be endowed in a sum, the interest of which will look after the cost of running it as far into the future as we can see and at the present moment such a capital sum amounts to approximately £70,000.

Editor: Since the Hospital/er made this speech at the Mansion House on June 25, the Government of Abu Dhabi has paid the Order £280,000 of its 1982 annual subsidy. But -the Order is still faced with a serious financial/oss at the end of the year if further help is not forthcoming.

and from 1968-76 as Superintendent, then as Superintendent of the Hull North-West Ambulance Cadet Division since 1977.

For service to St John where from 1961 to 1964 she was a much loved and still well remembered Principal Superintendent (Nursing). Returning to Kenya in the latter year, she held a similar appointment in that country for the remainder of her 14 years in Africa, during the last ten of which she also held with great ctistinction the responsibility of being the first full-time Executive Officer at the SJA National HQ in Nairobi, and was very largely responsible for the enormous progress made by the Brigade in Kenya during that period. Her close cooperation with all races earned universal respect and resulted in her obtaining support for the work of St John from all quarters throughout the country, perhaps most significantly in her relations with Government Ministers and the Police.

Mrs Mavis Garnier joined the Brigade as a Nursing Cadet in Jersey in 1945, and in 1949 was promoted to Jersey No 2 Nursing Division, of which she has been a member continuously ever since, carrying out more than 4,000 hours' public and other duties as well as working for over 20 years as a Nursing Auxiliary at the Jerse y Maternity Hospital. She was promoted to Corporal in 1974, Sergeant in 1977 and Divisional Officer in 1979. So infectious was her enthusiasm for St John within her family that her two daughters both became Nursing Cadets and were in due course promoted to an adult division; today, one of them is a Divisional Superintendent and the other a Divisional Officer of Cadets.

Mrs Christine Jessop, a Grand Prior's Badge holder, joined St John as a Nursing Cadet in 1950 and has actively served in the Brigade ever since - for the past 23 years as an officer of Cadet Divisions, first with the Hull Wilberforce Nursing Cadets as Divisional officer from 1961-68

Her husband and three teenage sons are also active members of St John. Many hundreds of cadets have benefited from her training and guidance to grow into responsible citizens, and her ideas and organising abilities have been invaluable in a wide range of St John activities; yet desp ite all this she remains a very modest person who shuns personal publicity.

Mr Ernest Rogers recently transferred to the Reserve after 50 years' service in the Brigade in the Priory for Wales.

Joining the Chirk Di vision as an Ambulance Member in 1933, he was in charge of that ctivision during the 1939-45 war, and for the next 18 years he carried a heavy responsibility for the local ambulance under the auspices of the (then) Welsh Home Ambulance Service. He was appointed a County Staff Officer for Clwyd in 1962 and his main involvement has been with Cadet Divisions, though he has also been very active as an Association Lay Instructor, as a member of the Clwyd St John Council and as Founder Secretary of the Clwyd branch of the Hospitallers Club of Wales.

Miss Betty Wright retired a year ago after 13 years' employment as Supervisor of the St John Ambulance Examinations Department where she was in charge of a team of eleven (mostly junior) staff members who process the results of all Association examinations and issue some 225,000 certificates annually to members of the Public Services as well as to the public and private sectors of industry, the Brigade and the general public. She has contributed enormously to streamlining her department and has supervised the introduction of computer systems, frequently working late into the evening and sometimes at weekends on a voluntary basis to compete with the pressure of business. Her service at National Headquarters has without doubt far exceeded the call of duty.

W. W. W.

Ropo,,"ho Ho,p;'.II"

AT THE Overseas Conference which took place in London during June 1980 a tentative and informal suggestion was made by the Canadian delegation that the next conference, normally held every three years, might be staged in Canada as part of their centenary celebrations planned for 1983. Thus was sown the seed of an admirable idea and, following its endorsement in principle by the Overseas Committee and by Council, the Priory Council in Ottawa gave its formal approval to hosting the conference at its meeting in January 1982. Preliminary planning had started some time earlier, so that in effect a full two years were available for making detailed arran..gements; just as well as things turned out s1nce a great deal of work was involved on / both sides of the Atlantic.

The plan was to hold the conference in Toronto over the four days June 13-16, for some local interest visits to take place on June 17, and for delegates to take part in the Ontario St John Council weekend on June 18/19. Toronto University, ideally situated close to the city centre, offered to provide not only excellent premises for the

earnest, and during the next four days the programm e included present a tions made by distingui shed delegates on a va rie ty of topics ranging from the latest teac hing packages in Canada and the UK to the teachi ng of first aid to medic al students, to health education for the young, and last but by no means least two very impo rtant matters: Primary Health Care in the Th ird World and t h e ways in which the more wea thy St John organi sations might help t h eir Third World neighbour s to develop their activity. At regular in tervals the conference the n sp lit up into five syndicates of about 12 delegates each to discuss the topics under con sideration, s ub seq uently reporting their finding s to the chair man in plenary sessi on. This scheme of things introduced an element of variety into the proceedings which delegate s seemed to appreciate, particularly since th e whole event took pl ace in hea t-wave condi t ion s, the thermometer hitting 90 ° F ever y day.

Social progr amme

Oversea s Confere nce • In Toro nto

Gp Capt John Siessor, Overseas Sec, report s conference itself but also domestic accommodation for all delegates and full catering facilities, so the whole undertaking was beautifully 'compact' and involved a minimal amount of travelling.

Thus it was that on Wednesday June 8 the writer embarked on an Air Canada Tristar for Toronto, and eight hours later was bowling down the freeway into the city, having been met by Lt-Col Bill Gibson - the Deputy Chief Executive of St John Ambulance Ontario. The Assistant Priory Secretary in Ottawa, Mr Henri Soucie, had already arrived, and during the next two days so me extremely useful work was done on final preparations, in collaboration with all the staff involved at St John House, Ontario's magnificent HQ building not far from the University.

The first delegates were due to arrive on the Saturday but the real influx, including the five-strong UK contingent, took place on Sunday, June 12. This involved a sizeable logistic operation transporting them all from the airport, but by that evening all were present and correct except for the delegate from Ghana, who had missed an important

Pan-Am connection in Monrov ia and came in on a later flig ht.

The final count was 67 delegates, 46 from outside Canada, from a total of 27 countries; plus a numbe r of observers. This was a n alltime record for all five Overseas Conferences which had originated in 1971, the previous maximum b ei ng 20 countries out of a possible 42 Every major region of the world was represented, including three out of the four Priories, the Mediterranean, Africa, the Caribbea n, the Far East and the South Pacific. That A ustr alia was unable to attend, due in the main to preoccupation with her own centena ry was a great sa dness, since they would have had so much to offer The Indian s u b-continent and Sri La nka were also unre presented, a cause for addi tional regret.

At the opening ceremony on the Monday morning the Chance]]or of the Priory in Canada, Colonel J. C. Dubuc, was present and the Chief Commander presente d to him an inscrib ed St John crysta l plate f or the Priory as a memento of the conference having taken p lac e in Toronto d uring their centen ary year. Business then starte d in

evening, a handsome and much appreciated gesture

After four days of hard debate it was a relief to board a coach on Friday morning bound for the Niagara Falls. A stop was made at the General Motors Works at St Catherines on the way. Here we were shown round the foundry, which was busy casting cylinder blocks and other assorted items essential for the manufacture of cars, followed by an excellent lunch hosted by the President of GM Canada The Falls themselves, a world famous spectacle, could not fail to impress, and the short excursion in a boat, similar in size and appearance to those that convey trippers to not quite comparable sights on the Thames, to within what seemed but a few f eet from the base of the Horseshoe Falls was an unforgettable and very damp experience. Everyone was provided with black-hooded oilskins and the St lohn party boarding the ship, headed by the Chief Commander, looked a bit like an assemblage of Franciscan monks on their way to vespers!

Howe ver, lest it be thought that all wo rk and no play was the order of the day, a most enjoyable social programme ran through the week. For a start, prominent Cana dian firms sponsored excellent lunches on the first three da ys; the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario ho sted a r eception for all delegates i n his offi cial residence on the Monday eve ning and again on the Saturday for the Ontario Council weekend, to which delegates were invited ; on Tue da) Ontario Counci l hosted an 'At Home' and reception in St John Hou se; and on Thursday the Prov ince of On tario gave a superb dinner party fo r 200 in the ma gnificent Ontario Place, a fut uristic conglom eration of structures on the lakeside , remin iscent of an orbiting pace s tation temp orarily come down to earth On the mor e informal side, members of the Toronto St John Council en t er t ained t\\O or three del egates each in their homes on Wedn esday

And so to the Ontaria St John Council weekend, whkh occupied most of Saturday and Sunday, starting with the annual Council Meeting, followed in the afternoon by a mo st impressive investiture ceremony conducted by the Lieutenant Governor in St Paul's Church. Some 80 awards were made including many Order admissions and promotions plus a number of Service Medals and Bars.

On Sunday we witnessed an almost exact replica of the annual St Paul's Service in London -a parade of the Ontario Brigade headed by the Toronto Police Pipe Band, an impeccable Commemorative Service wi th superb singing by the choir, much processing , and medal s by the score.

Altogether a very moving occasion.

The f inal event of this memorable week was a race meeting that afternoon at the Woodbine Track outside the city, to which

Lady Moyra Brow ne the retiring Superintendent -i n-Chief , receives farewell gifts from delegates at the Foundation Conference on June 24 (Left) From Miss K Pratt, Principal Superintendent Niger ia; a nd (r ight) from Mrs E Bilk,

all delegates were given free admission and yet another delicious lunch. The highspot here was the St John Centennial Stakes with the winning trophies being presented by Lady Moyra Browne in recognition of her close acquaintanceship with Canada during her father's time as Governor-General, and of her pending retirement as Superintendent-inChief. She was in turn presented with a commemorative book at a ceremony within the grandstand and from that moment time began to run out. With ju st long enough to change into travelling clothes we checked into the airport and in no time were speeding eastwards on Air Canada's party-special, fillet steak s, free drinks and all ' (they seemed to have run out of balloons!) - all on an economy super-apex ticket.

Lasting impressions of this great week are, firstly, satisfaction at having partaken in so much interesting, useful and meaningful discussion . Secondly, of clear evidence of the goodwill and understanding which exists be t ween the various St John overseas territories, enchanced by such a meeting; and finally of t he superlative hospitality shown to u s by our Canadian hosts. At times this was breath-tak i ng in its generosity and obvious sincerity, and one is left wondering how it can ever be repaid ; we shall have to try and find a way.

By way of a prologue, an extract from a letter from the Priory Chancellor in Canada to t he Chief Commander might not be out of place. He writes: 'I am pleased to say that the comments I have heard related to the conference have been most favourable. For our Canadian delegates and observers, it was a great opportuni ty to attend such a Conference, which otherwise would not have been possible. Meeting and exchanging views wit h our confreres from many parts of the world has been an extremely valuable experience , which I am sure will ha ve favourable repercussions in the years to come.'

HONOURS

Congratulations to Sir Charles K. Frossard, chairman of the St John Council and Bailiwick President, Guernsey , on being made a Knight Bachelor in the Birthday Honours.

Also to Mrs Gladys Jones, president of Ballymena Nursing Cadet Divi sion since 1965 and a Serving Sis ter, who received the OBE for her work with safety organisations in Northern Ireland . Her hu s band, Dr William Jones a Knight of Justice , was Antrim Area Commissioner from 1953-73.

LOOKING AHEAD

30

Holy Year, Rome.

HQ APPOINTMENTS

Captain F A Bland RN has relinguished the appointment of Secretary Association but will continue to work for the Association branch a t HQ for two days a week as Staff Officer Schools Projects.

Mr 1. A Renny is now Secretary Association

Mr Leo Budd who became Cadet Advisory Officer at HQ last September, has now been appointed Chief Officer Cadets.

AMERICAN CUP

The Amer ican Cup f or Gallan t ry, presented by the US 8th Arm y Ai r Force, is awarded annually on the decision of the Commi ss ioner-in-Chief to the cadet performing the mo st oustanding deed o f gallantry or courage during the y ear (prov ded a case of sufficient merit occurs)

This year the trophy has been awarded to Nursing Cadet Karen Kell y of Taunton

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

BY THE EDITOR

J

n, t h

Sout h ampton Ass

on C en tre secre t ary, Mrs A li ce Alford M BE h as re tire d

At a rece n t get-toget h er to mark the occasi on at So u t h a m p o n SJA HQ, her man y f ri end s a nd colleag ues p aid tri bu te to Mr s A l for d's d e votio n a n d serv ice to t h e publ ic, wh ic h , wit h t h e assista n ce of her h us ba nd Ji m , h ad earn ed her t h e MBE and pro m oti on i n th e O r d er to Commander.

A lt hou gh or igi nall y a mem ber of t he Briga d e (t o area su peri n ten d ent), she will be best re

b er ed for h er work as the Soton Centre Secretary. Thanks, Alice, for everyt hing

HA MISH RETIRES

t he bank Karen' s friend (who is a ls o a cadet ) te lephoned the poli ce a nd the y s oon t oo k control of t he situat ion.

SIR EDWIN KING SHIELD

A Special Service Shield is a warded t o a cad et who has completed a minimum o f 200 hour s

St John's Day 1983 saw the retirement of t h e Secretary of the Order, Major Hamish Forbes, MBE, MC. Hamish was admitted to the Order of St John as an Esquire in November 1964, promoted to Officer in 1967, Com ma nd e r in 1974 a n d recently to Knight of Grace of the Order.

Fo ll owing a successful army carer in the Welsh Guards, which included war service in Europe, h e was appointed secretary of The Churc h La ds an d Girls Brigade and held this appointment until 1973 when he was appointed Secretary of the Order, following the untimely death of the previous incumbent.

Hamis h wi ll be greatly missed at St John's Gate, although his many friends within the Order will be pleased to learn that he is to continue as Great Banne r Bearer of the Or der , so a ll contact will not be lost. We exte n d our go o d wis h es to both Hamish and his de lig h tfu l wife Mary for much happiness in the years a h ead

Major Fo rb es is succeeded in his appoint men t as Secretary of th e Or der by Mr J M. Cow a n

caught

of the c rowds on th e T o wn s esplanade re c ently Rosemary Samways (left), now D Supt, and 11 -years- old Tam sa Stevens, were just two rom the Division who hel ped he stall tak e £250 in si x hours

Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Birmingham at the St John Ambulance

The retiring Supt-in-Chief, Lady Moyra Browne, presenting a 45 years certificate to George Nailor retired Eastern Area Commiss io ner AVO N and County Secretary Be rnard Cutcl iHe receiving his bar to mark 40 years' service ( Photos Myra Meredith)

SUPPLIES DEPT

Brian Rockell, the new Director of Supplies, has announced senior appointments at the Supplies Department.

Sandy Cain has been appointed as Sales Office Manager. Her staff will be responsible for all order and product enquiries, induding price and availability. Shirley Manning as Administration Manager is responsible for all external special events.

Philip Menham has been appointed as Warehouse Manager, with Helen Charles as Warehouse Supervisor. Doreen Sainsbury as Accounts Manager is responsible for all accounting matters, invoice queries, etc.

These changes will improve the service to customers provided by the 25 Supplies Department staff at St John's Gate.

The newly introduced first aid range has been- a tremendous success. Initially this resulted in a shortage of some products but production has been increased to cope with demands and outstanding orders have now been cleared.

A major textbook will be launched this autumn with the up-to-date edition of the Essentials of First Aid.

Ordering information and an up-to-date price list will be sent to all account holders early September. Included will be details of an exciting discount scheme for the

B.E.M.

Ma or D J Griffith, Commissioner for Clwyd, who himself was honoured by her Majesty in the New Year's Honours list , cong ratu lates senior County Staff Officer Ernest K Rogers (right) on being awarded a BEM in the Birthday Honours and presents his retirement certificate. (See BIR THDAY HONOURS page 173)

range of Christmas cards and diaries now available .

IF YOU DON'T WEAKEN It's a great life in St John, for yo u never know what you're going to be asked to do next.

We had a request at a vintage car rally at Singleton Park to bandage the eyes of a man with 'X-ray vision', so N/Ms Ann Parkyn and Sandra Fisher duly obliged Off they went with their kit and when the job was finished the man set off in his car to drive around obstacles. But they must have done the job too well - for he crashed. The marshalls went to the driver's assistance and fortunately found him to be only shaken; but

the car was a write-off. It was not part of the act, he replied to Ann's question Later in the day, Geoff Gill performed a very delicate operati6n for a small boy who asked him to get the milk out of his coconut!

The same afternoon a lady popped her head around the entrance to the tent and asked if we had seen a Yorkshire terrier. Told that we hadn't, she went on: 'He's called Sparky. If you do see him, hang on to him , please.' Turning to go, she added: 'He's got funny teeth, by the way.' We looked at each other, wondering whether we should ask all Yorkshire terriers if they were called Sparky and try to examine their teeth!

NOT

A gremlin seems to have got into the Jul y issue 's SJA Music Makers, for the official name of the Division and band referred to is WILNACOTE not Tamworth as stated. Apologies.

CHRISTMAS MUSIC

Chislehurst and Sidcup Di visions have come

up with a novel way, with help from local choirs and an orchestra, to raise money for their Hall Rebuilding Fund. Discourse s Ltd, a recording company of Tunbridge Wells , has produced a record of church and school choirs singing favourite carols: Silent Night, Unto us a Son is Born, etc. As well as carols, the record includes an organ prelude, a reading , and finally the bells of St John's Church.

Copies of the record can be obtained, price £4.45 each, from D / Supt Monty Levy, 8 Ightham Rd, Erith, Kent DA8 1LX.

COMPLIMENT?

A Mid-Glamorgan CSO writes: During the early morning revelry at the recent South Wales conference at Llandrindod Wells, a young adult asked me Southwark SJ Band at East Ham Division s May Fete in Central Park , East Ham

what was my position in St John When I replied County Staff Officer, he said 'You don't act like a CSO.' I countered that I was the same person before I became a CSO, so why should I act differently now? There was no reply.

Nonetheless, I took this as a compliment. I hope I'm right!

HOME DEFENCE COURSES

County / District HQs have been informed of the fo llowing forthcoming vacancies at the Home Defence College at Easingwold , Yorkshire:

Course 84 3: Jan 16/20 1984 (National Health Service Officers in the Wartime Health Service). Aim: To help

JOKE

Refuse disposal point

At an award ceremony held at Hillsborough Castle on May 25, the Knight Commander, Mr Mervyn Dennison, presented the following certificates: The Meretorious Service Certificate to Div Off Hugh Doherty, of Londonderry Ambulance Division.

20 Grand Prior 's Badge certi ficates to cadets from eight divisions.

The I ,OOO-hour Special Service Certificate to Laverne Wilson, BalJymoney A / NC , and Dorinda Parker, Ledley Hall A / NC.

Four Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award certificates to members Abbey A NC

In recent years Grand Prior's Badge certificates ha ve been presented at our annual Order inve st iture, but this year with so many certificates to be awarded an additional meeting of Commendary Chapter was held to presen t them.

Annual Service

On Sunday June 19, the annual Commandery

Northern Ireland

of Ards service of commemoration and rededication was held in St Columb 's Ca hedral, Londonderry. Londonderry Area were celebrating (he 50th anniversary of the registration of their oldest divisionLondonderry Nursing Di vision. About 300 members of the Brigade from Londonderry a nd other parts of the province were pre ent.

The Londonderry SJA anniversary happily coinc ided with the 350th anniver ary of St Columb's Cathedral.

The f ur thest to t ravel to the service wa Mr Derek Robinson, the Commissioner of the Brigade in the Republic of Ireland whom we were pleased to have with us for the occasion.

Order Preacher

The Commandery were honoured this year when our senior chaplain, The Very R everend

Dr J H. Withers, Senior Minister of Fi sherwick Presbyterian Church and past Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, was invited to preach at the annual St John service in St Paul's Cathedral London. Belfast Division hit again On May 28 , the garage used by West Bel fast (Br oadwa y) A N Di ision was destroyed by fire, witnesses having seen a group of youths running away from the burning garage. In i( were two of the Division's three ambulances, a caravan containing all their stores, and a member's car left while doing duty with the Division third ambulance.

Sin e the fire, another D ivision has lent West Belfa t an ambulance and, as compensation from criminal damage takes time to materialise, they are raising funds to replace t he ve hicle

The Division suffered loss from another fire eight years ago when their headquarters in the Falls Road area wa burnt out. P. W.I. C.

Area President John

(Photo: Clive Milner)

(Photo: Staffs

MY THANKS this month to Supt Anne Sheehan, from Herne Bay, Kent, who has supplied some of her thoughts for the column and also to her daughter Lynnette who has produced a pop quiz that could be used at a meeting. I have arranged for a pen to be sent to Lynnette for her efforts If any of your Cadets can offer some ideas or games please send them in. Cadet Cbat badges for all those who write to me.

Competition Winners

During my recent move some of my papers were lost, induding a list of winners of recent competitions, so if you were a winner and did NOT receive a prize then please write to me giving details

Contributions

Please help me to keep this column of use to others by sending your contributions, however small, to me, Jim, 3 Brandreth Road, Beckton, London E6 4QB.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT by Anne Sheehan

Planning the programme

If you work on the school year, you should

PARTY TIME

start planning your next half-year (Sept to March) now, especially if you break during the summer holidays.

September is a good time to recruit new members and also a good time to commence a new group for the Essentials of First Aid.

Those courses

Plan a good 8-week session around the EF A textbook. Always put a fixed time limit on the duration of the course - set the date of the exam and stick by it. Your helpers and cadets will work harder if there is a positive end in sight.

If your course is for new members, arrange an enrolment date now so that there is very little waiting time between passing the exam and being enrolled .,-- there is nothing more soul destroying for a cadet than to have to wait months for the official 'blessing'!

Keeping the rest happy

This can often be a problem, especially when cadets have their Grand Prior's Badge. Communicate frequently with your older cadets - t hey may wish to help instruct the newer members, or they may decide that is not for them. Do not assume anything.

They may be desirous of having a real challenge, or a special course in beauty care (boys as well as girls it seems these days!)

Maybe the girls would like to work at the Handyman syllabus - good training for the future.

Outside helpers, lecturers

Choose wisely - if you can. If you are using an outside helper (I don 't like t he word lecturer) to teach cadets, make sure they know the limits of the syllabus and that they can communicate to young people.

I've had a few disasters in the past with lecturers speaking to cadets for a solid hour on the theory of nursing!

GAME (Age range 8 to 12)

I expect you are all familiar with the game of ladders - two rows opposite and each pair is numbered. You callout their number and they race to the top of the room and back. There are several variations of this game. One favourite of ours is Mrs Brown' s shopping basket. You name the pairs (instead of numbering)

(a) Mrs Brown (b) Jenny (c) Cauliflower (d) Cheese (e) Potatoes (f) Sausages

And so on until each pair has a name

It is essential to have a good story teller who gradually works through the names of the items. As your name is heard you jump up, run to the top of the hall and back and sit down.

Suggestion for the story: 'One day Mrs Brown went shopping with Jenny Mrs Brown went to the grocers to buy sausages for tea. Jenny said, don't forget the cheese. Oh! of course, said Mrs Brown, we were going to have cauliflower cheese for lun ch

Then Mrs Brown and Jenny went to the greengrocer 's to buy potatoes and the cauliflower. Don't put them on my cheese and sausages, said Mrs Brown to Jenny. Pu t them in the SHOPPING BAG first (at the word shopping bag everyone jumps up)

Jenny helped Mrs Brown put the potatoes into the shopping bag, and then she put the cheese and sausages on top.'

And so the story can go on incorporating other names as you wish. The importan t thing to remember is that you have to hold up the story when they are running, but don't pause too long. The end of the game is when they (that is Mrs Brown and Jenny) get home and they unload the shopping basket and then cook the lunch. Just use your imagination

Finish the game at a peak If they wan t

to play again, leave it till next week!

Write the following on the board. Give your cadets (or adult members!) 20 minutes to sort them out. They are all taken from the First Aid Manual.

Apelat Patela Baiti Tibia

Laubif Fibula

Alaghenps Phalanges

Sisounconc Concussion

Tralacede Lacerated

Curptune Puncture

Dinices Incised

Suribe Bruise

Phirtahemoy Hypothermia

POP QUIZ by Cadet Lynnette Sheehan (aged 12)

1. Who won the best single award in the British Rock and Pop Awards for 1982?

(Answer: Dexy's Midnight Runners with Come On Eileen)

2. What have the singles 'Girls on Film' by Duran Duran and 'Thunder in the Mountains ' by Toyah got in common? (The videos for both songs were made by Godley and Creme)

3 With what song did Bucks Fizz win the Eurovision Song Contest of 1981? (Making your Mind Up)

4. What was Adam and the Ants first No 1 single? (Stand and Deliver)

5. Which ex-member of Japan s taged an exhibition of sculpture last year? (Mick Karn)

SJA on shovv in Dyfed

THE St John Council for Pembrokeshirc (Dyfed) recently sponsored an exhibition in Haverfordwest of the services and faci lities availa ble from St John Ambulance in the area. The Council hired a local hall and arranged a ll publicity for the event.

Voluntary organisations, youth clubs, further education centres and schools were invited to attend; there was extensive advertising in the lo cal press, posters and leaflets were widely distributed, and announcements were made on local radio.

The object of the exhibition was to promote the work of the Order and provide an opportunity for interested parties to meet members of the Association and the Brigade who provide the services. As well as being a positive public relations exercise, it also provided an opportunity for recruiting members and candidates for first aid courses.

Displays covered such subjects as the history of the Order, cadets and their work, home nursing, communications, the Ophthalmic Hospital (complete with the new video film), casualty simulation, offshore rescue services and the work of the Association branch, plus a general information and recruiting desk.

Open from 10 to 5.30, the exhibition a good number of applicants to JOIn SJA and considerable interest in first aid classes from youth organisations, local COuncils and industry.

Even though this was a rather expensive promotion, it was considered to be very worth while. The publicity improved public relations and excellent p ress coverage produced positive recruitment benefi ts.

6.

9.

A series on improving your divisional meeting by NANCY SALE

The proof of the pudding

IS

(vvinter progral11l11e)

NOW IS THE time to start thinking about the winter programme for your Division; perhaps bill of fare would indicate better what your members will be hoping for during the months ahead. At the end of that time will they feel invigorated by the meetings they have attended? Will the items have been interesting and varied? And, as St John members have a common aim and interest in caring for the sick and injured, will they be just a little bit more caring because of the winter's work?

Our Surgeons and Nursing Officers and all the others responsible for St John training should always bear in mind that our members may have to act entirely alone in dealing with an emergency, without having had any experience other than that gained at instructional meetings. Members want and need to DO things, not just hear about them, or watch other people doing them. There is very little time in which to make sure that members are adequately trained.

Time available

Think out just how much time there will actually be in the period for which you are planning, with the minimum of instruction being one hour per meeting. If the advertised length of a meeting is 1 Y2 hours, this may well allow for 15 minutes for people to be arriving (though even this time should not be wasted) and 15 minutes for notices and other business. So, if planned work together only occupies the minimum hour, be realistic in your calculations of the time available over any period. It always worries me when I consider how small this amount of time is. One hour at each weekly meeting gives a maximum of only 13 hours in any three month period , and, allowing for holidays and events such as the AGM and the inspection, possibly only about 40 hours in a full year. And how many members are likely to make a 100070 attendance? So it really is important that every minute is used to advantage and members are never just sitting around.

Group work is certainly one of the best ways of using the time to the best advantage and also means that First Aid and Care of the Sick may be practised on the same evening. Even with the use of only one bed, there is plenty of practical work in Caring for the Sick (such as treating a wound and use of a wheelchair), to provide work for two groups at a time.

Our two new Manuals should be a great

help in preparing programmes. In each of them the contents of the book are listed very fully, so that the various treatments a member should be capable of carrying out are shown separately. This will serve as a useful guide when planning and as a check list of what has been done and when. You may feel it would be a good idea to concentrate on particular subjects for a certain period and cover all the treatments thoroughly. So, in the months ahead two groups could be devoted to Care of the Sick and two to First Aid, and for the latter to concentrate for several weeks on burns and scalds and five or six of the fractures. Add variety by sometimes having two casualties or two injuries, of which one need not be connected with the special sections which are being covered. Make the staging and histories as diverse as possible and frequently include lifting and carrying. The instructions in the section 'Action at an Emergency' should be borne in mind throughout. At the end of the allotted period every treatment in the chosen section or sections should have been covered at least once.

Eight weeks in any three month period devoted to group work will leave three or four meetings to be filled. On one of these there could be a talk or film(s) and if possible this should be connected with particular practical work being undertaken at the time. One evening could be given to diagnosis, both of injuries and illness , and one to a general exercise. In your own Headquarters this could consist of the reception of a number of people evacuated from their homes because of flooding, a spreading fire or poisonous fumes Get your imaginations working over this and enlist outside help to produce evacuees, with some children, some posing as invalids (arriving in cars) and some with slight injuries. Try to have some links between work recently practised and the cases introduced in the exercise. Prior to this, another meeting might well be devoted to planning how best to turn the Headquarters into a reception or rest centre as part of an emergency scheme, and there should be a discussion afterwards on how the evening went and what needs to be put right or improved.

Their ideas

As a first step in the planning of a programme to cover some months, the members should be given the opportunity of putting forward ideas of what they would

like or feel they need This is a required part of divisional life (see Brigade Regulation 125), but the discussion need not occupy a whole evening. The Divisional Surgeon and Nursing Officer should be at this meeting, so it might be as well to consult them first about a suitable date A lot of ideas, one hopes, will be put forward, many of which will have to be kept for some future programme, but if one or two main themes are decided on fairly quickl y, some ideas may then be focused on these. A small numb er must then get down to the actual planning of the next three to six months in reasonable detail. It is a help if an officer, NCO or member has been given special responsibili ty for training arrangements. Then as soon as any chosen speaker or film has been booked , a programme should be given to every member. But it all takes time, so start planning well ahead. Two or three weeks prior to each meeting the final details will have to be worked out, particularly who will be helping and what will be required of them Realism

The contents of our Manuals only alter every ten years or so, but there is such an immense amount in them, all of which needs to be covered, that practice should never become boring. Basic treatments, like that basic food the potato, should be served up in a variety of ways, and this means using imagination in the staging of incidents, for both first aid and nursing There should be as much realism as possible and differen t combinations of casualties and injurie s, patients, disabilities and illnesses. Always remember that several people dis cussing ideas for incidents are much more likely to think up interesting situations than one person trying to produce them alone

Time being so valuable, how should that time during which members are arriving be used? It is a good idea to have some 'starters', concentrating on individual items for individual members. If someone fails to carry out a treatment well one week, this could be revised immediately on arrival the following week. Or if the Nursing Officer feels that the general standard of some nursing work, such as taking the temperature, is not very good, as they arrive members could each be asked to do this. Individual members may also be given the opportunity of treating a casualty or casualties alone. This is very important, but may be difficult during the meeting hour

without leaving other members without work. But with careful planning it can be done, and indeed must be managed somehow, because individual first aid, with all the responsibilities attached to it, is something every member must be ready for. So the more experience that can be gained the better, and if one or two can be given individual tests as soon as they arrive, it will be all to the good. Using this time before the meeting proper starts, may cut out what is 'chat' time for some, but many will appreciate the opportunity to do that little bit extra, and if the actual meeting starts dead on time, as it should, it should end equally punctually, with time for conversation afterwards. Would the members mind playing what are really games, but which are most useful in training the individual? Observation, the ability to work in silence, a good memory for what has been seen, quick reaction to any warning given, are the many qualities which may be learnt through games and will make for better first-aiders, particularly at major incidents. Here are three examples:

1. Let members form a ring. Place about 20 small articles on the floor in the middle of the rin g and let the members observe them for one minute, then turn round Remove one article and members then

turn back and see who first spots what is missing. This may be repeated three or four times, with the articles shifted around after the second turn.

2. All members gather in the middle of the hall and are blindfold. A clock with a fairly loud tick is placed somewhere in the hall, within reach of anyone standing. Members have to find and touch the clock The blindfold may then be removed , but silence must be maintained until all have been successful, or time is called.

3. Members form two or three lines, with 6 to 8 in each, standing shoulder to shoulder and about 6 inches apart. The lines should be well away from each other A chair is placed in front of No ] , who takes it up and places it on the floor in front of No 2, and so on down the line. This is not a race against time, indeed it must be done slowly so as not to create any noi se, and someone should stand in front of each line to take account of every sound. The muscle control which is required to put the chair down noiselessly is essential for good moving and lifting.

Games, or interludes as they may be called if it is felt this sounds better, may be used

At Rye Nursing Cadet Division 's opening evening on June 3, the County Commissioner Ken Bolton presented the Attendance Cup to (right, I to r) Karen Pope, Kim Gentry, Paula Sams and Jane Clarke, all of whom attended 43 out of 45 meetings. The Junior Cup went to Na dine Mitchell, 10 (right, front), who atte nded 40 meetings. Mr Bolton also enrolled 8 cadets into the Division (below): Gillian Paine Sonia Bourne Sally Mitchel, Tracey Jenner Marie Magrath, Denise Thomson Denise Maguire and Amanda Vicary.

(Photos: P. Chillingworth, Rye )

SUSSEX

So far 19B3 has been an eventful year for one nursing member of Hove and Hangleton Division, for not only has she been successful in resuscitating a casualty but she has also won the John Royle Nursing Competition.

Miss Marlene Ruff {above}, 21, was on duty in the South Stand of the Goldstone Football Ground in Hove (home of Brighton and Hove Albion) when a lady spectator collapsed. After climbing over seats and spectators, Marlene rea che d the casualty only to find that she was not breathing. With the help of a policeman, Marlene moved the lady so that she could start mouth -to- mouth resuscitation The cardiac crew from the East Sussex Ambulance Service arr ive d and between them continued resuscitation until the lady could be stretchered to an ambulance and got to hospital where she recovered.

In June, Marlene exceeded her own expectations by winning he John Royle competition by one point against 10 other contestants, much to the delight of other members of the Division, especially those who had given time and expertise to advise and train her for the event

as a break at any time during the eveni ng, but immediately before the notices is often the best time. None should last much more than five minutes. Do you know anyone in the Scout or Guide movements who could give you ideas for this type of game, or advise on a suitable book? Scout and Guide shops are to be found in a number of towns and in Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1.

Having prepared your bill of fare for the next few months, I do hope everyone will enjoy what is provided for them and feel they are gaining in knowledge and skill. Butthe proof of the pudding is in the eating The ingredients are given in the two Manuals. It is the choice and mixing of these and careful preparation which should produce a divisional meeting which will be thoroughly appreciated.

WEEKEND BARGAINS

ST JOHN House Club is now offering quite exceptional value to weekend visitors. Bookings for all or part of a weekend (Friday to Sunday nights) will be subject to a discount of 300/0 for adults and 50070 for children on the current rates.

Write to or telephone the Warden, Miss Ellerd-Styles, St John House Club, 50 Eaton Place, London SW1X 8AP, telephone numb er 01-235 2732.

ADVENTURE TIME

THE PERSISTENT ringing of the alarm clock suddenly reminded me that it was Friday April 1, the day I and 49 Ambulance and Nursing Cadets, with 12 members of the Air Training Corps, would be setting off for Abercrave Outdoor Pursuit Centre. For many of us this would not be our first visit to the Centre, but that did not pre vent us from being excited at the prospect of our stay there.

It was a crisp April morning when we bade farewell to our friends and relatives and left for our destination at the foot of the Brecon Beacons. It was now too late to worry i f everything was packed or not, if we had sufficient 'Mars-bars', and if we could have done with a little more training to reach the peak of physical fitness which would undoubtedly be tested during our five-day stay at Abercrave. Indeed, no sooner had we arrived, unpacked and had lunch, than we were welcomed warmly and given our tasks for the stay.

As leader of a young team I was determined to lead by example, but this idea seemed doomed when I heard that our first activity would be rock-climbing. I could remember only too clearly my tremulous attempts on the previous visit. However, the afternoon proved very successful, despite the windy conditions and the initial long haul to the rock on one of the highest points in the Brecon Beacons. For myself it proved to be the fulfilment of a personal challenge - to abseil, ie, descend the rock face us i ng rope and harness.

The next day two teams were combined to tackle an all-day hillwalk. We spent another wonderful spring day on the Beacons savouring the views and many interesting and historical features Our only fear was whether we would have enough energy left for the Disco t hat evening However, we needn't have worried for we all pulled on hidden resources to make the Disco a great success.

Another success was the Church Service attended by all cadets and officers on Sunda; morning This was most appropriate, being Easter Sunday, and provided the opportunity for many to have a welcome break from strenuous activities. Normal activities resumed in the afternoon with the inclusion of pony trekking for some eight of us

It was with astonishment that we witnessed a heavy shower of snow that evening, and we realised how cold and severe weather conditions could be high up in a mountain village, and no-one relished the thought of completing their activities in the same conditions the following day

Much to our relief Monday dawned with only a rather thin layer of snow covering the

Outdoor pursuit weekends have become firm favourites with cadets. Here, PHILIPPA

ROBERTS (right), Cadet Leader of Wales' Skewen Div, tells us why ground, and the sun soon rose over the mountains to melt it. This, however, I did not see, as I was spending the morning in the pitch-blackness of a cave. Rubbing noses with the ground and crawling on my stomach immersed in water may not be the most upmarket way to spend an Easter Monday, but it is most certainly one of the experiences I shall carry with me for the rest of my life. I'm sure some of the parents who had accepted the invitation to visit the Centre that Easter Monday never envisaged taking part in a real-life mountain rescue operation. One of our party was suffering from hypothermia on a nearby slope and needed assistance. I, too, was called on to be of service and can only say how pleased I am to have witnessed the way in which the instructors of the

Centre, members of St John Ambulance and the A TC and two civilians co-operated in this operation with such ease and professionalism Fortunately, the cadet concerned made a complete and rapid recovery, and was able to continue the course.

It was unbelievable to think that our fiveday course had almost come to an end. For me it finished on the Tuesday morning when I landed flat on my stomach in a pool of muddy water on the assault course. That fal l epitomised the character of our Abercrave stay. Everyone co-operated, mixed and shared in a vibrant atmosphere of challenge and commitment. I only hope that I will have the opportunity of returning to Abercraveand next time I'll try to remember to pack my towels!

S Devon cadets at Brixham

'WOULDN'T it be great to have an Area Weekend?' This remark was made constantly by cadets during our Jubilee Adventure Weekend at Wyvern Barracks, Devon. With only four hours' sleep from Thursday to Sunday, it is very easy to agree to things without appreciating the full implications!

Constantly reminded of this promise on my visits to Divisions, the planning started; Brixham Community College agreed we could take over their buildings at the end of May, and arrangements finalised.

For weeks beforehand , Mrs Larkin, Superintendent of Brixham Combined Cadet Division, with parents and friends, had baking sessions, and there wasn't an empty

milling around we decided to have games before breakfast. Rounders at that time of the morning? Refreshed by a hearty breakfast it was time for proficiency subjects. Map reading, gymnastics, roller skating, games, cosmetics, hair dres sing, orienteering (easy to get lo st even on the playing fields), trampoiining and judo were all covered during the weekend. On Saturday morning 20 cadets went down to the Lifeboat Station, to the envy of the others who couldn't go because of limitation of numbers. A marvellous lunch , during which much discussion took place on what had been done and lookin g forward to the afternoon session. More proficiency subjects and the Fire Brigade arrived complete with tender - water everywhere with the cadets using the hosepipe over the school roof. Panic from an adult tutor at the school who happened to be passing and thought we had a full scale emergency! Reassured, she stayed to watch the fun. Throughout the weekend the juniors had their own programme devised by Mrs Kemp, Divisional Superintendent of Ashburton Quadrilateral Division, and they could be seen, heads down , wandering through the corridors and in the playing fields, lookin g for items for nature study, quizzes, etc

Time then for S-a-side football and It's a Knockout, another excellent meal, and then a disco. Perhaps a little more sleep that night (not a lot) and ready for the off on Sunday. At least they weren't up quite so early. Perhaps their energy was beginning to flag at last.

Another hearty breakfast (we weren't going to lose any weight this weekend) and then the Police arrived to give a talk about preserving the scene of an accident. We staged an accident with a car and motorbike, putting into practise the casualty simulation learned the previous day, and a team from Newton Abbot Ambulance Cadet Division treated casualties. Introductions to

Skipping in the rain

deep freeze available in the town.

Friday morning, May 27, the sun shone, and Neil Le Chevalier, Area Staff Officer (Ambulance Cadets) and I went to the College to await the influx. 142 officers, cadets and juniors descended on us - do they really need so much luggage for a weekend? Friday evening was spent settling in, and a disco. No one was keen on sleep, but eventually at about 2am it was reasonably quiet. Fortunately the juniors were in a separate building, and could turn in at a reasonable hour 4am and only snoring could be heard as I made a securi ty round.

7am and with so many young people

0/0 Mal co lm Dunham organised the event to recruit cadets publicise the Brigade and raise funds. Skipping at least two at a time. the cadets went on literally without stopping until the Town Mayor blew the whistle to bring the event to a halt. Cadets skipped in 5 - minute relays with occasional reinforcements from adults and even passers -by. A total of 28 cadets and 9 adults were involved during the day. A lot of interest was shown by the general public and a good deal of publicity was received By finding sponsors. the cadets also raised £ 140

Range-Rover and motor-cycle

and instructive morning.

another superb meal and sports in the Disney and Gray from Britannia

After tea it was time to pack and leave, and sports hall constantly, the Fire Brigade, exchanging addresses and promising to and Police and Lifeboat personnel. Also to attend the next event. Mrs Larkin and her team of helpers for such Totally exhausted, foot-sore, corridors excellent catering, and coping with the getting longer with each step as we went washing up afterwards; and the officers of around sorting out the classrooms ready for South De von Area for their support. the school to return to normal - was it Now who shall we get to take lectures and worth it? Most de finitely yes. Our thanks to give demonstrations next time? Yes, off we all who gave up their time to come and go again. Has anyone a recipe for sleeping instruct the cadets , too numerous to name standing up? individually, but a pecial mention has to go June Pierce, ASO (Cadets Nursing), to PT instructor Davies and Midshipmen South Devon.

South Devon cadets learn all about walkie-talkie " 40-channel radios from Michael Leaman (right ) from police d?g Ace who hIS skills Ashburton The girls who were on a 3-day weekend at at tracklDg, and then aVId lllspectlons of the Brixham. are (L to R) Heid Diepold of Kingsbridge.

which had Michelle Hill of South Brent Hannah Lane of Brixham, also been brought to the school. A most and Diane Smith of Ashburton (Photo: Torquay Herald entertaining

Yet Express )

FIRST AID IS FIRST AID (and no more)

from Mr E. J. Whitthread, Area Staff Officer

In the May Review we had yet another letter requesting the establishment of an elite group referred to as a paramedical section within the Brigade.

We have our 'paramedical section' in the skills of the Brigade doctors and nurses who give their time to teach and to guide the efforts of us lay persons , and who are present on duties and those occasions when professional backup is required.

The function of the first-aider is to render first aid and the administration of drugs and the application of medical specialist techniques is not within his sphere.

It is my experience that the majority of incidents attended by Brigade members occur when they are following their normal daily rou ine and the assistance they render is limited by what they know , their dexterity and the material readily available to preserve life and to prevent further injury. In other words, to at least maintain the patient 's position and prevent any deterioration and make early provision for subsequent professional treatment.

There is plenty of meat on the first aid skeleton and believe me one is never beyond learning something new on the subject. In the May Review there were tw o excellent articles on first aid which if understood and followed by t he reader gave considerable scope to the first aid student.

The first-aider is precisely that. He is not a DHSS ambulanceman with his equipment to whom we pass on our patient for the first stage of professional treatment.

If the first-aider's appetite is not satisfied within the Brigade he must obtain the additional skill he requires by doing as the writer of the May articles has done and become an SEN or SRN and leave it at that. You cannot change the concept of first aid, the rendering of which is the object of the Brigade and the function of its members

Moreeambe, Lanes E. 1 Whitthread

NURSING PERSONNEL

from Mrs F. E. Wilson, County Nursing Officer Essex I was extremely irritated, to put it mildly, by Point 5 in the article Uniform (July Review). To quote 'as the feminine role in nursing should be emphasised, particularly with cadets.'

In other words, keep the women where they belong Frequent complaints reach me that nursing and nursing personnel are 'second class citizens' in St John, and this is, apparently, approved by the higher echelons. It is an insult to all nursing personnel - although in some ways perhaps a 'back handed compliment'; a disparagemen t of all our male colleagues who have appreciated the value of and obtained proficiency in nursing; and a derogatory refusal to acknowledge the value of the male Nursing Officer in the Brigade. These officers are expert, experienced and enthusiastic. I have seen and encouraged many members of ambulance divisions, both adult and cadet , to obtain enrolment or registration, and have been delighted when they returned as Nursing Officers. Are we to consider these experts as peculiar, because they are male and nurses? And are all those invaluable female surgeons also peculiar?

The article sets out policy on uniform. I trust Point 5 does not set out policy on sex segregation. Commissioner Molloy and ASO Hearne, who wrote letters in the same issue, support the popular request for equality. The days when ambulance personnel tended to work outside and nursing personnel worked inside the first aid post are gone For example, at local point-to-points, teams at individual jumps are frequently all female personnel with no lowering of first aid standards. As ASO Hearne says: 'Equal opportunities and all that'. Whether this art icle will satisfy the demands for change of uniform I do not know. As an expression of the necessity for nursing training, especially in the present climate of 'Care in the Community', which means care by the community, and its value - it leaves much to be desired.

Thorpe Bay F. E Wilson

DON'T UNDERRATE CADETS

from Chris Hale, Divisional Superintendent

With reference to Chris Kimberley's 'Talking Point' in the May Review, I feel that as someone who is responsible for both adults and cadets I can make a fairly unbiased judgement.

On the one hand I must agree with his stated aims, both for cadet divisions and adult divisions, but I feel that there must be a close marriage of these aims. It is un f ortunate that the vast majority of Brigade officers see themselves as either 'Ca de t Officers' who are selected and appointed to pursue the aims of the cadet divisions, or as 'Adult Officers' who are selected and appointed to pursue the aims of the adult divisions. Many problems result from this. For example the public duty situation. Over the years many cadet officers have campaigned success fu lly for equal status with adult officers on public duties, but I see that according to Chris Kimberley's aims 'giving first aid cover at public events' is not within the scope of the cadet division, and those appointed as cadet officers are not selected for their abilities in these matters or trained to accept such responsibilities. You can t have it both ways!

As far as our cadets are concerned my attitude is simple. Yes, we try to provide all that a yo uth organisation should provide for them, but there are many other specialist youth organisations such as the Scouts, Guides, etc, and those who just want to join a youth organisation would be far better off in these. I believe that St John Ambulance is about first aid and that our cadets should join to do first aid. We also provide t hem with as many other facilities as we can, but first aid is our main reason for being in existence. If the cadets stay in t he Brigade and become adult members I am delighted , but even if they don't they are very useful members while they are still ca det s We could not cover many of the duties that we do cover without our cadets. We just don't have enough adult members , and even if we did, many of our fifteen-year -old cadets with four years' experience and an adult certificate are of more value on a public duty than t he newly-joined adult. Please don't underrate your cadets. Properly trained and supervised they are an asset, and there is the strong possibility that many will stay and become top calibre adult members. This is a bonus.

Cambridge

RE-EXAMS from A Reader

Chris Hale

I wonder how many of your readers find, as I do, a strange anomaly in the fact that while professionally qualified nurse s of all descriptions, regardless of their present occupation and its relevance to first aid, are exempt from the annual Brigade re-examination, Association and FA W instructors are not, despite the fact that the very act of teaching means that their knowledge is being subjected to a very demanding examination often two or three times a week?

There is surely something strange in the fact that, while the Brigade demands of all its recruits an Association certificate, it annually questions the competence of those who teach and examine those recruits by subjecting them to re-examination. Even worse, while the re-exam is nominally conducted by a doctor, large part s of it are in fact conducted by Brigade officers who are themselves subject to examination and whose only qualification is in many cases a First Aid certificate issued to them as a result of the teaching of the instructors they are now called upon to examine Could it even be that there lurk within the Brigade officers who

have taken and failed Association and FA W instructors' courses and who are now regularly examining their examiners!

There are certainly many doctors who Find it extremely embarrassing to have to examine in basic first aid instructors with whom they regularly work as colleagues on public courses, while many of our professionally qualified instructors, who willingly give a great deal of time to the Association, have little time for the Brigade simply because it fails to recognise the professionalism upon which it depend s for its survival.

The time must now be ripe for the Brigade to put its house in order:

(a) By exempting from the re-exam all qualified Association and FA W instructors;

(b) Ensuring that no officer who is not himself exempt from the reexam takes any part in administering it.

It is only by showing that we as a Brigade have complete confidence in those who teach our member s that we can expect the general public to take u s seri ously as a training organisation. A Reader

Edit: The writer of this letter requested withholding name and address.

BINDER PLEASE from Bruce Coltman, Area Staff Officer

I read with interest the letter from Ben Jarman (Review June 83) about his need to find a new home for his large collection of St John Reviews, as the keeper of a similar large collection of this magazine of ours [ often wonder why there is not an official binder with the appropriate title on the spine

Gtr Manchester

(from Ron Pipes)

JUNE 5 was a big day for Heywood Division - it was their 100th anniversary. And to commemorate the event a special Church Parade and Service were held at St James Parish Church.

In the early days the Brigade in Heywood was made up of four sections - North, East, South and Westwith each section having its own meeting night and meeting place, with a general meeting and practice held once a month.

The Division prospered for many years and in 1900 four members went on active service to the Boer War. In the First World War 31 members saw active service. During the last war the Division provided 13 members as reservists in the RMC and other sections of the forces, while at home all remaining adult members were involved in ARP work.

In 1900 the Nursing Division was formed, lectures being held in a small room in a bakery which has been long since demolished. Two years later, with 24 members, a new headquarters was established in a former technical sch ool.

During the First World War members nursed the wounded so ldi ers coming back from the Western Front.

A Sunday School was taken over as an auxiliary hospital with the first patient being admitted in November 1916, the last in April 1919.

It was not until the 1930s that the Brigade be came the proud owner of its present HQ in Bamford Road The Cadet Division was formed in 1932.

To mark the occasion, centenary year has been very busy for all coneerned, with a cadet quiz, sponsored swims to raise money for divisional funds, a dinner /da nce and a reunion tea, when 70 past and present members attended. The present strength of the Division is 23 adult members, including Sergeant Jack Thorndyke, who has been a member for 45 years but is now on the retired li st.

To have each year's copies bound is cost prohibitive, but could we not have a binder which would hold two years' copies? It would then be a simple task to identify the vol ume with the years included by means of dry transfer (Letraset) lettering.

In an effort to so lve this problem, I checked with a well known stationers and news agents who have outlets nationwide and found that they do a very useful item at a reasonable price, and would not numerou s of our readers, divisions and individual members appreciate a bound reference instead of wondering where they had put the latest edition of the Re view? Or ha ving a means of checking up on that article which some member is making reference to and which appeared ten or more years ago?

Please can the Review Management Committee and the Supplies Department listen to a cry from the wilderness which could well be supported by every member/division which receives our house magazine

Northumbria

COSTLY HORSESHOES

from It Col R B. Robinson , Commissioner

In The World About Us (June Review) it is said that horse power is returning to British farms. One reason given is that tractor tyres cost £200 each (£400 the pair of big ones), whereas horseshoes are only £20.

If anyone keeps horses, as I do, he will know that they have to be shod every month, so this item is £240 per year, whereas the £400 worth of tyres with luck last

Bruee Collman

NEWS from SCOTLAND

ANGUS St John Association, under the energetic leadership of Colonel Tom Lamb, recently handed over a cheque for £500 to help buy an ambulator ECG Recorder for 24-hour heart monitoring in Stracathro Hospital. The presentation was made at The Burn, Edzell, where a reception was held to raise funds for the Angus Association.

Among those present were Mr W. A. P. Jack, Chancellor of the Priory of Scotland; the Earl of Dalhousie, Lord Lieutenant of Angus who is President of the Association' and Viscount Arbuthnott, the new Prior of Scotland.

Under Scotland's 'Gardens Scheme', the gardens at The Burn were open on June 19, when one-third of the proceeds were allocated to the St John Association. Angus St John Association will also benefit from the sale of tickets for a series of concerts to be given in July by the distinguished Alauda Choir from Geneva, in St Paul's Cathedral, Dundee; Lathallan School, Montrose; St Mary's and St Peter's Church, Montrose; and St Mary's Church, Arbroath.

Glasgow St John Association held its annual general meeting as usual in the City Chambers on April 26 when the Prior, the Viscount of Arbuthnott, gave a most encouraging talk; the Chairman was

WALES

NEWPORT, Gwent Cadets formed a guard of honour at the wedding of their County Staff Officer for Cadets, Keith Dunn, in June. Keith, 26, a member of the Brigade since the age of seven, married Sarah Knight, 24, daughter of the former Mayor of Newport, Councillor Leslie Knight. Keith met Sarah when the Mayor visited cadets in Newport.

Keith is the full-time Occupational First Aid Training Officer for Wales and looks after cadets in his spare time. Sarah, 24, of Newport, works at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, in their laboratory.

Both are members of St Mark's Church, Newport, and the Service was conducted by the Rev Kenneth Sharpe, Divisional Chaplain to the Gwent Health Authority Hospitals Division. The address was given by Canon David G. Lewis, District Chaplain to the Brigade in Newport.

West Glamorgan cadets celebrate ON May 21, 300 cadets, adult members, parents and friends met in the Country Park, Margam, Port Talbot, to celebrate 60 years of the cadet movement in Wales. The weather was mixed, rain and sun, but no one seemed to mind. Everyone was set on having fun. 188

Brigadier John Balharrie. Central Association ran a successful 'Race Night' in Stirling on April 30, which raised about £1,400 to help finance much-needed repairs at the Holiday Home at Strathyre. A Treasure Hunt on June 19 ended at Drumbowie Farm, the home of Mr Keith with his bride, Sarah, together with ambulance and nursing cadets for ming the guard of honour.

!Photo : South Wales Argus)

We were honoured to have Mrs Bridget Lewis, Chief Cadet Officer; Mr P. Harries , Chief Training Officer, and Mrs Harries; Lt Col J. E. Humphreys, County Commissioner, and Mrs Humphreys; and the County's two Assistant Commissioners, Mr and Mrs J. Evans, to join in our celebrations.

Divisions represented were: Aberdulais, Briton Ferry, Bryn, Crynant, Croeserw, Glyncorrwg, Neath, Port Talbot, Resolven, Seven Sisters, Skewen and West Cross.

A treasure trail with ten clues around a 11;2 -mile course took cadets an average 1 Y4 hours to complete. The winner was Neath Division, to whom County Cadet Officer L. Brunt presented the cup which had been

HRH The Duke of Gloucester Grand Prior of the Order leaving the church after the installation of V scount of Arbuthnott (fifth from left) as Prior of Scotland, on Apr 12. (Photo The Scotsman) Archibald Russell, chairman of the Central Order Committee, where a barbeque was held.

The Flag Day at Perth raised the sum of £430 in support of the Day Care Centre for the handicapped, in which the Perth St John Association takes a caring interest.

Wales, Mr s B. Lewis (right), presents Mrs D Sinnett, D Supt Milford Haven Division, with the Richard Hayes Cup for the best turned out division at the annual inspection Also in the picture are Chief Supt E L. Jones , Deputy Commissioner , and Mr M. R L. Hayes (right) in front of Siebech House to an end, the Chief Cadet Officer presented all cadets, juniors and other children with a certificate of attendance, something to remind them of this 60 years celebration.

L. Brunt, County Cadet Officer

Pem brokeshire

THE annual inspection of St John Ambulance Brigade i n Pembrokeshire was carried out on the lawns of Slebech Park, Haverfordwest on Sunday June 26 by the Chief Cadet Officer for Wales, Mrs B Lewis. The Richard Hayes Cup for the best turned out Division was won for the fir s t time by the Milford Haven Division. Following the parade, the Annual Service of Thanksgiving was held in the ruins of the Church of St John in the beautiful ground s

of Slebech Park, situated alongside the River Cleddau. The service was conducted by the Chaplain to the Order in Pembrokeshire, Rev William Watkins. The Most Reverend M. G. Childs, Archbishop of Wales, gave the address to a capacity congregation of members of the Brigade and local parishioners. During the service, the Archbishop of Wales dedicated two new Divisional Cadet Banners, one generously donated by Mrs J. Howard Owen, to the Fishguard Division in memory of her late husband, Dr J Howard Owen, a former Divisional Surgeon, Brigade instructor, honorary life member of the Priory for Wales and a member of the examining staff.

The other banner had recently been acquired by the Pembroke Dock Division

In the congregation was Mrs Jane Cates of Nevada, USA, who had travelled 6,000 miles from Caljfornia especially to attend the service. It was a most interesting and historic occasion. Mrs Cates' ancestors, the Barlow family, had lived in the Manor at Slebech in the early 16th-century and are reputed to have built the house in its present form. The now ruined church was built in the 12thcentury as the church for the Hospital of the Order of St John on the same site. It was used by the Hospitallers of the Order of St John to nurse the sick and wounded after the Crusades.

The Lessons were read by the Presiden t of the [John Council , Col The Hon R. Hanning Philipps, and the Chairman , Mr A. J. G. Bowen.

donated by Mrs S. Rush, a member of the St John Council.

The older cadets were then taken on a walk of some 3 Y2 miles by one of the Margam Park wardens. This took them through lanes, tracks, grassland and mud, and steadily climbed until they reached one of the highest spots in the park called Pulpit, from where the view over lakes, grassland and forestry is breathtaking. Meanwhile the Juniors went to the park's adventure playground, which has swings, slides, climbing bars and trees, and where they all had an enjoyable time. The groups later met in a large barn for a barbeque, when a good feed was had by all. Before the marvellous day of fun, which so many people had helped t o organise, came

News from Divisions/Centres

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for artery (5). 11. A functional part of body from inferior ganglion (5). 12. Journey for a hallucinogenic drug addict (4). 13. Pre serve a painful callosity (4). 15. Believed to be cause of illness in primit ive communities (4.7). 19. Treatment for chronic rhinorrhoea can produ ce no dual aches (5.6).22. Poisonous sap from Java is in croup astringent. (4) 23. Young animal with a metamorphic form of insect (4). 25. Bones of carpus and tarsus (5).27. Number in strange race in West African city (5).28. Talus (5.4). 29. Dying with a will (7) 30. Bird suffering from torticollis? (7).

Down:

1. Wrestling hold for naval hero (6). 2. Di storted as gene in plant root giving expectorant medicine (6). 3. Transgress again for plant exudate (5). 4. Indicates possibility of great bodil y strength? (5). 5. Inher ent muscles with origin and insertion within same structure (9) 6. Flesh of calf (4). 7. Abnormal forward curvature of lumbar spine (8). 8. Safe ends in complete loss of hearing (8). 14. Blood-sucldng para sites of body , head, and pubic region (4). 15 . Fish for evasive, untrustworthy people (4). 16. Inject irnmunising vaccines (9). 17. Fever transmitted to man by milk of animals with brucellosis (8). 18. Calcaneum (2.6). 20. Doctor with flower becomes ill-tempered and unhappy (6). 21. Swift dash for a stripe (6). 24. Awry as a London suburb (5).25. How the horticulturalist feels when not in good heal th? (5). 26. Anatomical vessels from Virginia and South Australia (4)

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No 7 (83)

Across: 1. Lifted; 4 Trochlea; 9 Normal; 10 Odontoid; 12. Bite; 13. Ohio; 14. Stern; 16 Nailbed; 17. Head ; 19. Eye; 22. Axon; 23. Re-union; 26. Adam's; 28. I-mps; 29. Edge; 31. Deafness; 32 Gemini; 33. Glabella; 34. Career. Down: 1. Long bone; 2. First rib; 3. Exam; 5. Radio-therapy ; 6 Cones; 7. Loosen; 8. Ardent; 11. Rhodes missal; 15. Ibex; 18 AnuS; 20. Windpipe; 21. Inferior; 24. Mad dog; 25 Banana; 27 Sen se; 30 Sera.

) fficial St John Ambulance Sweatshirts. Made in Great J ritain and screenprinted with your divisional name and St ohn Ambulance Brigade Motif. £6.95 each, minimum order mly 10 shirts, under our special CSt John Ambulance Jrigade Scheme'. For full details write or telephone to Karyn Printemps Ltd. (The Schools Specialjsts), Turpins y ard, Oaklands Road, London NW21YB. Tel: 01-4509588.

1984 DIARIES 20p each £28.80 per gross plu s V AT Sail Pens, Key Fob etc. All pr inl ed lO your requ i rement s For Sample and Pri ce Lis !: o TON S PPLY CO., DEPT SJ., 112 VICTORIA ROAD , NETHERFIELD, NOTTINGHAM. G42HH. Tel: Nottingham 879480

fOR TH E WELff\RE Of THOSE WITH CMCER

Tllc foulldatioll pro v id es rcsidcllLial ca r e ill c lc \' II Ilur illg h Olll C , n at i ollw id c c o lni c ili ary night Ilur ill g , urg c llt w ' If a r e II cd ill I<..illd , CO Ull S lIillg for paticnts a nd tll c ir famili cs , and a ll c nquir y bur ea u ; to ge th e r with act i v prograllllnc of c allc ' I' r csca r c h , a lld educa Lioll in tllc prof s Oll a l a lld l ay ! c ld further information available on request from the Secretary. 124 Sloane Street, LONDON SW I X 9BP

Tel: 0 I 7309 I 57

Miniature Skeleton and Minitorso For details of our

of over

please write or phone EDUCATIONAL AND SCIENTIFICPLASTICSLTD.

ST JOHN REVIEW

Reade

News

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You

Prize s include:

2nd Pri ze One week s holida y f or t w o at THE HOTEL INTER - CONTI ENTAL , BANGKOK

3rd Pri ze One week's holida y f or tw o a t THE HOTEL INTER-CONTINE N TAL , NAIROBI

4th Pri ze A two week holida y f or t w o at THE FARRINGDON HOTEL , ISLE OF WIGHT

5th Prize A two w eek holida y for tw o i n AN APARTMENT

TRY

AS

AS YO U CAN THIS IS A VERY EASY WAY TO F UNDRAISE WITHOUT ANY COSTS!

Brigade Finals

(Copland -Gri

Cup); 7th Horsham (Sussex

8th Chased o wn Co mbin ed (Staffs) 270; 9th Machynlleth (Wales) 265 (Elli s C up); 10 h Southampton 261; 11th St Pancra s (Gtr London) 251 121h Newton Abbot (Devon) 243 Nursing: 4th Darlington 255 (Gro svenor Cup, shared) ; 51h Norwich Central 246 (Ellis Cup, Mountbauen C up ); 61h Waterloo (Merseyside) 239; 7th Folkestone Combined 233 81h Rugby 231; 9th Bristol No 1224; 10lh Spalding

6th SQulh

(Durham)

259 (N ew Zealand Cup - shared); 8th Scarborough 256; 9th po o e (Dorsel) 254 (New Zealand Cup - shared); 10th Maid slOn e 252; 11th Wimbledon 242; 12th Portaferry (Northern Ire and) 228 (Lowe

THE SILENT MAJORITY

Modesty: 'Not over-rating one's own merit, unassuming, retiring, inconspicuous.

Pride: Setting too high a value on oneself or one's importance, position, abilities, etc, a consciousness or superiority; a feeling of honour.'

THESE DEFINITIONS from the Oxford Dictionary are worth remembering and are r elevant to St John and the St John Review.

St John is the model of modesty, so much so that i t could end up hurting St John itself. Why? Because unless we actually start telling people that we are proud of the work we do and the way we do it, our funds and recruits will continue to drop. First of all, let's relate this to the Sf John Review. It can only be as good as the material it is given. A Review, according to the dictionary again , is a periodical in which current events are discussed'. Needless to say, if current e v ents are not submitted to the Review how can it discuss them?

Now, le t's relate this to St John Ambulance. Unless we constantly strive to tell people how marvellous St John is, there is no reason why anyone should join or give money . No-one is going t o be interested in joining or giving to St John if they are not fully aware or sympathetic tow ards our cause. We should find it easy to interest people in St John Unlike other charities we are non-discriminatory, we help everyone, not just the elderly, terminally ill or pets We also offer a fine challenge which most other charities do not. We must tell everyone what we offer. Please don get me wrong I'm not asking you to pick up a severely injured motorcyclist at a scramble, put him on a

by Richard Radcliffe Director of Public Affairs

stretcher and rush throug'h the crowd saying, 'Look, I'm with St John and this man, with his leg falling off, is going to be pa tched up free of charge and I'm not paid for doing it Well, actually, if the injured person didn't suffer any extra pain from this exercise I probably would ask yo u to do it, but let's leave that for the moment!

What I am saying is that we must make ourselves visib le and try and get people to notice us. Let 's change to having a silent minority within St John. If every St John Ambulance member undertook to tell ten members of the public each week what we reall y do, and how we do it, by this time next year over 36 million people would become sympat hetic to our cause and, therefore, a potential recruit or donor. Imagine, within 15 months we would have enlightened the entire population of England, Wales and Northern Ireland! What s more, it is the cheapest form of publicity. So why not start doing this locally?

Having said that, an excellent way of shouting about ourselves is in the St John Review When did you last send a story, article or letter to the Review? Your Division must have done something interesting latel y; even if it hasn't, you yourself must ha ve some strong view s about various aspects of St John Air them in the Sf John Review and let s have some interesting corre s pondence.

St John cannot afford to maintain this shrou d of modesty. The time could come when there is not a lot left to be modest about. The dodo was a very modest bird - and look what happened to theml

So let us spread the word with pride in the Review and among the public.

St John Fellowship

formally

Jul y 20 1983:

for

Avon Benevolent and Welfare F und Co nta ct : Mr G J C ree c h MBE, 30 Fir Tr ee Lane, St George, Bri sto l BS5 8TZ. Berkshire Fellowship. Co ntact: Lady Elizabe t h Godsal, H a i nes H ll , Twy ford, Berk RGI DNA.

Devon Fellowship. Co ntact: Mr s V A. Treb il cock, 41 Kin gswoo d Park Avenue, Peverell Plymouth D evon.

St John Guild , We s tern Area, Hants. Co nt act: H o n Secretary, Mr s Peggy Willi ams, 1 Conifer C re sce nt , P enn in gton, Lyming t on, Hant s S04.

St John Fellowship, Humberside. Co nta c t:

Secretary, Mrs Muriel Greenwood, 181 Belvoir Street, Hull , H U5 }LS. Preston Corps (Duke of Lancaster's District) Fellow s hip Co ntact: Secretary, Mr Bates, 87 Old H a ll Dri ve, Bamber Bridge Pr eston, Lan es, PR 5 6EU.

St John Ambulance R.R R Fellowship, Nor th ern Area London Di s trict. Co nt ac t: Secretary, Mr Alfred W Blade, 3 Mont se rr at Avenue, Woodford Green, Essex, IG8 9PJ.

S t John Guild of Retired Members, Ea Surrey.

Contact: Secretary, Mrs Grace Scott, Ne whac h e, D ormanslan d Lingfield, Surrey

In addition we a r e g lad to announce th at the Ho s pitall ers' C lub of th e Priory of Wa es has accepted an invitation to be aff il iated t o the Fe llow s hip.

Sheila Pu ckle, the National Secretary, spent a ve ry happ y aft e rnoon at the annual party for retired memb ers n Berk sh ir e, held at Haines Hill the h o m e of the County Superintendent, Lady Elizaberh Godsal, on Jun e 29.80 former member s were present a nd she was able to tell them about the n ew Fe ll ows hip and se ll so m e badges. All correspondenc e, a nd orders for Fe ll owsh ip badge s, s hould no w be se nt to S h ei la 's hom e address: Mi ss Sheila Puck Ie, 3 1 Ma lve rn Court, Onslow Squar e, London SW7 3 H Y Reminder: Th e Bad ges cos t £1.30 eac h , including posta ge. Please say w h e th er yo u want th e brooch

At the 1983 conference, which was attended by over 40 County Surgeons

The Royal Navy team who spoke on medicine in the Falklands. (L o R) Surg Cdr Leicester, Supt Nursing Sister Julia Massey, Surg Cdr Chapman, (Dr E GreyTurner , chairman SJA Medical Board) and Lt Alan Piggford

getting the message over CHRIS KIMBERLEY, CSO West Midlands, sent me this contribution. Have you any comments or ideas that might encourage our young people to take part in interesting activities?

Chris writes: 'Adventure training and outdoor activities generally are now an accepted part of most County and Area programmes, although a considerable number of Divisions are still reluctant to become involved There may be a number of reasons for this, but one is undoubtedly the British tradition of being wary of change and anything new. Quite understandably those in charge of Divisions vary widely in background, age and experience , and it is only a fool who would suggest that just because a particular activity or training method is in vogue all officers and leaders should suddenly be keen to change their ideas and concepts overnight. Indeed a Division, or for that matter an Area or County , is not going to embark upon new activities unless it is convinced of, firstly the need and, secondly, its ability to allow its members to take part.

'To many officers the mere mention of adventure training conjures up ideas of them, personally, dangling on a rope 2,000 feet up a mountain or shooting the rapids in a canoe.

It is not surprising, then, that they will shy away from something which they themselves did not have the opportunity or desire to take part in in their youth, and thereby deny their cadets the chance. In many cases this is not the fault of the officers, who are good at what they do, but the fault of the organisation generally for not getting the message over as to, firstly, the need for new training methods and activities and , secondly, the way in which the Division can be involved without the need for its officers to actually participate. Convincing divisional officers is vital, because without t heir commitment cadets will not take part in courses and events , no matter how worthwhile they are. Divisional officers hold the key to communication and motivation of cadets. Once divisional officers are sold on an idea the barriers come down more easily and they will perhaps encourage their cadets to take part.

'We in the West Midlands this year took this idea on board and organised sessions at the Long Mynd Adventure Camp in Shropshire, where leaders were invited to come along and see some of the activities which can either be undertaken only under specialist instruction (such as climbing fell walking) or which t hey can organise themselves with a little imagination (such as treasure trails and incident walks). It is too early to ten whether on the basis of one session more Divisions will becom e committed to new training activities, but it is something that must be tried and tried again.

'Officers themselves should be ready to learn about new activities and find out how they can let their cadets take part. If you are a leader ask yourself the question: am I preventing my cadets from taking part just

because it does not interest me? There should be no doubt in your mind that once you know that a particular activity or course is a sound idea, and relevant to the organisation's aims, you should go flat out to find ways of letting your cadets take part.'

Road Safety

My thanks also this month to Edward Goodman, ASO Devon, who is also a Road Safety Officer, for his ideas to involve cadets in road safety training

Ted writes:

Most Road Safety Officers will agree that those two words are a great 'turn off' Road Safety is a very dry topic if you allow it to be - yet it is essential to life.

If referred to as 'Road Awareness' or 'Traffic Education' young people take to it ve ry well.

Her e are a few ideas for introdu c in g the subject to your cadets. There are many other ways in which the subject can be approached.

The Road Safety Officer at your Di str ct Council or County Council Officer will probably be pleased to feed you with other ideas or even come to give a talk or demonstration , or how a film.

Green Cross Code relay game

This is one way of making s ure that your ca det s know the basic rules of cross in g the road

a. Divide cadets into equal t eam not exceeding 7 members.

b. Line teams up at one end of the h a ll and place a table at the other end facing each team.

c. Prin the six rules of the Green Cross Code on to pieces of paper, then cut each one up into the ix rules of the code Shuffle each et of six a nd put them in from of each team, face down.

d. Team members in turn run up to their table with one piece of paper.

e. The final team member travel emptyhanded, but has to arrange the six pieces

of paper he finds in the correct order. The first team to achieve the correct result wins.

Road Sign treasure trail (for light evenings)

Send cadets out in twos and three s to cover a pre-arranged route in a set time. They should either draw or li st (with meanings) - according to age - all the road signs they see on their journey. These can be checked against the 'master list held at HQ. The team nearest the co rrect r esu lt wins.

Road Sign Quiz

Using drawings, photographs or s lide s of road s ign s, teams iden tify the signs s hown to them.

Quizze like this ca n be e nliven ed by playing noughts and crosses at the sa me time. While this means that only two teams can play at a time, they can be as large as neces sa ry In stead of s imply producing a point, each correct answer entitles that team to place a nought or cross on a board. The winning team has the highest number of 'ga mes in the sessio n.

Poster Design Competition

For indi vidua ls or pairs. Issue coloured pe n ci s or felt tip pens and get the cadets to design a poster on a particular topic, eg, s.eat belt s; drink / drive; being seen on dimly lit treet; old folk cro sing; etc.

The winning poster hould have a clear message, draw the eye and show imagination. It could be displayed near the door at HQ for a week or two - no more or it wi ll 10 e its impact.

Road User Behaviour survey (for light evenings)

Divide into group of up to six, eac h under a re spon ible person and de patch to prearranged site to watch drivers, rider and pede trian going pa t. The cadet will be amazed at the mi take and carelessness of road users. It would be useful (a) to obtain fro m your Road Safety Officer details of exactly how they shou ld be behaving, before the event, and (b) to brief the cadets on what to look at - pelican cross ing u e, roundabout u e, signa ls at junction, etc.

Cycling

It is usually possible to per uade a parent or other knowledgeable per on to pend an eve nin g discussing and demon trating ba ic cycle maint enance.

As a lar ger project than one eveningabout SIX hour s are r equired - those cadets who hav e not t aken a cyc lin g proficiency

Course at chool co uld atte nd an even in g

Course - contact yo ur CSO for details.

Senior cadets working towards a Duke of Edlll.burgh award could train as cycling profiCIency instru cto rs - contact your local CSO to discu ss.

Drama

Why don't your senior Cadet write and present a play about an accident, how it happened as well as the re ults , injury, dl ability, bereavement , loss of mobility?

The po sibilities for bri g htening Road Safety are a great as your i m ag ination!

Proficiency Subjects

This month I produce details of the Initial Radio Communications Syllabus which I received from Brigade HQ. View s are currently being sought, via Area and County Staffs, on the future organisation of the sc heme for the Grand Prior 's Badge. This includes a s uggestion that the number of s ubject s be reduced. If you have any views please contact your Cadet Staff Officer NOW, to make your views known, so that Headq uarter s can make a decision ba se d on the views of those that use the system.

Initial Radio Communications Syllabus (Age 15-20)

All candidates must:

1 Understand the principles of single frequency simplex working and have an appreciat ion of transmitting and receiving radio signals at VHF.

2. B e conversa nt with the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 (as amended) as it applies to the use of mobile radio equipment operated by St John Ambulance.

3. Know the call signs of local and neighbouring St John Mobiles, and the typical range over which communications are possible having regard to local topographical and geographical features.

4. Know the correct radio procedures for passing messages using standard terminology such as, 'E.T.A , Roger, Wilco', etc.

5. Know and be able to pass and receive messages using the A TO phonetic alphabet.

6. Demonstrate operation of both a hand

Cadet Exercise

OPERATION PADDINGTON

THE LA TEST in a series of cadet training exerci es in London's S.W. Area was .recentl y held at Twickenham Railwa y StatIon Code-named 'Paddington' - as with the bear - the incident was planned to involve a sports special which ran into the buffer, injuring more than thirty pas e n gers, Some 80 ambulance and nursing cadets were assembled to work i n teams of four under only the minimum of adult upervision. Injuries ranged from conc us ion and shock to a fractured pine, with a full range of wounds and fracture. The difficulties of working in a confined space tested the training and initiative. The older style of train (BR wouldn t lend us a new one!) has door a nd gangway which are too narrow for a stretcher, 0 much improvisation was needed. Another difficulty was getting into the driver's cab

portable mobile and vehicle installed radio; pass a series of messages requiring an answer having due regard for clear speech, brevity, call sign and content.

Know the functions of the 'Cont rols ' fitted to mobile radio telephone equipment eg Channel Switch, Squelch, Off /Rx/S'by'.

Act as a radio operator under the s upervi sion of a competent adult member on at lea st three public duties and keep a radio log of messages re ceived and passed. (N.B. Cadets under 16 years of age may only use hand portable equipment and is sub ject to the Commissioner's approval).

Know how to replace batteries and/or rechargeable cells in a portable equipment appreciating the importance of correct constant current charging for a given length of time and correct polarity.

Know the importance of the following: a. The position and length of antenna

b. Polarity of battery supply c. Correct wiring and fusing of power supply cables Be · able to remove radio equipment from its mounting and correctly reinstall in an ambulance and mobile first aid unit.

Contributions I am slowly beginning to receive more contributions to the column, but still need more. If you would like to pass on your Ideas, please write to me at 3 Brandreth Road, London E6 4QB.

Removing a casualty is not easy the door opens inwards and he was sl umped against it.

After treatment and removal, the casualties were taken to a c1earin a station in the car park which was man;ed by a Surgeon and ursing Officers, who checked diagnosis and treatment and gave advice.

The debriefing at the conclusion of the exercise howed that much had been learned by both officer and cadetsbut, more important, e eryone had enjoyed it and wanted more The ASO are now looking for more ideas for the next time.

A Ian Croft, A SO

FROM HQ

A new 8-page leaflet on St John Ambulance called 'C aring for you and your local community' is available free of charge from the PR Department at Grosvenor Crescent. The demand for car stickers has been so great that the PR Dept ran out in a fortnight! They are having more printed, so ple ase be patient - you will get them!

LOOKING AHEAD

Sept 22-24

SepI23-25:

50 GP BADGES

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

Meeting of the Alliance Orde rs, Bonn Br igade Con fe rence, Nottingham Univer sity.

MILLIE BRETT, MBE, SSSt, SEN

There is a special place in the hea rts of SJ A members of Wallingford (Ox on) for Nurse

Millie Brett a Serving Sister and now a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, conferred on her in The Queen's 1983 Birthday Honours List.

Millie was one of the early members of Wallingford Nursing Division after it s formation in 1936. In 1941 she commenced training as a nurse at the Southampton Hospital. On completion of her training in 1946 she returned to Wallingford and joined the nursing staff of St Mary's Hospital, where she remained until it closed and its patients and staff were transferred to the Community Hospital.

Throughout the years she continued as a St John member, and in 1967 was promoted to Divisional Officer. In 1968 she was invested as a Serving Sister of the Order. Regrettably, in 1981, she had to relinquish her work with St John due to ill health. In 1982 at a special divisional meetin g attended by officers of the Area and the County she was presented with a Special Service Certificate in recognition of her long and faithful service. She then became an Auxiliary Member and continues to help in the work of the Division.

Millie retired from the Community Hospital on June 5 this year, and on the

ROYAL VISIT

Mr C. Neville Packett, Commissioner for S & W Yorks is presented to Princess Anne during her visit to a rally of cadets in Roundh ay Park Le eds, on June 27. (L to R) Mrs V. G Booth, Cty Supt M Packett; Mr J. G Buxton, Commander; Mrs M. Riley, CSO Nursing Cadets; and the Lord M ayo of Leeds Cllr Martin Dodgson

following day became a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, a fitting tribute to one who, throughout a career dedicated to the service of others, has always dispensed her own specia l brand of loving kindness. L. Bullen, PRO

DUAL ROLE

London District'S SW Area played a dual role - coverage and publicity - at the repeat Venture Day organised by Capita Radio in Battersea Park on June 26 to show the range of activ ities and groups available to young people.

Area Public Duty officer Barry Theobold was in charge of four first-aid posts to cope

These four nursing cadets were se lling prog ramm es in the foyer at Brigade Finals when there was a car accident in the street outside the hall. First aid competitions were fo rgot ten while they attended one of the casualties who had broken a leg and was bleeding They called an ambulance Then it was back to programme selling for Lorrain e Kinder, Geraldine Scott, Debbie Axford and Helen Scott

Millie Brett from Wallingford is now MBE S ee story

MILLIE BRETT

with the crowd of over 700,000 - th e bigge I in London ince the Ro ya l Wedding. With several other arge duties in [he Area, including a half marathon in nearb y Lambeth, personnel from other London Areas were brought in to help.

Meanwhile cadets from loca l di vis ion , und er the direction of the ASOs (Cadet s)

Judith Newman and Alan Croft, manned a publicity demon stration. Even though th e other attractions in the park ranged from han g gliding and ailing to th eatre and pop groups, a constant throng of peopl e surrounded t h e St John stand. A well a looking over a new ambulance, v isitor could try mouth- to-mouth re u citation and h ave their pulse checked with the new pul emeter. But the biggest attraction was casua lt y mak e up. Hundreds of children le ft sporting black eyes or cuts and blister s !

Capita l Radio are considering making thi

BY THE EDITOR

an annual event and ex pandin g it. The co mbination of eff icient coverage and a di play stand s hould boost t he St John image here.

IN LEEDS

I hear that the 5th bi-annual SJA conference held for Nonh, South and West Yorkshire and Humberside, held near Leeds during Apri l , was a grea t s ucce ss and cou ld well be co me an annual event. It was opened by Lady We tbury, now Supt-in-Chief.

Talk included th e use and abuse of drugs, a Himalayan c limbing expedition, the Brigade (in tru c tor moderni sat ion and ca det / adult tran ition), and fir t aid in the Fa kland War.

100 TODAY It was indeed a very spec ial day at the St John Home, Tank e rton, Kent , when Mrs Mabel Martin ce lebrated her 100th birthday recently, and re ce ived the congratu latory lelegram from the Queen.

The H ome' matron, Mr H ea ther Li, organ i ed a party for the occa ion, at which member s of Mr Martin's family, re s idents and stafr of th e home, and members of the Home Committee.

Belatedly, h a pp y birthda y, Mrs Martin!

Miss Mabel Martin. See story 100 TODAY

THE LONG MARCH

SJA teams again took part in this year's 67th lnternational long distance marches in Nijmegen, Holland. The teams comprised 24 adults and cadets, male and female, and were managed by CSO(AC) Ken Branson, of S & W Yorks, who was helped by Mrs Branson ,

The next Brigade HQ Methods of Instruction courses witl take place as follows: Course No Dales Location

a. 4(83) 14-16 OCI 198] Markfield. Leics

b. 5(83) 4- 6 Nov 198] Falmouth.

(Note I) Cornwall c. 6(8]) 18-20 Nov 198] Easlhampslcad.

Berks

d. 7(8]) 2- 4 [)cc 1983 EasthampSlcad. Berks

c. AI(83) 13-15 Jan 1984 Easlhamps!(·ad. (Nole 2) Berks

f. 2(84) 16-18 March 1984 Easlhampslcad.

Berks

(Course 5(83) is reserved exclusively for 25 nominalions by Cornwall County. Course A 1(84) is an Advanced Course.)

These courses concentrate on the techniques of instruction (per se). Please note in particular that no instruction is given specifically on any par t icular

Miss Liz Ackroyd (DO, S & W Yorks) and DS Brian Bridges (Shropshire), acting as orderlies.

This year, to avoid a long coach journey to a South East port, the team assembled in Leeds on Saturday, July 16, and sa iled from Hull to Rotterdam. There was over-night sleeping accommodation on the 16-hour trip, unlike the short Channel crossing.

The party was seen off at Hull by the Deputy Commissioner of Humberside, Mrs D M Edwards, representing the C-in-C.

specialised subject except as a medium to teach the student how be t to instruct.

Candidates for these course may be of any adult rank and hould be per ons who already hav e or will have in s tru ct ion a l responsibility in their County / Di st ricr.

Nominations for co ur ses as required by Commissioner are to be mad e by County / Di st rict HQ s for courses a, ,d and r. (Separate nomin a tion s for co urse s b a nd e will be ca lled for.) In makin g nomination , plea elate: St John ra nk (and any spec ial appointment held); personal title, initi a l and name; hom e address; home / work telephone number; and preferred cour e date / number (with alternatives).

Nominations s hould be made as soon as po s ible; lists clo e a soo n as total numbers for cour es are filled

The trip across wa on the MV Norland, which saw ervice in the Falklands campaign.

At Nijmegen, t he teams were accommodated at the sport sc hool which has ca tered for our marchers in earlier yea rs, and we are grateful to Heer Willem Hof s, the manager, and his family for their kind services to our people. Throughout the expedition our team used a luxury coach, the driver of which, Michael Russell, looked after our party very efficiently, coping with Dutch, French and German.

Our marchers were dressed in white hirt / blou e, black slacks/shorts and red baseball cap with SJA badge. The four days of marches, July 19 to 21, meant early starts and long hours for both marchers and orderlies. The orderlies got up at 2.30am (no lale night for them) to awaken the teams at 3,4 and Sam. After an early breakfast, the teams et orf at I Y2 hour intervals, to arrive

at their destination in the early afternoon. Altogether 22 ,783 began the marches, 21,036 finishing. All our members reached their allotted distances

While in Holland our members had the opportunity to visit shops and a cheese farm. All c redit goes to Mr Bran son, for managing the entry, and his three helper s of course.

SJA

hunt (whatever will people get up to

to use their

- I thought they were something to avoid) on Sunday, Sept 25, starting from Matlock at 3pm and, promisingly, finishing at a pub 'somewhere'. Entry is 50p a car, with

name, to County Secretary, St John

HQ, 121 Dale Rd,

20 members of Hampshire 's Naish Holiday Estate recently completed a first aid co urse (instructor John Davis) and received their certificates from Western Area

Commissioner Mrs Molly Bow le r

Merseyside Commissioner Col R H. Jones presenting awards at the St Helens and Knowsley Area inspection. DIS Robert Starkey , 50 years service bar. 1 st bar : ASO T. Tither, Sgt R Caldwell and DIO J Clisham. Service Medal Dr J. Hill and D O J Mangan Warrant of Appointment: DISurg Dr M. Mikhail, Div N/ O C McCarthy. Hon Member : Mr P Mcintyre. IPhoto: St Helens Reporter)

(Right) Due to illness, Mr Sidney Impett 01 Esher and Ditton Division, who first took his SJ certificate in the 19305 was invested as a

WHAT DOES an lith-century crusader to the Holy Land, a Sunday afternoon baseball fan, a chronically ill senior citizen have in common with an Eskimo child in the Canadian north? In 1099 as in 1983, human beings need help and that need is and continues to be fulfilled by the caring people of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem. Last year, in Canada alone, approximately 200,000 sick and injured people needed St John and St John was there to help. Since 1883, St John Ambulance in Canada has trained over six million Canadians to help others with the most extensive , up - to-date range of first aid and home health care cou(ses and programmes in the country. In this our centennial year Canadian members of St John Ambulance wish to share with fellow St John members in the United Kingdom their achievements, their pride in a tradition rich in humanitarian service, and their plans for the future Although our society and culture have changed significantly over the

100 years of SJA • In CANADA

fortress. It is now built into the courtyard archway of the Chateau F rontena c Hot e l in old Quebec.

Beginnings

and Jean Ni xon who wer e leaving London for the Far East in May 1945. (From the White Cross in Canada)

The first classes in Cana da, however, wer e held in Quebec City in 1883 and soo n after the fir st local St John cen tre was esta bli shed in Montreal. By 1892 there were twelve branch es of St John Ambulance n Canada, from Halifax on the east coast to Vancou ve r on the west.

A major step forward was tak en in 1934 when the 'Co mmander y in Canada o f the Grand Priory in th e Briti s h Realm of th e Venerable Order of the Ho s pital of St Joh n of Jeru salem' wa established In 1946 , the Canadian organi ation graduated to Pri ory status, th e highest br a n ch of t h e Order outside of E n g land.

SI John in Canada h as, from the beg inn ing, enjoyed a mutually-beneficial and fruitful relationship wi t h Grand Priory a nd St John members in Britain. This wa es pe cia ll y true during the two World War s when Canadian Brigade member s work ed alongside their Briti s h counterparts in ho spita ls and convalescent home s in Eng and and Scotland as well as on the Continent. [n addition, during World War II tran port driver s from Canada se rved with more th an a do z en a mbulan ce uni ts in Britain, and twenty St John girls performed tran s por t dutie s in France, Belgium and German y.

On our home front, hundreds of thousands of Canadians enrolled in fir s t a id and health ca re cour ses to qualify for a ir raid precaution dutie s and other war work. Th e Order thus expanded rapidly in Canada, especially in Halifax and Vancouver; the former b ecause of the need to care for victims of the battle of the Atlantic and th e latter because of the war in the Far Ea st. Canadians can be very proud of the quick and efficient response made by St John personnel during emergency and catastrophe si tuations. Brigade members h a ve served with di st inc t ion through explosion s, blizzards, hurricanes , fires, railw ay collisions, floods, and just a bout every oth er type of disaster imaginable. Perhaps Briti sh members will recall the Springhill, Nova Scotia, mine disaster of 1958 which garnered international concern and merited a visit b y Prince Philip. During the two weeks of rescue and recovery of the 178 trapped miners, St John people, in co-operation with the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, and the Civil Defence Force, se rved in the ho spita l and morgue , guided doctors to homes where help was needed and drove cars and truck s. More than 20,000 f irst aid dressings were u sed and nursin g members produced 4,800 face masks for miners to wear as they carried out their search and rescue work.

Today

These are ju t a f e w g l mp ses into our proud pa t St John Ambulance in Canada, however, ha s con tinued to conscientiously deve lop o ur fir aid training and services to mee th e c h a n g in g need s of the Canadian publ ic. As a na t ional vo luntary a ge ncy, our primary objectives remain to save live s , mi nimi se human pain and reduce health care deli ve r y costs.

T he St J o hn Ambu a n ce A s ociation in Ca nada h as grown to comprise 13 ,000 volu nt ee r fro m th e m e dical, nur s ing and non- m ed ica l professions. Thi s includes 12,000 n a ti ona ll y-cer tified instructors and a sma ll continge nt of permanent staff me mber. In addition to f ir t aid and h ea lth care tr a inin g, t h e A ociation is re s ponsible for th e co ntinuin g r ev s ion and development of it va riou s courses and programme s. In the las t t e n yea r s, the Association ha s pro du ced a full r a nge of afety-oriented first aid co urse for a ll ages and walks of life, from the ve r y ba s ic to the mo s advanced, with so m e in th e pro g r a mm e d multi-media fo rmat In addition to a two-ho ur

in t roductor y course called 'The Lifesaver', there are specia l co urse modules for CPR and other advanced first aid techniques

At present, a special project is underway to standa rdise the national quali fications for all St John Ambulance instructors across the country and first aid multiple choice examination questions are being computerevaluated to guarantee their te xt va lidity

Recen tly, St John in Canada has undertaken to su pplement its industri al fi rst aid programme s with a Management Guide to First Aid Traini ng, First Aid At Work, as well as a set of twelve vi deo cassettes, First Aid Updates, designed to be utilized as 'refresher' course modules covering the more common injurie s that ma y occur in the work environment.

In the very near future, we also plan to develop the most comprehensive system for first aid training in Canadian industry, utilizing the technologies of video-tape and computer aided learning (CAL).

Equally important is the fact that St John in Canada has been responsible for creating

costs continue, it may pro ve to be one of the most important courses ever offered to the Canadian public. All St John tr ainin g programme in Canada are subject to continual rev i ion based on wide user e xperience and the professional ad vice of m edical and nursing advisory committee a [ provin cial and national level s. As s uch , S[ John Ambulance can la y claim to having created and implemented the mo t comprehen ive and modern series of fir [ aid and home health care programme in Ca n ada. The St John Ambulance Brigade i n Canada now comprises about 14,500 Canadians and donates hundred of thousands of hour s of unpaid public en ice to Canadian each year. They are een wherever large group of people gather and where there is dan g er of accidents Members of the Brig ade undergo a continuous training programm e to maintain their efficiency In fact, Brig ade member hip is contingent upon certification in fir t aid and hom e healt h care and i 0 f cour e, subject to annual re-e ' a min a[ion. [[ i a l 0 required that at lea st 20070 of [he member'i in a particular Brigade di vision be trained in CPR.

Confinued on neXf paae 205

welcomes the Countess Mountbatten Supe ri ntendent in Chief at Kingston, Ontario (From the White Cross in Canada)

The Grand Prior the Duke of Gloucester visited Ottawa from June

lebrations (Left Addressing Brigade members at the Government House parade,

(above) with Chancellor Jean - Claude Dubuc examining the

THE SOLOMON Islands are a long chain of widespread islands in the South Pacific. The only means of immediate contact between them is by radio but weather conditions and local features make this unreliable.

There are air services to the main islands and emergency airstrips near some of the larger centres of population. However, cost rules out a regular shipping service except to the main provincial centres, and some of the smaller islands are lucky to see a ship once every three months. The islands are mountainous and there are few roads.

The Solomon Islands are in an earthquake zone and liable to suffer from cyclones Apart from Honiara on Guadalcanal, the population is very thinly spread over the whole country which is newly independent and developing with its economy based on primary and natural products: copra, timber, fish, palm oil, cocoa and rice. It is a poor country with many more demands on its resources than just the health of its population.

Emphasis on prevention

It is government policy to devote greater attention to preventive medicine and health education than to curative medicine There is a major referral hospital in Honiara with specialist medical staff and each province has its own small hospital staffed by between one and five doctors, providing a general medical

On some islands people may live as much as 40 miles away from a hospital, and often their only means of getting to it is by canoe along the coast. In order to extend health care further, there are rural health centres and satellite clinics staffed by registered nurses and aids. They may be visited by a doctor as infrequently as once a quarter: so some clinics have their own radio or have access to police radio to seek advice or summon help in emergencies.

Despite the government's policy to encourage preventive medicine, the rural health centres and clinics are so widely scattered and some so far from base that the staff are heavily engaged in curative medicine.

Some Solomon Islanders do not believe they have been treated properly without having an injection or pills and there is a natural resistance to changing customary ways of life as advised by their health educators. They do not regard this as the province of medical personnel.

Occupational health

Copra production employs the largest labour force on the Solomons. Plantations range from one-man businesses to those owned by international organisations. A substantial number of islanders are also employed in foresty and other timber industries. These tend to be run by large international companies, though there is a growing number of smaller local firms.

The fishing industry, again run by large firms, is an important employer, and there is a growing ship building industry, centred on Tulagi. Other industries are of a much smaller scale, except for the palm oil and rice production and mills on Guadalcanal.

Many of these employers provide and pay

208

Health care in the Solomons

Mrs H. A. Broughton (right) is a nursing officer in the Ministry of Health and Medical Services, SoLomon IsLands. She is also a training officer and divisional nursing officer for Sf John AmbuLance.

She recently won a St John award to help her take the Occupational Health Nursing Certificate course at Suffolk CoLLege, Ipswich. She beLieves the knowledge she wiLL gain will enable her to improve the care of workers by introducing occupational first aid training. Here she describes the type of health services which exist now.

for clinics and staff for their employees and their families. Only one of these has a resident doctor and the rest depend for medical assistance on the government service. Most of these clinics are staffed by registered nurses t ra ined in the Solomon Islands who can carry out suturing and first ajd measures, including intra venous therapy to prepare patients for transfer to a base hospital. The registered nurses also treat and diagnose various illnesses, and carry out deliveries.

A nurse in a clinic attached to a logging company will, from experience, become adept at dealing with the result of logging accidents, but will receive no special training in occupational health. Because the nurse has to treat wives, families and others and be prepared to deal with a wide range of problems s / he is kept busy on curative medicine. Rarely is the nurse able to exercise any influence in the field of occupational health

I n the company hierarchy nurses are invari ably very junior. The company has paid for them and the clinic building and often feels that it has comp letely fulfilled its duty in health matters. So, at present there is really no occupational health nursing in this country.

However, la st year Parliament passed a Health and Safety at Work Act. This, although simplified and in some respects adapted to meet circumstances in this country, is based on the UK legis lation. It is being brought into effect in stages. Among it s provisions is a requirement that employers s hould provide certain first aid facilities and a trained first-aider for a prescribed number of employees.

This is a sop hi st icated piece of legislation, and government has few facilities available. For example, there is one safety officer who has an untra ined assistant and a clerk. He is expected to cover all safety aspects of all operations throughout the country. As could be expected his time is fully occupied in dealing with accidents and he has very limited

time to do any preventive work.

The government has made no facilitie s avai lable to employees to train their staff n first aid, and it is highly unlikely that it w ll be ab le to afford to help employers with training for many years to come.

What then are the poor employers to do ?

As I have already found as training offi cer for St John Ambulance, they turn to th e voluntary ervices. Both St John and the Red Cross operate in the Solomons. Red Cr oss acts as a relief organisation, runs a handic ap school and is fully and usefully committ ed n the community. It teache some first aid, but the main burden here is carried by St John which runs a series of two hour emergenc y first aid courses for various ministrie Full first aid courses are being arranged for he palm oil plantation and there are reque ts for training from other employers, and Solom on Skin Divers Association.

Clear ly St John must concentrate on training a sufficient number of first ai d instructor and then first-aider. Only wh en a reasonable degree of succe ha be en achieved will the Brigade be able to concent r ate more on training first-aider s for specific needs of their indust r y rather than in general first aid.

St John Ambulance Brigade wa s reo established in the Solomon Islands in Ju ly 1981 and considerable public interest has been aroused through the obvious and helpful rol e of SlAB at spo rt s activities and major publi c functions. The cadets have also played their part in attracting public attention and lectures and courses have attracted re cr uit s. As people begin to take an inter est in th e activites and join they take a great deal more interest and care in health and hygiene generally. They also tend to discu ss these matters with their friends and relations In this way SJAB is, in a small way, contributing to primary health care.

(Reprinted from Occupational Health, Ma y 1983)

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WHICH ROLE FOR SJA?

from Dr V O Calland , Surgeon , Central Combined Div Le tters to the Review over the recent years have covered a multitud e of s ubje c t s. The presen t controversie s on ox ygen and CB radio a re ty pic a l of the trend. The Brigade appears to be divid ed into t wo fac tion s , the rea ctionary 'if it involves more than a triangular band ag e it is n t first aid and the revolutionary 'why take them to ho s pit a l , I ll do a t ranspl a nt in t he ambulance ' group

There is, in fa c t, a spectrum of views between these two e xtr e m es, a nd it is som ewhere in this middle region that the Bri g ade mu s t be a c tivel y directed over the ne xt few years if we are to sur vive into th e nex centur y We have drifted passively so far and have not com e to gr ie f, but we are perilousl y clo se to rocks and need to c om e und er p ow e r if we are not to founder.

The que stion foremost in everyone s mind is which course t o s tee r - w hi c h role are we to take? I feel St John at present fill s gap s tha t the lo cal author it y service is not capable of mee ting publ ic du t ies, a mbul a n ce t ra ns fer s, aeromedical repat r iation , water r esc ue, e t c. We a re in e f fect th e a mbulance equivalent of the auxilia ry f ir e serv ice, th e territo r ial a rm y or the speci a l constables and we should be h ave lik e it. It is unthinkable that we should be less trained , le ss d isc iplin ed a nd le ss equipped than the local authority counterpart.

T h ose of you who have copies of the ea rl y S t John manu a ls will rea lis e th a t a lo t more anatom y and physiology wa s t a u g h t th en th a n no w Understanding was not onl y considered necessar y but also with in the c apab ilities of questionably less edu cated work in g folk. Th e f ro nti e rs of medicine had yet to leap forward s as the y did a ft er t he G reat W ar , and first- a ider s were tr a ined to do mo s t of t ha t w hi ch could be done. Equipment and techniques have a d va nce d bu t why hav e we ass umed t hat the average man cannot learn th e way he did eigh t y year s ago ?

If we a re to beco me a sleek well-groomed co-ordinated force, wh at of tho se who la ck the training a nd ha ve grown t oo old to le arn a nd t hus fe ar t heir position ? The command structure need s tea c hin g ho w to command The members concerned d irect ly w it h t ran spo rt s ho ul d be t rained to local authorit y standard at least, and our qu a r te rm asters sh ould de sign courses alo n g the lines of the Open U niver sity f or tho se people , a nd if in t hree years they canno t m a ke th e gra d e t h e n re tir e men t into an au xiliar y position or Pr es ident s p os t wo uld be a d vi sable. Doctor s and nurses too mu s t learn the t a s ks peculi ar t o t heir p o si tion.

So h ow doe s t his an s wer the que s tion about o xy gen , C B and t he like? Simpl y thi s, a comp etent p erson can use equipment comp et entl y because he und e rstands why he does something. The ham - fiste d ha lft rained ama t eur is a danger even if let loose with ju s t hi s hand s. We s hould not be bann ing equipment to prevent the igno rant usi ng it, we s hould be removing the ignorant by training or retir e m ent. Pres ton C orps V. O. Calland MB, ChB, DR CO G, M R CG P

MORE EXPERTISE

rom Rex Purchase Div sional Superintendent

[ would li ke to endor se 100070 the letter by Mr Till (]ul y R ev iew). Hi s vie ws and experience s are so identical to mine that I th o ug ht I h ad written the le tter!

It ha s alwa ys puzzled me that a member of th e public , w ho has to pass a n exam o nly every three years and p r obably ne ve r d oes an y prac t ica l f irst a id , is ju st a s qualified as the St John memb er w ho passes a n exa m ev er y year , and probably has done tens or e ven hundr ed s o f hour s duty during the same period , and so gain e d a lo t o f ex per ien ce I f ull y s uppor t Mr Till in hi s idea of a s tru ctur ed level of ex pe rti se. T hi s reall y would be an incentive for those of us who would lik e to p rov id e a better service to th e community. After all, the a mbul ance ser vice ha s a similar structure, and a lot of them are St John me mbers It would also require an instruc tor to have a better knowledge of hi s s ubject , something that is sadly lacking, in some instan ces, w ith th e pre sent system The upper levels of expertise should be set high e no ugh to det e r the amateur 'doctor' from qualifying. There mu st be more incentive for members, and a s tructur e d le vel of exp erti se would be a good start. This c ould only e nhan ce th e c redibilit y o f St ] ohn as well as benefit the le ss fortunat e sic k and s uff e rin g.

Could I now turn to the use of CB r a di o (a lso July R eview)? The fact that Mr Bareha m needed to h igh ligh t ix po ints to a n swer Mr Sp rin ger' letter s ugges ts that per haps he s hou ld wr ite more regularly in the RevieH' , in order to keep u s all up to date.

I do not wish to comment on h is technical s tateme n ts, bu t could he not at least produce a Basic Guide to Radio Communica ti on (but not in CB jargon , plea e). This could be of interest to ome, and as ist those divisions who are not lucky enough to have 'in house ' expertise to understand some of the problems and techn ica l banter that i encountered (eg: Why are ome aeria ls long and some hart , and what is t h e advantages of one over the other?)

It is so easy for those of u wh o u nd ersta nd imple t ec h nica l point s to think everybody does.

Fina lly, I believe t h at if a superintendent of a division considers he o r s h e can pr o\ ide a better service to the public whi le on dut y by u ing CB radio (but again, not CB jargon) with a en ible di cipline and a code to en ure confidentiality if neces ary, then they are failin g in thei r dut) to the public and their members by not doing so.

We y mouth Rex Pllr chase

PROF ESSI ONALS

fr om Bryan W. N icho ll SEN I read with interest the comments by Messrs Woodhams and Thoma (July Review), who are very respected members of our county s taFr.

But I wou ld like to point out to Mr Woodham thaI, with resp ect, he seems to have read more into my letter than it ay. I never aid that the incident me n t ioned took place in my divi ion or county. In fact, it did not.

I can understand t he very va l id poinl raised by Mes r Thom as and Woodhams that some doctors have difficulty in keep ing to the Br igade syllabus whe n lecturi n g, but I am sure this is partly due to lack of practice.

I wonder if the Brigade would benefit from a practical lay in s trucl or , teac hi ng all the bandaging, etc on first aid course, a nd leaving all th e theory to trained medical personnel? We would then be getting t he best of both worlds: first c ia teaching of theory a n d fir t class p r actical.

What a good idea our friend Mr Ti ll of Hackney (also Ju ly Review ) has - an inte g rated training system, say over 10 years, would beneFit al l of us. I am even profess iona l nurse wou ld join t he scheme. Oxford Bryan W. Nicholl

GOD BLE SS fr om J o h n W ebb. retired Di recto r o f Sup p li es May I thr o ugh o u r R ev iew thank a ll t h ose peop le f rom t he Order and St Jo hn Am bul ance wh o wrote to m e aro u nd Ju ne 24, t h e da le of m y retirement? The kindnesses a n d wo nde r f ul words of th e letters m ade m e rea li se once agai n somet hi ng I a lr ea d y knew - th a t t he who le organ isat io n w hi c h we kn o w as St J o hn co mpri ses p eop le who a re the sal t of the eart h , whose love a nd c h a r ity to th e O rde r i exemp lified in t h e t ho usands of ho ur s o f vol u n t ary service w hi c h t h ey g ive every yea r T h is great country of o u rs ca nn ot d o wit h o u t th at erv ice, and I

ha ll a lways re me mb er w hen s u ch se r vice was recogn ised at the fnves titur es h e ld a t th e Ga t e b y th e Lo rd P r io r It was then t hat I got to kn o w m a n y o f yo u , a nd go to k n ow o f th e pride an d p leasu re, and in dee d reve re nce a nd respec t , w ith w hic h you ho ld this great Order o f o u rs. In co n c lu sio n I wo uld lik e to q uo te fro m Psa lm 122, verse 6: 'Pray Fo r th e pea ce of J er u sal e m ', a nd ask yo u a ll , whereve r you r,nay be, to a dd th e follo w in g thou gh t to yo ur prayers: 'T hat ou r Hospital that li es close to whe re our Saviour d ied may continue in the great work th at i t does'.

Go d b les yo u a ll. Lon d o n EC I John Webb

THANKS TO ST JOHN from Margar e Gr ee n Nu rsi ng Memb er I am a nur ing mem b er of Hove and Hangleton Division in Sussex and work in education, but d ue to changing circumstances the i fast beco mi ng in t o lerab le. Fo r the past seven years I have been tryIng to move in to a medica career, since this is where my interest s really are. Dur i ng t he C h ristmas holiday I was reading the Nursing Til'r: es and saw a n advert e m ent for a course in surgical chiropody. My first thought was hat I was now too old! My next that I hadinsufficient academic qualifications. My '0' and 'A' level s were obtained 0 long ago tha t t hey count for nothing today. How ever, unhapPIne ss In m y job drove me to end for further detail.

It seemed from the detail sent to me t hat there \Va no rea son why I shou ld not apply for the course. I could pay my fees by in talments and do my practical training on a part-time ba sis. I applied an d to my joy and urprise wa s accepted.

There are fifteen theory les so ns in the course which cover a very wide field. from anatomy to paddings and dressing and bacteriology. I am being trained for a 'v i iting practice', s ince thi i what I al\\uy wanted to do. After taking the diploma exam and obtainIng the certificate, the next mi lestone i 100 hour of practice with a tutor

From the in tilute. Thi involves many hour of ob ervation before the tutor \0\ ill let you 100 e on one of his or her patient. The tutor

ITSTABLE HQ

The Earl of Derby (centre. group right). County PreSident, chatting to Mr Clifford Cooke, SJ Council chair man and Capt Duffy Commander while entertaining preSidents and county staff at Knowsley Hall

(Above) Wg Cdr K M. Stoddart, Lord Lieut Merseyside taking the sa ute at the annual church parade. (Below) Wallasey Comb Cadet Div s parents committee

NEWS frol11 'SCOTLAND

ON SUNDAY, June 26, in excellent weather , the annual Church Service was held in the Preceptory of Torphichen when the Prior , the Viscount of Arbuthnott, 14 Officers and a good congregation were present. The service was conducted by the Rev Tom Crichton, OSt!, MA, a Chaplain of the Order and Minister at Torphichen, and the preacher was the Rev Norman Bowman, OStJ, MA, BD. Mr Bowman was making his final appearance as Priory Secretary in Scotland before retirement. Earlier in June Mr Crichton had given a most interesting talk to some 80 visitors to Torphichen on the history of the lands of the Order of St John surrounding the Prece'ptory, following which the company enjoyed an excellent supper in Torphichen Inn.

On July 3 the Chairman of the Council of Associations, Mr W. Gordon, CStJ, visited the Union Canal at Ratho to see the barge, the St John Crusader, at work. On that occasion a party of 12 disabled people , some in wheelchairs, and all in the care of a group of St John Volunteers, were taken for a trip

WALES

of the Order generally.

On June 19 Central St John Association organised a most successful Treasure Hunt which ended at Drumbowie Farm, Denny,

OVERSEAS

(Iehl.

News· from Divisions/Centres

OBITUARY

(Right)

(Above)

(left)

Greener, Avon commander. (Photo:

An im p ossi bl e dream?

Ge n erally, n ew ly- weds hope to be able to beco m e ow n e r s of t h e ir own home. But, in Japan, to own on e's own home has come to be an im poss i b le dr e am', declares the Dai ly News o f Ma inichi. In Tok yo, a square yard of g r ou nd co st s 150 , 000 yen (650 US dollars o r a b ou £4 30 ). The s it uation is absolute ly u nreal,' says t he article, because ev e n an off ice wo r ke r who receives a good sal a ry can n ot buy a " t s ubo" (10 square feet) of ground w it h w h a t he gets for a month s salary.' Ca lcul at in g on t he above quoted sum, a bu ild ing s it e of 15 y ards by 30 yards wou ld cost mo

t

n

quar t er million dollars. 'It is n ot

n

t hat the idea of "my own home" compares w ith w antin g to reach the moon,' com m e n t s the ar t icle ' in conclusion.

A volcano is revis ited

In what was c all e d Operation Pulsation some 150 sc e nti sts h ave s pent two weeks studying the area inv ol ved in the destruction caused by the eru p t o n of the Mount Saint Helens on May 18 198 0 A profess or of biology who heade d a t eam of sc ien t is t s which made a pa r t c ul a r st ud y of animal life announced that t h ey had found an unexpected variety of fa un a at 11 kilometre s from the volcano, including deer and elk They also fou n d mi ce, s quirrel s, mounta in blue-b i rds , two s p ecies of ravens or r ooks, and in the crater itse lf man y hummin g -birds. The surprisi n g t hi ng is t he absence of spiders and other sur f ace or aerial in se ct s ,' sai d the professor. 'We think tha t t he s e wi ll return when the vege t a ti o n has come ba c k. It has been thoug h t hat a small lake some

11 kilometres to the north-east of the volcano was completely dead , but it proved to be full of life. For example, t he scientist s e s pi e d a beaver and a musk-rat in the lake and a team of scientists fishing with net s cau g ht s ev en large trout.

After effects of nuclear bomb tests

After World War II the Uni t ed State s transported from the atoll s of Eniw et ok and Bekini a ll the people who li ved on them i n order t o be able to u s e the s e a t oll s f or te s t s of nuclear bombs Nearl y all the inhabit a nt s of Eniwetok , s ome 700 odd , hav e re t urn e d to this atoll (which belong s to t h e M a r s hall Is land s group of Microne s ia in the P ac i f ic Ocean) Representati ves of th e peopl e of Eniwetok have petitioned the United Nation s Organisation t o allow them to continu e the trustee s hip arran g ement s w hi c h th ey ha ve w th the U SA after the latte r ha s g r a n te d a utonom y to the re s of Micronesi a. Th e reasons for this are 'the s pecial problem s a nd s pecial needs ' re s ulting from the tes t s w hi c h ha ve been carried out with nuclea r bomb s The y say tha until the newl y -plan t ed c oconut palms and bread-fru it tre es r e a c h maturity the is landers depend almo s t e nt r e ly on the food provided b y U SA. Althou g h t h e USA ha ve s pent 100 million s o f dollar s in makin g 30 o f the 40 o dd is let s o f t h e archipelago fit to b e inhabit e d a nd

t under cultivation one of them Runit

p r oce d ure. They u e an av e rage 1.1 k il ograms (about 2 Y2 1bs) of rubbi s h per p e rso n eac h d ay to generate e n ergy. After t h e m fo ll ow Switzer and 0.9kg , Hon g Kon g a n d t h e Fede r a Repub li c of Germ a n y 0.5kg, a nd J apa n 0 45kg. At the other end of the sca le, t h e Soviet Union converts Ie than 0.04kg in this manner , with the USA and Aust r a lia 0.09kg , Great Britain O.18kg, and Cana d a and Ita y 0.23kg

( 3 .2 .4 ). 11. P ossesses snow m ixt ur e (4). 12. Omit a large container (4) 13. Yield t o an o th e r 's o pini o n in nationwide fer vo ur (5). 15.

Breathe in to i n f u se enthu s ias m (7). 16. I rri t able, because not at the ce ntr e? (4 ). 20 Sh a rp ho ok for a horse (4). 22. Appliance s u sed to g uard aga i n s t as ph yx ia in u nconscious patient (7). 25. Typ e of di ea e produ c ed b y c opp e r i n tea mixture (5). 27. Bone with diaph ys i and t w o epiph yses (4).28. Di sta l extremity of the alimentary tr act (4) 30.

F urr ows on t h e fo r ehea d make big new s (9). 31. A c id s essential to sy nthe s is o f p r o t e in s (5) 32. M u s ica l note for fish and bo y (3). 33.

Agree a t t h e o phth a lmic eve ? (3.3 2.3).

Do w n: I. Hump-back ( 8 ). 2 P ro tec t aga in st infectiou s di sea e (8). 3. Need c hange to abod e o f A da m a n d Eve (4). 4. A furrow on the for e head is a cle ve r id ea (7). 5. Become i ll again during conva lescence (7). 6.

Had a s tr o n g ave r s io n in vo lv in g d eath (5). 7. Ita lian republi c whose bad ge b ec am e t h e e ig ht-p oi nt cross of St John (6).8. Doubl e serous m e mbr a n e e n ve o pin g eac h lung (6). 14 Priores s of the fir st nunn ery of h e Ord e r i n E n g land (4). 17. P ierce with horns and s h e d blood (4) 18. Yello w c olo u r a t ion du e o p resence of bile pigment s in the blo o d (8 ). 19 Stopp age o f t h e h eart (8). 21. Sense dependent on the se m i-circular ca nal s in the int e rn a l ear (7).22. Men stay for a ge n era l pardon (7). 23 A ss emble o fo rm a n a b scess (6).24. Fee ling naus eated, but ea sy in the e nd (6 ). 26 I s land in th e Bay of New York we ll -known t o ea rl y immigrant s (5) 29. Verru ca (4).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No.8 (83)

REVIEW CROS SWORD No.9 (83) by A. A. Potter Across: 1 No s r um 5 In val id ; 9. L o n g-sig h t; 10. A.orta; 11. Or .ga n; 12 Trip; 13 . C orn; 15 E vil s pirit s; 19 Nasa do u c h e; 22. Up.a s; 23. Pup.a; 25. Shor t; 27 . A c.c .ra ; 2 8. A nkl e-bone; 29 . Testate; 30. Wryneck.

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St John Ophthalmic Hospital p.220

Action at Sea p.223

Can girls march? p 223

Around and About, by the Editor p .22 4

Cadet Jubilee Camp, Wales by Veronica Sharpe p.228

Cadet Chat by Jim p .22 9

All aboard Concorde by Nigel Thomas p .23 1

Joint Adventure p.232

Save a Life (Avon) Campaign p.233

Readers' V ie ws p.234

News from Scotland p.237

News from Divisions Centres p .23 8

. St John Fellovvship -.·

WE ARE glad to announce the formation of a branch in Greater Manchester in August:

Greater Manchester Branch

Contact Miss M. Thompson , c / o St John Headqua rters, Egerton Road , Fallowfield, Manchester M14 6XX.

Sheila Puckle, the National Secretary, writes: I would welcome ideas on publicising the Fello wship. It is clear from the enquiries I am receiving that there are man y serving and former members who do not see the St John Re view. They hear from others of the formation of the Fellowship but want to know more Obviously, it would be good to have handouts to send them. I am exploring ways of producing these cheaply, but how can we make sure that ALL serving members know about the Fellowship before t hey retire or resign, and how do we reach the thousands who ha ve left already?

Would it help if I sent a brief to County Secretaries for publication in County Circulars?

Would Divisional Superintendent s care to issue such a brief to departing members and any former members \ ith whom they are st ill in touch? (If so, please apply to me at the address on the Branch Enrolment form on page 239).

Would your local radio station mention the Fellowship? Or your local paper?

If the Fellowship is to enable former member s to keep in touch and support th eir former Di visions for the rest of their li ves, it must spread throughout every County; indeed, I dream of a da y when every di visio n has its own branch Newsheet

As soon as there are sufficient branche s to make it worth, hile, I hope to produce a newsheet, probably monthly. This will bring you more up - to-date ne ws of our acti vities, and will, I like to think, offer a means o f exchanging programmes of events between branches. In this connection, I wo uld like to mention the excellent newsletter circulated with copies of the Count y Year Book by the East Surre y Branch to their retired members It contains new county appointments, news of forthcoming county events, news of new manuals, invitation to competitions, fund - raising events and annual inspections. Readers are in vited to help with publicit y and in many other ways.

Have you had a good response, East Surre y?

Finally, an advance warning to Branch Secretaries: In order to produce the annual report for next year s AGM, I hall a k you to send me short repor ts of your branch's activities up to March 31 1984, by April 30 1984 So please start re ording them now!

ONE SUBJECT ha s been aired at every County Staff meeting that I have attended for at least the la st two years and at each airing the sense of disquiet has increased. The subject is First Aid at Work, with particular reference to the way in which St John Ambulance has decided to implement lh e Government's legislat ion.

St John Ambulance has lon g been universally respected ror its attitude and experti e in teaching first aid and for the way in which its uniformed members applied their training. Naturally it is in our intere st to ens ure that this respect is maintained, but I believe that current changes to Brigade Regulation s are not going to do thi s. A lot of emphasis is placed on filling in forms for the First Aid at Work certiricate, and I can roresee the day when a coroner remarks:

'These forms are completed beautifully - a pity the patient died .' Our emphasis in training, hence in certirication, must be on rirst aid techniques and the effective application of tho se tec hnique s in every day situatio n s. The current trend in our organisation is a reduction in numbers. This needs to be reversed and quickly. While we have t o maintain the hi gh standa rd s of our unirormed member s, we need twice as many men, women and children trained to the present First Aid Certificate s ta ndard s to efficiently cover loda y's public duty commitment.

Instead we have long serving members s tating that they cannot and wi ll not take th e First Aid a t Work certificate course. It must be borne in mind that for some rural Di vis ion s to attend a Fir st Aid at Work course means travelling 20 or 30 mil es to a n 'Approved Centre' for the course. Thi s s hould not be nece ssary and a remedy needs to be round.

A so lution , if the problem had been tackled dirrerently at the outset, would ha ve been for St John Ambulance to have sa id to the Government: 'We have a first aid course that is secon d to none, but we appreciate that we do not cover the rorms required by the proposed Act; let us put tho se in an endorsement to our normal certificate, add s urfici e nt time to our s tandard course to provide adequate instruction in the use of the forms, and some questions in the examination to ensure that the lessons have been learned.' Thi s approach

would have maintained the status or our First Aid Certificate and produced adequa tel y trained rirst-aiders for th e working e nvironment.

St John Ambulance would not have gained kudos by producing a spec ial 'package', but would ha ve retained the recruiting medium of the public rir s t aid course. I understand th a t the British Red Cross Society has had its sta ndard first aid course app ro\ 'ed under the Act. Is it too late to do so methin g about increasing the membership or the St John Ambulance Brigade eve n at th e ri s k or lo sing some of the kudos?

J P. Candler

COl/lily s/{{rr Officer (Essex)

The Assoc iation Branch Secretar)" Mr I. A. RennJ ' , replies: Mr Candler 's article exp re sses the under s ta ndabl e conce rn re lt by many or our in respecr or F A. W Training for Brigade member., but I would comment on those points w h ich refer t o more general aspects of training and our relationship wirh the Health and Safety executive, a s follows:

I) Form filling on F.A.W cour es occupies ve ry lirrle time, but is an essentia l part of the co ur se. It shou ld be recognised that the time allocated to practical first aid on F.A. W. cour ses amounts to hours compared with 7 hours on the traditional fir s t aid course.

2) We could not have said to the Government: 'We have a first aid course that is seco nd to none.' Thi s simply was not true - our sta ndard s var ied from extreme ly good to extremely bad. The introduction of the St John Ambulance Trainin g Package has led to a ne cessary overall improvement in the standards of in struct ion and examinations.

3) It is not true that the BRCS have had their standard course approved under the new regulation. The y ha ve had to modif y their course to bring it into line with the H ea lth and Safet y Executive requirements th at tile course leading to a stat utory certificate shou ld la st for four days or the equiva lent, which translates into 24 hours

4) Although the provision of trainin g premises of a quality acceptable to the Health and Safety Executive will not be easy for St John at all location s, we a re hopeful th a t the lo gis tical problems will not prove to be so formidable as Mr Candler fears.

Talking Point is open to YOUR views

TH E 12 .25 LIT LIA flight to Rom e flew us to t he First Aid Po t in the Vatican City, and to a unique first a id dut Durin g H o ly Year the Sovereign Miltar y Order of I\ l a lta invited St J ohn Ambulance, England, t o e nd a team (2 doctor s, 0+ nur es, 4 female and 4 male member) each week for weeks, July to eptember, to he lp them with their fir s t a id post in St P e t e r 's Square.

The y hou eel u in a delightful fiat where we could ca t er for our e lve if \ e \ i hed and tran s port ed us morning a nd ni g ht to the po r. Each group planned th eir own dut y 0 as to give time for recreation a well a work.

1I' yo u walk ac ro the piazza, ju r beyond the columns you will see a mall railed -ofr area with large red s ign above it. Thi i the post, a beautifully coo l building with three couches for patients , a t rea tm e n area vhere a doctor or nur. c can work, a s lui ce, and a kit c hen.

Here during the week - lon g duty pati en t of eve ry nationali ty an d creed were tr eated, happil y mo t of the injurie were minorbli s ter s, be e and wasp stings, and minor gas tric up se ts - but so me were more ser iou s and need ed referral to ho s pital.

The party had vary in g lingui st ic abilities but all impro ve d their ski ll s, particularly in dir ec ting the ma ses to the two mo so ug ht after pri ze - the Si tine Chapel and th e toilets Fortunate ly we have an interpreter to help us to deal with more important matter s. The highlight of the week were Sunday morning when the Pope gave his traditional ble ss ing and the Wednesday audience. Some of us were honoured and great ly moved as His Holines s took time to spea k with us, thank u s and ble ss u As we tidied up at lunchtime on the Saturday ready for the incoming party we were very sad to leave [t had been an exper ience we were not likely to forget, a

SJA's No 2 team who were on duty at the Vatican first aid post August 6-13. were surprised by a visit from the Pope (above).

Dr Brewis, of Norfolk who led the team. has difficulty in getting hiS glove off (right) as the Pope is about to take his hand n welcome With Dr BrewlS is Major Holdi ch. of the SMOM Mrs Brewls was also a member of the team (extreme right above)

St John Ambulance in Rome

ANNO SANTO 1983

time of grea friend hip and fellowship and one which we wou ld gladly repeat. One which truly expressed the meaning of the Order of St John 'For the Faith a nd for the Service of Mankind'.

Ro se mary Bailey, Chief Nursing Officer

WHAT A wonderl'u l week we had in Rome! must admi t [0 some feeling of trepidation as was 's lot ted in' at the last moment, bur the member of our team were a true 'fami ly ofSt John'.

We divided into two sub-gro up s 'A' and '8' and had one day on and one day off-duty from 8am, when we were picked up rrom [he apartment by o ur ambulance, opening the First Aid Post at 8.30 and finishing at 7pm. This seems a lon g day but we had the con tin enta l lunch hour -cum- iesta' from [2.30 till 3.30, which we fully appreciated. As Dr Brewis from Norfolk wa the only doctor

in the team he was on duty all day and every day, and a wonderful leader for both reams.

For me Wedne day wa THE da y. Both teams were on duty ror the Pope's visit to St Peter' Square. We lined up outside the F.A.P. just before lOam when the Pope' helicopter landed in the Vatican Garden s, and

His Holines transferr ed to the popemobile

He passed the F.A P. within yards of us and turned, miling, to greet u

We then broke ranks and returned [0 the post, ready for any possible casualties among the 100 ,000 or more pre ent in the quare thoug h a nursing officer who had been to Rome in 1975 said the people would ' rather die on their feet than leave their place'.

However, a Swiss Guard called u to one small patient dressed only in flim y horts and andal who had become unconscious behind the barrier. We had [0 'thread him through ' to extricate him from the crowd to carry him

to lhe F .A. P. asked the adult near him 'Que ra I\lama?', and e entually, very reluctantly, and only after m in i tance, Mama al 0 came with her 9-year-old son to the F.A.P.

In fact, by coming with us, both Mama and her so n were later allowed to join the ofl'icial group of sick pilgrim near rhe po t and the Pope poke to them per

At noon the Pope wa due [0 leave, and we were di appointed to ee his car beyond our po t to pick him up. However the Pope walked 0 er to greet Dr Brewi ,[0 hake hand and to peak to him. Then to our delight, the Pope co ntinu ed down the line. haking hand and speaking to every member of the team.

Thi \ a a 'once-in-a-life-time' expe rience and I wa so honoured to have the opportunity of being a member of the great S[ John Family. Mary eYlllour, A 0 Essex

LAST YEAR was the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the St John Ophthalmi c Hospital in Jerusalem: 100 years of dedicated service that has earned the Hospital a trul y great reputation not ju s within the area it serves, but indeed throughou t the world. The achievement of any centenary is an accomplishment , but looking back over the 100 years of the Hospital's existence against the background of never ending conflict and turmoil in the Middle East, this particular occa s ion must be regarded b y all in St John with very g reat pride. However, de sp ite the esteem in which th e Hospital is held it s future has been at ri sk for severa! ye ars because of uncertainty of income to meet ever rising co s ts , and it s existence has been and s till is very mu c h on a day-to-day ba sis Such uncertaint y ha s created a most difficult and unsatisfactory situation, and a few y ear s ago it was recogni se d that the only real so lution to the problem would b e th e creat ion of a lar ge endowment fund so that a s ubstantial, regular income could be assured. A target of £5 million was set for this fund, and by the end of 1981 just over £465,000 had be en accumulated. A s many will remember , a special appeal for the fund was launched by the Lord Prior in the centenary year of the Hospital. An encouraging re sp on se to this was soon made and it seemed possible that a considerable sum would be added during the course of the year. But unhappily world events - the Falklands and Lebanese wars - diverted attention from the appeal and it was possible to increa se the fund during the year to only £522,000, de s pi t e the very great efforts of man y to gain support. This was very disappointing and regrettably the future of the Hospital still remains far from assured.

I have been involved in see king s upport for the Hospital for a number of years, during which I have been greatly impressed by the tremendous interest and respect that the work of the Order in Jeru sa lem had earned among so many. Jerusalem itself stirs the imagination; the active link with the Order' s

The Friends of the 5t John Ophthalmic Hospital, Jerusalem

Please. • •

origins arouses curios it y; the determination to se rve and co ntinue to se rve in the face of eve rlastin g adversity ea rn s admiration. And it s recognised t h e wo rld over as being a truly great humanitarian cause.

If all this is so, why does a question mark hang over the Ho sp ital 's future? Why i the much needed endowment fund not readily fo rthcoming ? All the necessar y ingredient a re ther e to in sp ir e upport, yet the y do not se em to be quite enough. But they are enough to inspire the creation of a co-ordinated, collective effort to seek that suppo rt , and from which h as grown the Frie nd s of the St John Ophthalmic Ho sp ital under the leadersh ip of Lord Caradon.

The mo veme n t was officiall y launched on June 16 thi s year at a reception at I Grosvenor Cresce n t, London. Some 50 g ue sts included man y from the wor ld of business and r ep r ese n tat ives of var iou s organisations and the m e dia , all of whom have previously s ho w n sy mpath y for the Ho s pital. A number of prominent member s of the Order were also present. Lord Grey of Naunton, Bailiff of Egle, speaking o n behalf of t he Order, said that the Ho pital really deserves f riends For 100 years it has met a grievous need which ha s earned it admiration, re s pe ct and goodwill But with this need still ve ry mu ch in demand, ca llin g for high medical and nursing s tand ar d s a nd e qually high sta ndard s of equipment, admiration, respect and goodwill are unfortunatel y not e nou g h. All would b e lo st unle ss the problem of insufficient money co uld soo n b e re so lv ed He th e r efore welcomed the newly-formed Friends movement and expressed the deep g ra itude of the Order to Lord Caradon for accepting it s leadership.

In reply, Lord Caradon sa id t hat the s tory of the Ho s pital over the last 100 years in one of the mo st turbulent areas of the world ha s

been truly r ema rkabl e. Amidst all the troubles a nd conflict of the Middle Ea t the Ho spita ha s remained a centre of h ealing a nd merc y. It i known that there i enormous goodw ill for it both from Ea and West. What i no w needed i to harne tha t goodwill to rai e the money for the e ndowm ent fund and thu s ecure the H o pital we ll into it next cen tur y. Thi what the Friend eek to do.

At pre ent the Friend are ju t a mall nucleus in London with Lord Caradon as pre ident, and Lord Caccia, Lord Coggan and Sir Gawain Bell as vice-pre ident An executi e commit t ee compri es Mi c h ae l Snow as chairman; Adel Dajani, vicec h a irm an; Miss Ros Earlie ec r etary; Char les Butler, trea urer; John Jaque, events secretary; Peter Gar and, m e mbe rs hip ecretary. Her Maje ty Queen Noor of Jordan ha s mo st graciously consented to be patron of the movem e nt.

Considerable intere ha been a rou ed, a nd a numb e r of tho se a t the reception and o th e r s are already pursuing an active role in their particular pheres of influ e n ce. For the Friends movement about doing omething practical to help the H osp it a l to survive, not for ju expres in g sympa th y. A Lord Caradon sa id: 'The harnessing of goodwi ll '. Friends a re needed all over the worldfriends who are prepared to donate money and al s o time to seek upport The undertaking is not goi n g t o be ea y; it will not be fulfilled quickly. But it s hould be exciting. With en thu ia s m and determina t ion it will grow and develop in a sp irit of ca maraderie that will make for ucces 35,000 people come to the Ho spi a for treatment eac h year. I r it clo es what will they do? Will you h e lp to ensure that they never have to face that problem ? We th e Friends hav e many plans and g reat hop es, but we need your memb e r s hip for them to be fulfilled. The Hospital de erves friends, many friends. Please join us.

Peler Garland. Melllbers hip Secre{(lrv, Th e

Our world is troubled for centuries our world be e n torn by unre s , wars, povert y and disease , and, even today, we st ill live under the same terrible cloud of uncertainr y a nd fear.

Our sight is at risk

Llmil 100 years ago the courge

Our hope is our hospital

The Hospital of St J o hn our hope and , ind eed, our hav e n For 100 years it ha s

Please do not let it close

Strife torn th ough our world always eems to be our hospital will continue in peace , for yet another cen tur y, if friends such as you will give it your h elp.

The Hospital

The J ohn Ophthalmic Hospit a l was founded in Jerusalem in I HH2 Today the modern is one of the finest a nd busiest of it!> kind in the \'\'orld w ith HO beds , 2 opera ting th ea tr es. an extensive outpatients clinic , an eye-bank. and a nurses training school. Its int e rn ationa l team of doctors and nur e tre at over ) , 000 case a nd perform some -l ,0 00 major operatio ns each year. Continuous research programme ' give hope to millions , whil t " Outreach " - mobile unit · for treatment , tr ai ning and research - extends the healing arm of St John to r e mot e communities where eye di ease is at its wor't.

The Friends of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital, Jerusalem

However , in rec e nt yea rs the hospital has regrettably uffered threat of closure through lack of funds to m ee t ever r is ing costs , and, th e refore , on th e occasion of the centenary ce lebrated in 1<JH2, a special appeal was launched for th e fulfilment of a longstanding cl es ire to establish a capital fund of at least £5,000 ,000 to provide reg ular income so that this threat can b e r e moved

Very considerable support has already been received from friends from all walks of life in th e U nited Kingdom , Europe the l\liddle East, rhe U.S.A., and man y other parts of rh e world. But the target has not yet been achieved and the Friends of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital aim to complete it and thus secure the future of the hospital

How you can help

Individuals. group:. companies are al l invited to join in this great endeavour and give support through regular annu:11 subscription and by helping to raise funds

Each member will be awarded a certificate of friendship on enrolment and a list of members will appea r in the periodic newsletter covering activities at the hospital a nd amongst Friends throughout the world This is a great and exciting undertaking that will not be easy , but with your h elp it can be fulfilled

Please join the Friends of the St .John Ophthalmic Hospital. Your friendship is so needed by those to whom the hospital means so much

Hospital and tin set) Lord Caradon (left), President of the Friends , and Lord Grey of Naunton Bailiff of Egle

Enrolment/Donation Form

To

The Rt Hon the Lord Caradon, GCMG, KCVO, OBE , PC , President ,

The Friends of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital, 1 Grosvenor Crescent, London SWIX 7EF.

DI!We wish to become a Friend of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem and pledge continuing support to ensure the future of the hospital. D

I1We agree to pay an annual subscription of £10, £25, £50, £100, £250 or £ D D (delete amounts not selected).

I1We agree to give support by fund-raising to a minimum sum of £50 per annum.

Please send details of how I can help in this manner

I1We do not require membership but enclose a donation of £

Deed of Covenant

I/We enclose my/our cheque for

payable to 'The Friends of the St John Ophthalmic Hospital'.

Signature:

Name

Action at Sea

THE HARBOUR DAY at Newbiggin - bythe-Sea in Northumberland on Saturday, August 6, was to have been a routine duty for member s of Northumbria' s No 3 Area. We arrived at the seafront at 1.30pm, parked the ambulance ne xt to the lifeboat station , and prepared for a nice afternoon in the sun with, we hoped, a minimum of casualtie But suddenly a message came over the tannoy system asking for a doctor to report to the lifeboat station. went to the station and reported to the Coastguard on duty, who told me the y had ! ece ived a report of a sick man on a vessel and their doctor was not available.

'Would you go w ith the lifeboat?' he suddenly a ked me. agreed and ran to our ambulance to collect some equ ipm ent and to brief the rest of our team. Armed with an oxygen et and a sucker, I made for the lifeboat which was waiting for me at a jetty.

The Newbiggin li feboat s an Atlantic cia s so lid - hull rubber-sided craft about 12ft long and 6ft wide, and powered by two very big out board motor. The crew quickly got me into waterproof clothing and lifejacket as we made our way out into the heaving waters of the bay. Suddenly the radio burst into life and to my horror told u that the ve e concerned wa nine mile offshore. Methe world' worst sailor - nine miles off hore in a boat I cou ld almost ail in my bath! And to make matter wor e, f r t report indicated that the ick man had suffered a heart attack.

How lo ng wi ll it take u to get there? I a ked the Coasrguard sitting next to me. C 15 minute,' he replied. A s we cleared the bay the cox wain opened the throttle wide and we took off, more airborne than eaborne, with the boat cra hing down as if onto rock every tim e she made comact with the water.

My admiration for the crew wa s growing minute by minute, and when we ighted the vessel it was bang on our bow A fluke?No, just good navigation.

Within minutes we were a ongside and scra mbling onto the de cks of th e fi hing boat, where we found th e patiem, a 77 yearold man lying on a mattre 011 the after deck. To my relief it wa oon obviou t h at he was not showin g any signs of having uffered a heart attack. I tried to talk to him, but found he was incoherel1l and very co nfused As I car ri ed out the e amination quickly realised that he had uffered a stroke, which was ca usin g paralysi to the right side of the body.

reported thi s to the coastguard, who had boarded the vessel with me , an d we decided it was too dan ge rou to attempt to move the patient into the lifeboat, which was standi ng by As the fishing vessel wa too ar ge to beach in Newbig g in without ca u ing co nsiderable damage to her, we informed the Coastguard station that we would m a k for the harbour of Blyth, further down th e coast. The passage to Blyth would take abo ut an

SJA men at work around our shores

hour, so we set about makin g the patient as co mfortable as po ss ible, rigging two blanket s to shade him from the hot sun. Hi s pulse wa stron g and steady, so t here was little for us to do on the trip to Blyth except LO reassure him When we reached Blyth harbour our c h a rge was transfe rred to a waiting ambulance.

Would thi s fishy smell be with me for the re st of my l ife, I wondered as I made my way back to the lifeboat for the return trip to Newbiggin. We got back just in time for the tough littl e feboat to take part in a sched ul ed demonstration with the RAF air sea rescue helicopter - for after all, this wa s The Harbour Da y, which we had come to cover.

I had been away two hour s on that little ca ll when I rejoined our team. I only hope next time the sea will be ca lm er.

D I D K. Laws

THREE CADETS and an adult member from Arnold School Quad Di v ision

GIRLS MARCH?

As a male chauvinist I would have said no, there are better things for them. But

TH E AN UAL Berk hire Cadet Drill ompetition, held recentl y at Reading School .3 by kind pe r mission of the headma ter, Area Pre ident Mr H. E. J Bri to\ ,allra c ted team o f a piring marchers from throughout the count y Team of x cadet could, in the e time of equal opportunitie be all boy, girl s or m ixed, with in truction from a member of the team' division

The \ inners, with 155 point out of a po s sible 17 5, was Newbury Combined Cadet Divi s ion - wait for it -a ver y hand s ome allgirl s team! They are pictured right, with their in s tructor D / O Stephen Bee: (L to R) icola Gow e r, Pamela Wallace , Ka th Reardon Wendy K i ngham, Mar y Marchant and Amanda Kingham (front). So there s a s the g irl s fter that marvellou s display of drill the r e wa s a new c ompetition of C a det Flag Partie now to be an annua event. The winning team, with an impressive 93 070 mark was once again all o f the fair ex (or is that term now di s crimi n a ory? - orry girl.) They are (L to R): Melanie Stephen on, Jean ourtney and Nicola Pi l le y from o uth cote Combined Divi on, pictured right receiving t h e trophy from the ud ge of both compet iti on (boo from the boy) Simon owan of th e T rritorial Army. (Photo: Keith Townsend, Tilehur t) What are we going t o do aboLi thi s, fella ?

Blackpool, were out sailin g their din g hi es during Augu st about J/4 -mile off hare when they saw a small blue and w hit e rubb er dinghy drift ing about V2- mil e Fr o m h e shore. On clo ser in spection th ey a w thr ee people - teenage girl s, th ey lat er earn edin the water tr y ing to pu sh

With

The

require extra copies, contact Mrs Sandy Cain at St John's Gate (01-253-6644)

PUBLICITY

The following letter, and a £ 10 don at ion, was received at SJA Dor se t 's

'On Augu s t 2 1 my wife and I were spectators at the 'banger meetin g' at Bowleaze and during one of t he race s my wife fainted Almost immediatel y t h e St John ambulance appeared from another part of the field. My wife was examined by a doctor who advised the ambulan ce c re w that s he shou ld be taken to ho s pital. The crew

r y qu ck y but ca lml y placed h er in the ambu ance and took her to Weymouth Ho spita l. The ambulance crew went about their duty in a very confident yet sympat het ic manner , which wa most reas uring for me and my wife in her con fused state.

'The driver did his best to negotiat e h e s moo t he s t route across the fields , while the attendant, who m I know on ly as R ichard', c l osely attended my wife a ll t he way to hospital.

'As an ex-station officer in a fire and ambulance serv ice I am aware of the work of not on ly St John but also the ambulance se rvice. Now that I have experienced t h e

BY THE EDITOR

serv ic e as a 'c u s tom e r ', I can n ot speak too highl y of t h e dedic at ion and professionalism of the two yo un g men o n duty that afte rnoon.

Which is fine. But with SJA very much in need of publicity throughout the country, what s h ou ld a county office do with s u c h a glow in g testimonial apa r t from send it to the R ev iew?

First, find o ut exact ly w h o were the members in vo lved and prepare some background material o n them : age, married, ch ildr en, work, Brigade service, etc, address an d phone number at work and at home and warn them the press may want to talk to t h em about the incident. Then, having obtained the letter writer's permission to do so, su bm it t h e letter and full detail s about h e members involved to a lo cal newspaper as soon as possible, together wit h a SJA co ntact (phone and address) s hould any furthe r help be needed o n the story Air the tory in your locality, in other words, but prepare everything for the press man or woman. That way the sto r y's bound to be published.

PATIENCE

I s this a hosp i tal?' asked the little g irl as she stoo d in the entrance of the St John Ambu lance hut at Twycross Zoo, Leics. 'Yes, an wered the St John Ambulance lady, puzzled a t what might come next. I t' s not very big, is it?' said the little girl. 'Well, er no J mean ,' said the small nquirer, 'How do yo u get a ll t h e animals in?'

A TREE GROWS IN

From Hu mberside I hear:

When D / O Arthur Cormack, of Hull, vis ited the Opht h a lmi c Hospital recently he was not just impressed by what he aw there but

IN GERMANY

The fir st enrolment ce remony of h e RAF Wi denrath Combined Cadet Division , West Germany , was held during M ay Th e enrolling officer was Colonel W.E.1. Forsythe-Jauch , aBE (centre), Commanding Officer of the Br itis h Military Hospital Munst er, and a Comma nd er in th e Ord er. Thirteen cadets were presented with their certificates and were enrolled into the Bri gade. Among the guests were representatives from t h e Johanniter U nfa ll Hi fe , Baron and Baroness Hahn (seated, second and fourth rom right) Baron Hahn is th e Div is ion 's Vi ce- Pr eside nt. Mr s K H Speakman, Divisional Superintendent is seated on COlonel Forsythe -Jauch's right

The Commissioner- in-Chief Sir John Younger (left) and Lady Younger (second from right) visiting the Roya Show, Stoneleigh

J. Page (Photo: Surrey Comet) completely overwhelmed! He just wished that his colleagues in Humberside could all have the opportunit y of sharing his experience.

Nothing new abou t that, you might say , but Arthur was determined that a little reminder of Humberside should remain at the hospital, so with t he ve ry understandin g co-operation of matron he arranged for a tree to be planted near the tennis c ourt s, bearing the inscription 'Donated by St John Ambulance Brigade, Humberside , England.'

A photograph, kindly sent to Arthur from the hospital, shows the tree - a Grevillealooking ver y healthy indeed, but even s o Arthur intends to return to Jerusalem some time next year - just o make sure. Or maybe plant another tree.

GUERNSEY VISIT

Chief Officer for Cadets, Leo Budd, writes:

The Commissioner Harold Touzeau heard that I was visiting Guernsey during my sailing holiday and suggested that I migh t in s pe ct their new band and have a look at what St

John Ambulance does on the island

It was a great co incidence that as our boat arrived through the entrance to th e marina the band was playing, giving a static displa y as w e came up alongside t he jetty. The rest of our crew were very impressed and thought it was all planned. I did, in fact, inspe ct the band a their headquarter s a few da ys later, and con si dering the y have only been in operation 13 month s they were ve ry good.

I wish them and their n ew music director Mr Peter Garnham the ve r y be s for the future.

I m sur e the y ar e going to look very smart in their new band uniforms What a su rpri se had during my conducted tour of the Headquarters, for I had no idea as to the a mount of work that is c arried on there. I knew that the Ambulance Service was a full time commitment, and that St John was involved with most of the Emergenc y Services, but not to such a degree.

I was surprised to lea rn that the Dut y Officer showing me around was the radio controller on Channel 16 (Marine) who w as

CHESHIRE

(Left ) Sg Ernes Curzon of Winsf o rd Ambulance Division, receives his 7th service bar (5 0 years with he Division) from the County Commander, Dr O P Edmo nd s KStJ

( Rig h t Mrs Graham (l e ft) whose late hu sband Jock was Div Supt of Northwich Cadet Divis on for over 10 years, and he daughter Mrs Cynthia Ashley who before her m a rriag e was D O of the nur si ng cadet division, holding the cup Mr s Graham has pr esen t ed in memory of her husb an d fo r the best Northwi c h Cad e

co ntrollin g the St John Boat tha rushed past us so me six mil es south of the island to an emerge n cy ( h eart attack) on a boat a few mil es behind u s. Thi s rescue boat, complete with a St John doctor, made the trip (there and back ) befor e we had reached the coast.

Nicely arranged at Headquarters and ready at hand were frog s ui ts, oxygen equipment , cliff rescue gea r , including the o nl y breec he s- bu oy on t h e island, a portabl e radar and radio-controlled unit, search lights, a caravan tra il er that can be enlarged to make a 24-person casualty tent, complete wit h all that is needed by doctors, and four highly-powered dinghies th at can be towed b y Land-Ro vers to lau n chi n g ramps on va rious parts of the is la nd It was interesting to observe an ambu lance ca ll out, a nd to see the traffic lights controlled from the duty room ; the maintenan ce section, whe re ambulan ce member s who we r e on 'seco nd ca ll , were

repairin g - wel just about everyth in g that n ee d ed repair in g; and a shop where anybody can purcha se or hire first aid equipment, and of co ur se the f ir st aid rooms.

I was proudly s hown a compress ion chamber, together with a mobile cham ber, ava il able 24 hour s a day for divers who had 'bends ' ; this equipment was al 0 being used on an experimental basis to help multip le scle r osis patients.

A ve r y p leasant and rewarding visit. Thank you, Commi ioner Touzeau. Thank you, Guernsey St John Ambulance.

HOLY lAND TOUR

The Rev K. F. Belben , of Great Maplestead Vicarage, Hal stead, E ex, a Chaplain of the Order, i organising a II-day tour of the Holy Land in October 1984 in re ponse to i nte r est expres ed lo ca ll y. Fu ll detail of the tour (which will cost £4 99) can be obtained from the Rev. Belben.

21st BIRTHDAY

When Bestwood Park Nursing Cadet Div isio n, otts (now Combined), was formed in 1962 , D I S Mrs Christine Knight (formerly Chri tine Skinner) promi ed the c adets that if the Divi sion wa sti ll in being in 2 1 year t im e they would ha ve a birthday party.

After s pending man y hours tracing those original ca dets s he kept that promise recently w h en a number of them accepted a n invitation to joi n in the 21st-birthda y ce ebratio n s, t ra velling from d ifferent parts of the cou n try.

The photograph (above right) shows Mrs Knight cutting h e b irth da y cake which was made b y h er mother, a li felong supporter of St John Also in t he photograph are her hu s band R ichard (ASO) and Miss Frances Smyt h , County Staff O fficer (Ca d ets) Nursing, as we ll as the founder member s. A s can be imagi n ed the eve n ing passed with much reminiscing, looking at old photographs and find in g out what had happened to fo rmer m embers.

RESEARCH SUPPORT

The Laerdal Fo und ation for Acute Medicine, Norway, has been instituted with the purpose of providing fi n ancial support for research or development projects in the field of acute medicine. Grants avai lable this year exceed US $200,000.

IRightl A new foldaway commode chair. It folds flat and easily stows in the smallest car. It 's produced by Sidd all & Hilton Ltd Boothtown , Hal if ax, W. Yorks, hospital equipment manufacturers who specialise in products for community use for the needs of patients at home SIX ACROSS

(Leftl A relaxing duty on Epsom Downs on Derby Day 'I wonde r if this one is easier than the Rev iew's?'

Projects to be considered may include experimental or clinical studies, educational activities, practical improvements of patient transport and publication of ideas and finding s. Pre-ho spital projects may be preferred.

The Foundation is governed by a board of appointed members from the following organisations: The Faculty of Medicine of t h e University of Oslo; The Scandinavian Socie ty of Anaesthesiologists; The Society of Critical Care Medicine (USA); and The Asmund S. Laerdal Co. Deadline for applications bi-annually is October I and April 1. Application form and further information may be obtained from: T he Laerdal Foundation for Acute Medicine, P O. Box 377, -4001 Sta anger, orway.

Margaret Spurway, retired N/C Supt of Torquay sent me this SJA centenary envelope which her nephew bought on a recent trip to Australia

(Right) Ex -c adets at Nottingham's Bestwood Par k Combined Cadet Di vision's 21 st birthday party See story 21st BIRTHDAY

PRO Veronica Sharpe goes to WALES for the

Cadet Diamond lCJ2:'

Jubilee Camp .' .

IT WAS with some trepidation that I loaded myself, suitcase, sleeping bag and heavy camera case onto the train from London to Cardiff. Having forgotton just about everything I ever knew about campingwhich was not a lot in the first place - I wondered what I had let myself in for. The object was to photograph the 150 cadets at work and at play during this week-long camp in the beautiful surroundings of Glan-Usk Park, Crickhowell, to celebrate the Cadet Diamond Jubilee in Wales,

I a rri ved at the site on Monday afternoon, July 25, when the officers had the dubious pleasure of spending an extra night under canvas to make sure that all was ready for the cadets' arrival the following day. Some members of the team had moved in over the weekend to put up tents, etc, and I arrived to find an orderly, organised site, with onl y one remaining mystery - where were the ponaloos? Happily, they arrived later.

The week really got under way when the cadets arrived more or less all together the following afternoon Once they had sorted out their tents, they were plunged into an almost continuous round of activity, which meant, for me, a camera round my neck from the moment I woke up to the moment

I went to sleep (It was not long before I was nicknamed 'Flash Harry'.) The Cadets learned that camp was not entirely playthe usual chores had to be done, together with things like tent in spection, for which there was a prize at the e nd of the week.

Group activities, which led in most cases to proficiency certificates, included trampolining, abseiling, canoeing, outdoor survival, radio communication, map reading and camp craft. Instruction was provided both by some of the camp officers and by members of the Army, who really put the cadets through their paces over the next few days, Cadets who opted for trampolining were in for a surprise - just around the corner from the trampoline was an assault course, which tested both stre ngth and nerve; fortunately no-one fell off the rope bridge

A favourite was the rope swing into the river at the end of the course, although it had rather more use when cadets were swimming than when going over the assault course

The entertainments side was not forgotten. During the day and early evenings there were var iou s sports, a 'superstars' tournament, an obstacle race, etc. Particularly popular was the tug-oF-war, as was the stretcher race,

228

which gave many thrills and spills, and a coup le of casualties as well. Extra zest was provided here when Mrs Lewis, one of the commandants, agreed to be carried on the stretchers and the local Crick ho we ll firemen arrived to spray a little more water on the proceedings in addition to the river-crossing soaking. Other events included sing-songs, a camp fire, a magic show, two camp entertainments (one mainly by the staffvery popular - and one mainl y by cadets) and the fancy dress disco This produced some interesting results, with no end to the enterprise shown by cadets, costumes ranging from Snow White to Eve (as in the Garden of , ), Trips were also arranged to Brecon Swimming Pool (for those w ho didn't fancy the river), to Dan-yr-Ogof Caves (very beau t iful and where signs of civilisation were discovered in the shape of hot water and genuine loos) and to Hereford (so popular that a second trip had to be arranged); all we re much enjoyed.

We had our serious moments, too. On the Sunday morning, cadets looking more like cadets filed into the main marquee for the church service, with its sensitive address by the Rev Neville Jones, one of the two camp Chaplains We were honoured with a visi t from the Prior Lord Aberdare, and other Priory Officials. During the Service Lord Aberdare presented Grand Prior awards to Morfydd Rogers, Chantelle Rosser, Belinda Fitzsimmons and Marie Clare, and Dr Price , Chief Commissioner, presented Special Service Awards to ten other cadets. All the awards were well-deserved and the ca dets

were delighted to have had them presented at camp, It was unfortunate that the rain had s tarted when we came out (Sunday was the only day of real ra i n - the rest of the time the weather was uper) but this did not stop bo t h visitors and ca mpers from enjoying an excellent Sunda y lun c h.

It s ve ry difficult to write in a limit ed space about so much that happened and about so man y people Thanks must go to Commandants Mr Bridget Lewi s, Chief Cadet Officer, and Mr Peter Harries, Chief Training Officer; to Dr Williamson and his team for so ably attending to the trail of walking wounded; to Mrs La t ham for producing our dail y newsletter without which we would have been sad y ignorant of camp activities; to Mr Brian Medland, who a nearly s u ccee ded in e tabl ishing his own branch of the Medland Bank; and to all the staff who organised, cooked, entertained, looked after cadets, equip m ent, canvas, ran the s hop (!) and genera ll y ensured things kept running s moothl y - the list i endless.

Special thanks must to the Han Mrs LeggBourke , County Cadet Officer for Pow ys, who was such a goo d sport during the week, presenting prizes, playing the piano, dre sing up and spending a good deal of time with us. We mu t al 0 thank the Viscountess de L'lsle for allowing u to u e the lo ve ly i(e. All in all, it was a great week celebrating the Diamond Jubilee with hard work and fun. Being a St John cadet isn't all first aid - it's about other things too I am s ure that everyone will remember that week for a lon g time to come. I kno w that I s hall!

CHAT

move round the room. When someone is caught they wait to one side in captivity until omeone else i caught and then these two form another dragon bridge to catch more people. T h e winner is the person left at the end.

Triangular Tangle (all ages) Di vide you r members into groups of four, Give each group 12 triangular bandage They ha ve 10 minutes to use up all t he bandage (properly

FOR CADETS.

\\ \ \ " \:, I I

Washing

More games \ \ Dragons (10 to 12 year old ), Tell yo ur cadets or juniors that there are two hungry dragons roaming the countryside and if they catch you they will gobble you up. (Make the story up yourself.) These two dragons are VERY hun g ry and the juniors hav e to get past them to reach Headquarter s. You then choose two people to be the dragons (ask who is feeling hungry) and they hold hands to form an arch (a bit like oranges and lemons). Then the rest stalk around the room in a line but they must pass underneath the dragons arch which they think is a bridge over the road. When the w hi st le blow the dragons clamp down their arms to catch a victim. The dragons are not a llow ed to move and everyone must go under the arch as they

Here's a simple crossword that you could issue to cadets during a training evening - solution next month

Across I Th e lre atment for a frac tur e of t he rib s. (8) 3. Co ld water is the very firSl [realmen[ for [his injury, (4) 5. Arm s and legs. n 8. A bone in th e arm, not on the thumb s ide, (4) 9, To give a h and. (4)

Down , A vehicle for sick people, (9) 2. The head is pUl forward if thi bleeds. (4) 5. [Q-nlou[h vel1li a [ion. (5) 6. Il prOleC[ th e brain C) 7 The carpa l and m etaca rpa l bon es m ake up the bones o f it. (-+)

applied, of course) either as slings or bandage s suc h as elbow / knee, etc. The y are nor to be used for tying legs rogether as in fractures, but can be u s ed for other fractures s uch as jaw. Each member of the group must have tied at least one of the bandages.

Princess in the Tower (all ages). Di vide your members into four team. El e t one per on to be the Prince who i '10 ked' in a tower

COnlinued overlea!

Photos by Veronica Sharpe

(behind a chair) at one end of the room The other members of the team form a group opposite their Princess at the other end of the room. Give the group about eight triangular bandages and on the word 'go' the idea is to make a long rescue line to reach t he Princess. The rules are simple: you must join the bandages with reef knots and each member of the team must tie at least one knot each As the line grows one member holds the end and progresses towards their princess, who then makes a grab for the line and is pulled to safety. Then all the knots must be undone and all the bandages folded up - to decide the winning group.

Competition (strictly for cadets). How man y words can be made from the words 'St John Ambulance'? All words must have three letter s or more and not proper nouns (names). Entries to me by Nov 30. The cadet sending in the longest correct list wins a pen, others a Cadet Chat badge.

Churchill Travelling Fellowship

This should be of interest to members in charge of cadet divisions - and possibly others too.

Churchill Tra velling Fellowships are for all United Kingdom citizens irrespective of age or occupation and, as no educational or professional qualifications are needed, they are of special interest to people who are not eligible for other types of grant. The object of the awards is to give men and women from all walks of life the chance

11-17 Augusl 1984. Devon Marine Cenlre, ForI Bovi sand. Plymoulh

Acti vities Course , incl uding sa iling, canoeing, caving. brass-rubbing, co nse rv at ion and local exploration.

Cost early estima te £40 ( De von), £45 (others), Application forms from Gordon P. Hender Course Administrator, 52 Whittington Street, Pennycomequick, Plymouth PL3 4EQ

Atholl Cenlre, Alholl Road, Pitlochry PHI6 SBX Courses and holidays for handicapped persons require able bodied volunteers to assist in a variety of ways. Details from Rev. Anthony Mason, address abo ve (Te l Pitlochry 3044), Bowles Ouldoor Pursuils Centre. Eridge Green, Tunbridge Wells Courses hr ougho ut the su mmer and winter in rock climbing, dry skiing, canoeing and orienteering, Cost from £26 (weekend) to £76 (week). Details from The Secretary. Bradfield Field Studies and Sailing Cenlre, Bradwell Walerside, "ir. Soulhminsler, Essex

A variety of weekend/m id week and full weeks courses. Sailing , windsurfing canoeing, fishing, field stud ies. Cost from £5,50 per day (residential) Detail s from The Warden (Tel: Maldon 76256), Bralhay Hall Trusl Bralhay Hall. Ambleside, Cumbria

Deve lopment co u rses for young people in industry aimed at improving ski ll s in teamwork. se lf confidence and se lf awareness. Details from the DireclOr of Marketing (Tel: Ambleside 2436)

Brili s h Trust for Conservation Volunleers, 36 SI. Mary's Slreel, Wallingford, Oxon, OXIO OEU

Pr ac ti ca countryside conservation wo rk throughout Britain including tree planting dry s tone walling, pond clearance, footpath maintenance.

Camping/vi llage hall hostel type accommodat io n. Tasks all year. 1·2 weeks. Participants must be 16 +, become member s of BTCV and contribule loward s food and accommoda tion Details and leaflet from the Adminimator (S.A,E. please).

to gain a better understandin g of the live s and work of people overseas and to obtain knowledge and experience for the benefit of their work and the community. The only requirement is that candidates must be able to show that they can make effective u se of the knowledge and experience they have gained abroad, Grants are offered in different categories each year; anyone whose trade, profession or interest falls within these categories may propose a project which they wish to carry out in countries outside the United Kingdom or Northern Ireland. About 100 awards are made annually.

The categories for 1984 are:

• Dressmaker s, tailors and makers of fashion accessories;

• Nurses and other workers caring for the elderly in hospitals, residential homes and rehabilitation ce n t res ;

• Commer cial and graphic artist

• Creation of s mall bu sine sses;

• Care, maintenance and appearance of the countryside;

• Workers in youth organisations and projects for the unemployed;

• Penal institutions and their alternatives;

• Sport and adventure for disabled people;

• Dance and dancer s;

• Animals and society: practical aspects of humans conduct by those directly involved in the control and care of animals,

To apply, se nd your name and addre ss only on a postcard to: The Win sto n Churchill Memorial Trust, 15 Queen 's Gate

Lisred below are jusr a fe of rhe opporruniries GI'ailable for parricipanrs in rhis scheme ro obtain rhe residenrial projecr qualification s Furrher derails are amilable in rhe aurumn issue of A ward News.

Calshol Aclivilies Ce ntre Ca shol, Hanl S Fi ve day mixed activity resi dential courses to include: dingh y sai ling canoeing, board sailing dry skii ng, climbing track cycling, shoo tin g, archery a nd orienteer ing, Telephone: Fa wley 892077 for free brochure

Dalguise Centre, Dunkeld Perthshire Week long courses all year round offering involvement in a variety of o utd oor acti"itie COSt £ 13 .50. Appl y to the Manager. Goldwell Hou se , Ashgale Road. Cheslcrrie ld Derbyshire S40 4AG

De velo pment Training Courses th roug ho ut the year. Canoeing, c imbing, caving, r iding etc, Deta il s from Pam and Ton y Hall (Tel: 0246 204 555).

High Trenhouse, Malham Moor, Set tle i':orth Yorkshire BD24 9PR

Residential Courses. Activities including h a nd milking , wea vin g, rock climbing, farm projects, orienteering, cheesemaking. spin nin g, breadmaking, walking. Bro chu re s avai lable from Elizabeth Varney

(Tel: Airton 07293 322)

Lindley Lodge Centres. Walling Str ec l, Nu nc a ton Warwickshire

Swinton Centre, Masham. N. Yorks Hollowford Centre, Caslleton, Derbyshire

The above ce ntr es provide a s peciali st resource for the residential Development Training of yo ung people , a so provide s quality ac co mmodalion for young people 's eve nt s, Over 200 co mp anies

Terrace, London SW7 5PR. You will receive an explanatory leaflet and a form to complete. The application forms are available from mid-August to mid-October and must be returned to the Trust office by November 1, 1983.

Proficiency subject (General group, age 11-20)

Commun i cating w ith the D eaf and Deaf/Blind syllabus, Manual Alphabel

All candidates must:

I, Be ab le to demonstrate a complete knowledge of the Manual Alphabet.

2. Be able to talk to a casualty and trans late simp le questions and answers from doctor to casua lty.

3. Be able to demonstrate ability to speak to a dea f/ blind person ,

4. Be able to receive messages f rom a deaf/ blind person who has lost the power of s peech.

Instructors and examiner: As recommended by the Royal Association in Aid of the Deaf and Dumb. Quali f ied persons approved by the County Staff Off icer (Cadets).

References: Sign Alphabet Card; Communicating Care (leaflet); Lip Service ( leaflet); Silent Night (leaflet), The se important items and further information or help are available from: The Roy al Association in Aid of the Deaf and Dumb , 7/ 11, Armstrong Road, Acton, London , W3 7 J L. (Continued on next page)

(including UVP, YOP ) ponsor young people on course which u e bot h indoor and outdoor learning media. Details from the Development Officer at any Centre.

Loch Earn Sailing Schoo Dalvreck Hou e, Criefr. Perthshire Week long cour e in sai lin g and eaman hip, RYA Certificate cour es in sailboards, dinghies and keelboat 20070 reduction in normal for Award Scheme participant. Detail from The Principal. The National Association for Gifted Chi ldr en During school holidays, Explorers Unlimited organise residential weeks for children with particu ar interests and abi litie s and require assistance from Jun ior House parents. Further delails from: Exp lorers Unlimited, Four Gables. Vi lla ge Road. Denham Village, Bucks UB9 5BN. Food accommodation , reasonable tr avelling costs offered to those aged 18 and over, Outward Bound Schools

The five Schoo s run by The Tru t in Scot land, Wales and Lake District offer a selectio n of courses (inc ludin g training and assess ment Lake District and Scot and ) Full de tail from Outward Bound Tru t. 360 Oxford Street, Lo ndon WIN 9HA.

PHAB - Physically Handicapped an d Ab le Bodied PHAB organises over 360 socia l club s and runs 50 res idential ho li days for physically handicapped and able bodied people of a ll ages. The residential ho lid ays a re suitab le for th e Residential Project, For de tail s about PHAB clubs a nd a holiday brochure ava ilable in January, please apply to PHAB, 42 Devonshire Street. Lo ndo n WIN ILN(T el: 01·637 7475), Ravens Ail Waler Pursuils Ce nlre Porlsmoulh Ruad, S urbilon, S urre y KT6 4HN Sailing, Canoeing, Fi s hing, Environmenla l Studies, Oppo rt unities to participat e or fo r res id ent a qual ifi cation organising and s uper vis ing young chi ldren during activi t y holiday. Detail s from the Warden

Remarks: With the help of the R.A.D.D. special workers it is hoped that candidates who fo llow this syllabus will put their ski ll s to practical use by seek ing out and taking a friendly, helpful and regular int erest in at least one afflicted person. More especially does this apply to t h e deaf / blind who would welcome such visits and help, as the leaflet, 'Silent Night' s trongly indicates

Contributions Are a lwa ys welcome for Cadet Chat and should be sent to Jim, 3 Brandreth Road, London E6 4QB.

All aboard

In Ih e ca ptain's seat Sarah Higgin s, and in the co- pilot 's Nigel Thoma s, with County Staff Officer Keith Dunn and Chief Offi ce r for C ade ts Le o Budd, who is an ex Concorde pilot

CONCORDE

WAS A WAKENED a t 7 .30am on Wedne sday, August 10, to prepare myself for a d ay in London, I arrived a t Newport railway s a tion at 8.55 a nd went in sea rch of our courier for the da y, Mr Keith Dunn our County Staff Officer Cadets, I found him amo ng a group of reporters, for whom we, Sarah Hi ggin , my fellow winner of the Welsh Diamond Jubil ee Quiz, and I had to po e We made our way to the platform, bumping into a n e lderl y gentleman who went o n to te llu that he had been a cadet 50 year ago, The t ra in arrived at last a nd departed to the till clicking came ra s We were on our way, We arrived at Paddington Station half-anhour lat e, which re ulted in a rather hurried tour of the Order Mu seum at St John' Gate,

Cadet Sgt NIGEL THOMAS, of Monmouth Division, tells us about his trip to london to see

C lerkenwell. We were joined by Miss Jennie Eaves, Staff Of ficer Cadets at National HQ , together with five nursing cadels and the ir officer from London's Malden and Coombe Di vis ion, who had won the Brigade Final s. We went by tube to National HQ in Gro venor Crescent, where we met the Commissioner-in-Chief and his very pleasant Itali an wife. We were shown around Headquarters , including the Aeromedical department, and I pre se nted the C-in-C with a Prior y of Wale s' tie , After lunch at HQ, we took t h e tube to Heathrow Airport.

There we were greeted by Captain Leo Budd, Chief Officer for Cadets and former ( Left) The cadets from London and Wales going aboard, and (below) hearing about the undercarriage

flight manager of the Concorde fleet, who was to s how us over this wonderful aircraft - the reason for our day in London, Entering Ihe Concorde han gar, Capt Bud d explained that Ihe brown stains on the underside of the planc's fuselage baked coffee, as the outer shell of the aircraft reaches the incredible heat of 127 degree centigade whe n travelling at speed in e'(ces , or I ,300mph. I must admir Concorde seemed rather sma ller than I expected, and said 0, but was promptly corrected by Capt Budd w ho explained that the entire aircraft st retched 12 inches in supersonic flight! In (he plane' s cockpi t we saw the computer-age equipment and were told that [he seat in which I sat cost more than one million pounds to design and build. All very impressive.

"Ve \ ere also hown over a Boeing 747 Jumbo J et, which is cons id erab y bigger [han Concorde, car r ying up to 480 pa enger. compared with Concorde's 10 0. We then said fare\ ell to the London cadet s and Capt Budd tooK our 'Wales party [0 Reading to catch our train. We arri\ed back at I ewport at 7 35pm after a thoroughly e hausting but eye-opening, enjoyable day.

230

THIS V.,IAS the fir st rime rhat ajoint Sr J o hn Ambu la nc e (Do r set) and Junior Lead e r s Reg im en t (Bovington) adventure weekend had been held -a nd what a s uc cess it turn ed out to be!

The 12 SJ A members, aged 16 to 25, three Junior Le a ders a nd a n officer from each, spe nt four act ion - packe d da ys unde r ca n vas o n Dartmoor. Events in c luded a .nava l assau lt co ur se on HMS Cambridge, at which the SJ members proved faster t han th e Junior Leaders. Ho weve r , St John had a casualty wh en one of the girls badl y sp rained

Joint Adventure

BlCware big busts when potholing

a n ank le while n ego ti at in g a 10ft wa ll.

Nex r abseilling from 60ft cl ffs ar Re n ey Lenney, o n Plymouth Sou nd ; not to be reco mmend ed in rh e up s ide-down pos iti on, as was di scovered.

Th e n there was potho lin g down Radford Pot , s ituated in th e midd e of a hou in g es tat e. Di vided into two g roup s, which d esce nde d 10 minutes apart, there were a few relie ve d sm il es wh en the second g roup s urfa ced 40 minutes af ter the fir s t. Bi g bu s ts, it s eem s, h ave certai n di sa d va nta ges w h en tr y in g to ne go tiat e n arrow par h oles!

Climbing around the Army's rope co ur e

a the Dartmoor Co untr y Park followed.

H e r e, s u s pended 50f t from th e g round, th e ad en tu re r in c h ed a ong p lank, lid down r opes, walked a tight-rope, and wung t a r zan- t yle . A tremendou en e of achievement \ a felt bye e ryone once both feet were f irml y back on the ground, and more than a few tears ",ere shed by om e of th e gir l before th ar wa achie ed.

There \Va s till more to come -a fanta s tic 50ft dearh- lid e, on w h ich a n other ca uahy \Va u tain ed. De pite a fall of 10ft, luckily lhe only injury wa a badly brui ed back. Thi wa folln" cd by a welcome dip in a

pond whi le tr yin g to cross it s win g in g on a rope. At least a few rope-burnt h ands were soo thed by t hi s exer icse

Whil e returning to camp th e gro up Sl opped a Holn e Bridg e whe r e pa sse rs-by were a m azed to see 17 peop le lin ed up on th e brid ge a nd order ed to jump by two Army se rgea nt s The water was 30ft below. I r t h er e was any h es it a ti o n , lh e A rm y s how ed th e way Pu s h - plash. Even n on-sw imm e r s went in Saturday even in g in cl ud ed a urpri se event - exercise li ve bait. S till in th ei r two tea ms, this was a rac e t o asse mble th e conten t of two b in lin er. - potatoe s, carrots and a dead rabbit, w hi c h ha d to be sk inn ed, drawn and cooked. The me a l made a c h ange from

Save a Life (Avon) Campaign

ST JOH N Ambulance in Avon took par! in the 'Save a Life Campa ign' o r gani ed in conj un ct io n with Woman magazine. Shopper in Bristo l Br oadmead hopping ce ntre were in vited to try their skills at mouth - t o-mou th re u citation, which wa demon lrated continuou ly by a team of ambu lance and nur in g cadet

Durin g the day 1,500 people looked at the c.li play giv in g detai l of rhe work and hislory of the organi ation, a well a te ling their C1 bilir y on th e resu citalio n model. Firt \ ere int ere ted in joining a fir t aid c lass a nd len you n g people hoped [0 join [heir local diviion.

compo ration s.

At 7am Sunday, eve r yone (exce ptlh e two invalid s and wo officer s ) se t off across Dartm oo r o n a I S-m il e hik e, comp ete with ba ckpack5, to se t up a new cam p _ H av in g already been g ive n a map readin g lesson, the Junior Leaders devised a s hort cu t to save a few gr u e ll ing climbs. But this resulted in the g ro up missing the two off ic ers,

surfaced triumphant y. (Below) Assault course on which SJA members proved very nlmbte

The e eI1l proved to be a great uccess and enjoyed by a ll who took part. Hopefully it gave the pub li c an even greater awarene sol' [he need to be prepared in the evem of an acciden t or udden illn e - and of SJA

(Left) Abseilling down 60ft cliffs. (RIght) Potholers

LET'S REVIVE THE OLD SPIRIT

from R. J Goldfinch. Ambulance Member

In the intere st of the Brigade's future, I hope that the views expressed by Mr Whitthread (August Re view ) are not t y pical.

I f we are guided by our motto 'For the se rvice of mankind', surely it not only involves recruiting members to perform this se rvice but also training them. It also follows that to provide the highest level of serv ice we need the highest le ve l of training Correspondence on thi s s ubject in the Review indicates a number of keen members who w ish to expand their knowledge into the paramedical field. I believe this number to be considerable, and we owe it to 'O ur lords , the s ick to grasp this opportunity and make the most of it. Naturally, the candidates for further education would need to be carefu ll y selected, and the standard of instruction high, but I beli eve the Brigade could only gain from this. Most of our members ha ve full-time jobs and no matter how keen the y have limited spare time. For Mr Whitthread to tell us that we must obtain additional sk ill s outside the Brigade is hardly constructive when a n internal course is bound to be best su ited to our needs, and make the most of the t im e available.

Of course a sou nd knowledge of first aid is required, but we can not assume that our own medical staff or a profe ssio nal ambulance crew wi ll a lwa ys be on hand to ba ck us up. On dutie s attended by a Brigade vehicle, it is normall y expected that it will co n vey cas ualties to ho sp it a l. The only di fference be tween his and an emergency carried out by the ambulance serv ice is that we are already on the scene. Looked at in this light I can see no logical reason why we should be content to train and equip our members below DHSS standards and pro vi de the public with a lower sta ndard of service.

To quote Mr Nicho ll s (May Review) 'Some advanced sk ill s are very much first aid', and it is this realisation that has led to the introdu ct ion of flying doctor schemes in so me areas.

I think we need to re vive some of the old s pirit and put St John out in front again. There are still challenges to be met , and people w illing to meet them. Let 's get the two together. It s up to us. Canterbu ry H.. 1. Goldfinch

HIGHER QUALIFICATIONS

from Mr B T Brown County Pool

When one reads so many demands i n the Re view for some form of advanced or paramedical training within the Brigade, it is necessary to ask if the full implications have been considered. The more sop hi sticated members' sk ill s become, the less competent f ir st-aiders w ill they become.

If members be co m e more highl y qualified, the greater wi ll be the risk of a commo n la w s uit for negligence being taken o ut against them if things go wrong. This in turn wi ll require a new look at Brigade insurance and professional liability - a rather expensive proposition. Annual proficiency testing will cause secretaries, at all le ve ls, to tear their h a ir out merely coping wi th the increased administration and record keeping. The t est will b e far more comprehensive than the c urrent re -e xam.

C la ims t hat the added intere st wi ll impro ve recruitment and retention of members may not be justified. It is probable that ALL adult members would need to be trained to any new higher standard, since the public wi ll, quite rightly, assume all were equally qualified. Those members with family and other commitments and w ho do not wish to give too much time to the Brigade, ma y resent the time taken up in maintaining a qualification they may never need to use. Rela ions with cadets wi ll be more diffi cu lt to reconcile. Ther e wo uld be no question of any member below the age of 18 being allowed to perform first aid.

It would, I suspect, not be in the best interests of the Brigade to provide training in and to allow the practice of ad va nced ski lls in the name of the Brig ade.

Sutton Coldfield B. T. Brown

LECTURERS

from Leslie R Whittaker, Principal Surgeon (retired)

May I refer to the letter b y Mr Nicholl (Sept Review). It might be of interest to know that in Kenya while doctors give the formal lecture s at many courses the applied first aid is taught by qualified lay lecturers. Thi s policy was introduced because in some in sta nce s doctor s were not available but more so becau se many doctor s were not comp lete ly aware of c urrent St John first aid practice a nd their interpretation of fir s t aid was often tempere d by their more detailed medical

knowledge. Advantages of this policy were a better general tandard of applied first aid as taug h t by St John and a greater utilisation appreciated by tho se conce rned of the lay ecturer Chiswick Leslie R. Whittaker (Principal Surgeon , re fir ed)

WE GIRLS from Ann Kelly. Sergeant

As there has been some interest s hown recently in the Re view about the role of women in St John, perhap yo u would like to know how female members are treated in London District.

At the Nolting Hill Carn ival 1982 it was ordered that women were not allowed to walk in the streets or mix with the public (even in pair s) unless accompanied by a male member as chaperone. This could of co ur se be a teenage bo y still at school. The excu c I was given for this blatantly discriminating action were mutterin g about a lot of dark alleys in Notting Hill.

At Trafalgar Square la st New Year's eve women were not allowed in the square itself, which had been so in pre v iou s years. Also London District has now decided that women are nO( ca pable of linin g processional routes anymore.

I thought St John in recent year was trying to move into the 20th century, but in London this is not so. They treat their highly skilled, dedicated women with contempt, expecting them to be coo ped up or shut away I am waitin g for the day when senio r officers at Di t rict HQ decide no women will attend ce rtain t ype of duties How do others feel about this?

Kenton Ann Kelly

THE NEW BOOK from Clayton Freeman , Ar ea Staff Officer (Cadets)

The new First Aid Manual has been with us for just over a year now I ha ve not been ab le to see what edition it i r know the int erval s in ce th e last edition ha s been a long one - much longer than previous ly.

I remembe r quite well when the term 'the new book' ca me into operation and it a ways seems to be used during the transitional period, when examinations and competitions were taken from one or the other of the editions At that time I was a police officer and member of the first aid team. There were times when we were told that a competition would not be based on the new book'. After keeping our training on the 'o ld book' we entered the competition to find t was on the 'new book'. I frequently became ag i tated and made many reference s to the 'new book'. This was amids t non-competitor s, some of whom h ad no intere st in first aid at all, a lthou g h as policemen s hould h ave been well versed in the s u bject.

r agree with E. J. Whitthread (August Review), there does seem to be a tendency towards a paramedical section /\s he states, fir st aid is f rst aid. remember when we were advised on the treatment of injuries in one of the 'o ld books': DO NOT ATTEMPT TOO MUCH. I have even know n of a member of St John, when aske d fo r hi s opinion by a neighbour, to look at a bottle of tablets a nd remark: 'Don't take these. Throw 'em away!' Little did he know that the tablet s had been presc ri bed by a GP! If we are to become too technical I feel s ure that St John will come into conflict with the medical profession s hould a member h ave anot he r 'diagno sis' ! We have man y doctors as Brigade surgeo n s at all le ve ls. There are also many medics w ho consider that f ir st-aide r s interfere [00 much One

particular doctor I once knew - not a Brigade Surgeon - had judged a competition. Afterwards we chatted. He had marked the teams according to the marking s heet, which had b ee n set by the competit ion or ga niser. One of t he injuri es had been a compound fracture, whic h we now r efer to as open fracture. His remark s were that suc h an injury should be treated w ith as little movement as possible. H e did not agree with rin g pads over the protruding bone, or pad s around it. Neit her did he advocate sp lint s a nd bandages He said compound fractures very rarely bleed suffic iently to warrant s uch pressure, which would be exceedingly painful. It cou ld cause complications. We h ave always been told to 'preve nt the condition worsening' We are st ill advised to adopt this procedure (p. 9 of the Manual). However, opin ions see m to differ in all walks of life and jobs

T note that we h ave discontinued using the technical anatomical nam es. After a ll we're not taking a medical degree. I feel, however, to have mixed feeling about this. [joined a s a ca det way back in 1937 I was praised by my a unt s and unc les when I recited all the name s of the bones. I learned at an early age that there were 206 bones in the skeleton, but 212 bones in the human body! The other six are, of course, the oss icle s of the middle ear which are not a part of the ske leton. A mistake sometimes made by ca ndidates in biology examinations at c h ool. I have see n how cadets h :lVe progressed in biology at c hool from knowing the femurs, scap ula s and ulnas, etc. They were sometimes the envy of he r e t of the class - who were not St John Cadets.

[ see once again we are g ive n advice about asthma. We are also given information concerning migr a ine. Why migraine? There is no known cure. 1 suffer this condition, but [ have noted that the attacks are becoming le ss frequent. As for the treatment I have found, empirica ll y, what su its my needs. I do not propose to expl?in this because i su ts m y condition. It may even be detrimental to another sufferer 'one man's meat is another man's poi on' a the y say.

One wonders how lon g t his editio n of the Manual will la st? What wil l the ne xt include Perhap dandruff and in grow in g toenail! Barnsley Clayton Freeman

RE - EXAMS from Mrs Iris Bundle

As a full-time Fir Aid At Work 'endorsed' la y instructor and a Brigade member, [ feel r must reply to the lett e r from 'A R eader' (Augu Re v iew) who reque ted the withho ldin g of hi name and addre s I have no objection to being re-a ses ed or re- exa mined , which is a check of my s tand a rd s We must face the fact that he s tandard s of first aid knowled ge in some areas of the Brigade are poor. To rai e the e tandard we must have good in truction - therefore instructors mu t be continually checked.

All I a k that Class Re g ulation are followed in Brigade Re-exam by using only qualified examiner (instructors and doctor ), not unqualified members appointed by the Brigade. London, N20 Iris Bundle

from Mr J P Candler, County Staff Off icer

I felt I must comment on the anonymou s letter (/\ugust Re vie w) e ntitl ed Re-exams.

Fir s t, the writer ha s little faith in hi s convictions, since he is unwilling to put hi s name to them, but more important hi s theory is wrong. It is more important for lay demonstrators to be re-examined than ordinary Brigade member s be ca u se lay demonstrators will be on knowledge (or lack of it) to raw, uncommitted members of the public.

I am an ex-lay demonstrator and ha ve given up my certificate be c au se I have insufficient time to take part in first aid courses on a regular basis.

To put the record straight, it is St John Ambulance Association that requires lay demonstrator s to hold a va lid f ir st aid certificate. St John Ambulance requires most members to pass an annual reexamination to qualify for efficient service. Thi s requirem ent becomes more important as more people become holders of first aid certificates outside of St John Ambulance Brigade because it gives our members that little bit more authority and, more important, confidence. Finally I would point out that all current exemptions are based on professional qualifications obtained during full time occupation and it would be a retrograde step to introduce exemptions on the basis of qualifications obtained 'in house' during pur uance of one's hobby. Chelmsford 1. P. Candler from Mr D Symes SRN etc

With reference to the letter in the August Review headed Re-Exam s from 'A Reader ', I cannot help wondering just what A Reader' i frightened of As a trained nurse I undertake each year my fir aid re-e xaminatio n. I wou ld not agree that this makes me in any way less professional neither do I find it embarrassing or, to the best of my knowledge, does the medical officer who examines me find it emoarrasing. It s merel y a way of ensuri n g that I keep up to date with current first aid practice and can demonstrate that fact at the annual re-examination. I indeed feel very strong ly that every uniformed member of the Brigade and most certainly everyone who puts them s eh e s forward a an instructor, s hould undertake an annual re-examination. Indeed I would go further and say that for tho e of us with years of sen ice and experience, that annual re-examination should become more searching each year. Thi s I would suggest is the only way in \\hich the Bri gade can ha e any confidence at all that its member are not only trai n ed to , but maintained at, the highe po sible level of efficie n cy.

Lymington D. Symes

FEAST OF VIEWS from

first-aiders and nurses, Janet. I'll be the f irst-aider and yo u be the nurse .' In my own division men and women work in neces sa r y areas of du ty, with each member working indoor s o r out as needed. The fact that Mrs Wilson even had to suggest that the quality of fir st aid rendered by women was as good as by men shows how deeply ingra ined is our tendency to denigrate standards of women 's work.

I must admit I resent the fact that I can sign men on as Brig a de members and they need never take any furthe r qualification but as soon as any female wishes to sign on and is deepl y inter este d in first aid I have to insist that she takes nursin g - sorry, 'caring for the sick' - as a qualification for remaining in the Br igade. This is no longer logical in our changing society. Encourage further qualification as our friend asking for paramedical ' d eve lopment s u ggests, bu t no t at the expense of the right of the individual to choo se to follow hi s / her own interest

[ was readin g a copy of the [897 edition of our Training Manua[, which excluded women from the stretcher drills and ransport sect ion , and included 'a section on basic nursin g technique s from whi ch men were excluded We now ha ve a glorious opportunity t o create a ne w training scheme which includes both the abo ve aspect s of fir st aid work for all Brigade members. I would join Mr E. J. Whitthread in hi s concentration on keeping most of our work ba sic thorough and simple. We do need to return to something like the multi-le vel certificate in first aid, just as there are in ca rin g for t he sick. I am so categorical about this as I find it totall y unreali st ic to expect people on their first course of lectures to be able to pick up all th e tec hnique s they ma y need to use on public dut y, particularly if the y are involved with first aid rooms , tents, caravans and ambulances with spec ia li sed gear.

Two last points. a) A few years ago the Re v ie w had a f ront cover picture of two girl cadets on dut y a t a show. They were beauti fully dressed for a hospital ward but lud ic rou sly for the dut y they were on; ploughing through mud while wearing shoes, sto c king s and dr esses, when boots, s hirt s/ trousers and sweater would be mor e fitting. b) I have held a nursing qualification since 1948 On ce I was asked to suggest a way of keeping the weight of b lankets o ff a pati ent se n t home from hospital (early , b y mistake ), and I h av e twice been asked to move a patient in bed or help him into a chair. A lo t of usefor years of trying to keep up m y training in things \vhic h unlike fir s t

a id techniqu es, I cou ld look up 10 minut es before needing to use th em

Huddersfie ld John Sprin ge r

CADET STATUS

from Mr B T Brown. ex Officer Cadets

I must rep ly to C hri s H a le's crit ic is m (Au g ust R ev iew) of Chris Kimb e rl ey's Talkin g Point (May R eview).

Since he i a n officer-in-charge of a combi ned adult / ca det d iv ision , Chris Hale will ha ve read the Cadet Officers' Manual and have realised t hat C hri s Kimberley has merely reiterated Brigade po[ icy

As for not being able to cover duties wit h out the help of cadet s I wou ld s uggest that , if there a ren 't enou g h adu lts to do the jo b , du ties s hould not be accepted.

While I agree that St John Ambulance is a bou t f irst aid, I would que st ion whether the 'raison d'etre' for th e Bri ga de is doin g' first a id Sutton Coldfield B T. Bro wn

CB RADIO

from John Spring er. Divisional Super ntendent

I wish to thank M r Bareham (Ju ly R eview) for hi fu ll and in formative a nswe r to my question s on Brigade radio (Apri l Review). I must admit I h a d not realised that I needed to approac h HQ t h ro u g h Bri gade cha nn el s each t ime I wis hed to replace a set for which I held a li cence , nor that it was only when I made s uch an app roac h would I receive information o n changes m a d e to licencing co ndi t ion s I a m s till a li tt le un s ure abou t St John and C B As many people ma y know, REACT, a responsib le group of CB owners w ho offer assistance to the public b y arra nging communications networks, have found heir efforts destroyed by the lunatic, irresponsib le users of CB The y have approached the Home Offic e and have a PMR frequenc y close to our o wn. Shall we be ab le to carry set s on th is frequency if we do aeromedical or simi lar work? If we could , we s hould have acces s to virt u a ll y national co verage s hould we need a ssi s tan c e en route or a t the incident.

Hudd ersfie ld John Springer

Mr A. F. Bareham, Brigade Radio Commun ications Officer, re plie s: A propo sa l for c o-op e ration be tw ee n REACT UK and St John Ambulance using a PMR frequenc y has been recei ved from t he ir Executi ve Managin g Dire ct or , and thi s is be in g s tudied. Th e outcom e wi ll be advi sed to C ommi ss ioner s.

NEWS froRl

SCOTLAND

and intere s t

s

been many and

d, with mu s ic and song playin g an important part in th e progr a mme s for fu nd -rai s ing and providing a n evening' e nj oyment. In G la sg ow th e Sco tti s h Opera s upport fund-rai in g e ffon s of th e Order w ith their d e lightful co nce rt in the Cit y Chamber. In Fife, mu s ical ev enin g take pl a ce in Naughton Hou se , the home of Bri g adi e r H. N . C rawford , OStJ Th ey take th e form of E xce rpt from Op e ra' and ' Son g from Show a nd a re und e r the dir ec tion o f Mr Ge or ge G o rdon the producer of Fife Opera C ompan y. In An g us dur in g Jul y, th e A lauda C hoir from G e neva ga ve a se ri es of con ce rt s at fo ur diff e re nt ve nu es within th e br a nc h

a re a in a id o f th e fund s of th e Order This di t in g ui hed c ho ir ga ve th e ir se r vices free on th ese fo ur occ a s io ns.

H a dd o H o u s e, th e hom e of La d y

Ab e rdee n DSl J , i p e rh a p th e be s t -known

WALES

T O 1\IARK th e D ia m o nd Jubil ee Yea r fo r

Wa le a d e t a s pe cia l ex hibiti o n is be in g

he ld in G \ e nt until t he en d o f O c tobe r. He ld a t ew po n Mu e um a nd Art G a ll e r y, it

h ow t he va ri o u t y pe o f C adet uniform s ,

b ad ge, tr a inin g e qu i pm e nt a nd p h o t og rap h v hi c h have bee n o an e d b y me mb ers or th e publi c.

So me 0 1' th e fir s t cad ets to j o in th e Bri gad e in Wa e 60 year. ago ca me a lon g to a pec ial o pe nin g cere mo ny b y th e Mayo r o f ewport ,

Co un cill o r , M r Be tt y Cliffo rd Th ey c hatted

\\ ith p rese nt - d ay cad e t s f rom va riou s di vis io n wit hin Ne wport , Ca ldi cot a nd Monm o uth.

Oth e r g ue t in c lud e d th e A i tant C hief

Co mmi io ne r fo r Wal e, Mr C. J Parr y, th e C hi e f S i a ff Of f ice r for W a le s Mr Pet e r Harri e rh e c ha irm a n o f th e St John C oun cil for Gw e nr , Ma j o r Ro bin Medl ey , a nd th e Co mmi ion e r for Gw e nt, Do c t o r John

ve nu e of a ll in Sco tl and for mu sica l a c ti vitie s a nd th e Order ha s benefited great ly from time to time f rom it s variou s endeavour s W ith so mu c h interest in mu s ic within the Order and As o c ia tion s, the formation of an Order o f St John Mu s ical So c iet y in Sc o tland

A b r e ak dur ng he lec t u r es for the South Wales Cade s who a tended a Leadersh p T rain Ing Course to

Llo yd. Th e ex hibition wa s mounted by Keith Dunn , th e Co unt y Staff Offi ce r for

News from Divisions/Centres

OBITUARY

John M. Ball, 85, of Addlestone, Surrey Joined Brigade in 1942. Area Commissioner 1957 to 1973. Mr Ball dedicated his life to St John. Died July 13. Leslie Bingham, 74. Member of Whittlesey Ambulance Division for 41 years. Died Jul y 20. Mrs D. R. Craven, founder member of Newark Nursing Division,

Sir Francis Evans, 86 Knight of Grace Commandery of Ards. Ambassador to Argentine 1954-57 , Ulster Agent 1961-66. Died August 21.

A. K. Hook SBStJ, treasurer Oldham Centre and Corps Staff Officer, Oldham Corps.

Sidney Ernest Impett, SBStJ, 70, T I Offi ce r Esher & Ditton Division, Surrey. Died August 6.

Thomas Irvine, SBStJ, 79, Sup

(Lan es) Ambulan

Died

Sounds of parched vegetation

An Australian botanist has discovered that plants produce sounds and squeak or creak when they need water. John Milburn, of New England University, in Armidale, New South Wales, placed a special microphone in the stem of a plant which had experienced

<1 1 7-:-\ '"';' S t' a drought. He found that plants squeak when the stems and leaves are trying to draw water from the earth and are not able to get any.

The creaking comes from vibrations set up in the xylem tissue (the plant tissue commonly called wood, composed of four or five different sorts of cells; the dead cells, with firm walls that make tissue mechanically stronger, are plant fibres. The living cells are ray and xylem parenchyma cells whose function is the conduction of water. These cells form sapwood or heartwood). Since those plants which are best able to resist drought are the ones which creak the least ,

the botanist hopes that the discovery will identify the species which can be grown in places where there is least humidity.

Soap, produced within the body, protects the heart

During the last ten years studies have revealed that in the parts where the watersupply is hard, the index of cardiac infirmities is much lower than elsewhere. Now, in an investigation recently brou g ht to conclusion in Texas, it has been shown that the index of mortality from heart attacks is 2S per cent lower amongst persons living in hard water regions; also, that arterial tension is less and the le ve ls of cholesterol in their serum is lower

Dr Earl Dawson of the Medical Branch of Texas University, in Galveston, thinks that the high proportion of calcium and magnesium in hard water is the beneficial factor. He stat es: 'In the intestines calcium and magne s ium combine with t he fats of the food and produce soap*, a substance which is not digested and so cannot be absorbed.' In this way, he believes , the body absorbs le ss fat.

*E ditor: Commercial soaps are of chemical formula sodium stearate, produced from salt, and stea ric acid obtained from animal fat.

What can be done to protect the people who li ve in soft-wa t e r d istricts? Dr Dawson recommend s that such persons shou ld tak e a daily s upplement of 70 milligrams of magnesium and 100 milligrams of ca lcium These proportions are the equiva lent of two quarts of hard water. In a comme nt on thi s Science Digest says: 'Dr Dawson's theor y s hould have a profound effect. In a population of 100 ,000 persons, th e supp lement s of calc ium and magne s ium wou ld prevent t h e deaths of more (han 100 persons from cardiac illnesses every 10 yea rs.

pressure unit from the old French physicist (6). 12. Accustom to unusual urin e (S). 13 Myopic sight (4). 14. Air is back to a song from an opera (4). 16. Skin lesion caused, perhaps, by a badly-applied plaster cas (8.4) 20. Menopause (6 .2.4) 23 Coloured membran e behind the cornea (4). 24. Tax a group of enlisted men (4). 25 Splil atoms to make an arti ficial opening into the intestines (S). 27. Folia ge emblem of victory (6). 28. Apparatus concerned with tears (8) 29. Sebaceous secretion of the prepuce (6).30. se nt aid for inOammation of lymph glands (8).

Down:

1 Fever typical of advanced tuber c ulo s is and sep ticaemi a is busy a nd exciting (6). 2. Spiritualist throu g h which impression are conveyed to the se n ses (6). 3 Bone with pin between extremitie s (S). 9. Respiration with periods of apnoea and hypernoea, often a terminal sign (6-6). 6. Bring up the buttocks (4). 7. Where the boffins ca rr y out research on 3 Down? (4-4). 8. Call gone for protein of c onnectiv e tissues (8). 11. Part of hospital one may v isit by accident (8.4). I S. Complain about the meat? (4). 17 A widespread tempor a r y enthusiasm for rabies in France (4). 18 Directions fo llowin g a chill in a large tendon (8). 19 Cure follows main c hang e in cosmetic treatment of the hands (8) 21. Style of book fo r floor covering (6) 22. Tissue formed to heal a fracture (6). 2S. Temptress used by ambulance on emergency call (5). 26. Pathogeni c micro-organism (4). SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No. 9 (83)

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEME TS

COltJl;gf,

Coraer. BuUey, Woodbriij:ge, Suffolk IJPIl 3QF.

REVIEW CROSSWORD No.1 0 (83) by A. A Potter

Across: I. Kaiser worth; 7. A'mp; 9. PO'mb'e 10 III-at-ea se; II . Owns; 12. Skip; 13 De·fer; IS. Inspire; 16. Edgy; 20. Barb; 22 Airways; 2S. A·cu·te; 27. Long; 28. Anu s; 30. Headlines; 31. Amino; 32. Ray; 33. See eye to eye. A prize of a Plalignum pen will be awarded 10 Ih e sender of the fir s correctly completed Crossword No. 10 (83)

(8) S. Numerals used in

and

(3 S) 10. A

Down: I. Kyphosis; 2. Immunise; 3 Eden; 4. Wrinkle; S. Relap se; 6. Hated; 7. Amalfi; 8. Pleura; 14. Fina; 17. Gore; 18. Jaundice; 19. Asystole; 21. Balance; 22. Amnesty; 23. Gather; 24. Qu' easy;

Offil!ral St John Ambulance Sweatshirt'S. Made in Great Britain and s-creenprinted with your divisional name and 'St John Ambulance Brigade Motif. £6.95 each, minimum order onJy 10 shillts, under our special 'St John Ambulance Brigade Scheme'. For ull details write or telephone to Karyn Myers, Prio:temps Ltd. (The Schools SpeciaJjsts), Turpins Yard, Oaklands Road, London NW'2 1YB. Tel: 01-450 9588.

1984 DlARIES 20p eacb

£28.80 per gross plus VAT Ball Pens, Key Fobs etc. All printed to your equ ir eme

AMBULANCES

Introducing Minibus-style vehicles useful for towing, cadet transport, e m e r genc i es

S - V Registrations £3,150 to £4 , 150

Stretcher-type vehicles, Hanlon Hi - l i ne , Mk III , Mk IV & Mk V

N - S Registrations £2,550 - to £4 , 550

All fully reconditioned including repaint, new engine , beacons, horn s, stripes, etc

Over 70 vehicles supplied to St John BRAND NEW Ford Transit Minibus Ambulances with dark glass, cot fittings, cupboard, attendant's seat, beacons, stripes, etc. Factory warranty. £9,500 Please send for ca talogue

LADY ANN MILLS, LADY ANN ROAD, BATLEY, W. YORKS. 0924-475228

ST JOHN REVIEW

THE JOURNAL OF ST JOHN

Volume 56 No. 11

Contents

St John Fellowship p.241

Tal king Poin t p.242

Th e Vatican 1984 p 242

Sail Tr aining Courses 1984 p.243 November 1983

Buying an ambu lance , by Br ia n Rockell p.244

Grand Pr ior's Advisory Council p.246

The Nursery Tent at Malvern Show p. 247

Around and About, by the Editor p.248

Healing the Hordes, by Catherine Sadler p.252

You'l l be all right, mate! p.254

Junior Wendy Emberson, 9 , helps Dad p 255

SJA Training Centre, Derbyshire p.256

Gloucestershire p.257

Reader s Views p.258

News from Scotland - Wales - N. Ireland p.260

National First Aid Comp etitions p.261

News f rom Di visio ns /Centre s p.262

The World About Us, by Jack p.263 EDITORIAL and ADVERTISEMENTS

Limited, Hadl eigh Road, Ipswich , SuHolk. Tel (0473) 219118 (3 lines)

Printed by: Benham & Company Limited, Sheepen Place Colchester Essex.

Price 55p monthly £8.50 per annum , £10.00 outside UK including

St John Fellowship

Calling all former members in Bucks Six branches are in the process of being formed. Efforts are being made to trace former members from county records, but if you are interested don't wait to be traced. Write to either: Miss N. M. Sale, The Croft, Walton Road, Aylesbury; or Miss Monica White, Cleveland, 37 Claremont Gardens, Marlow SL7 IBP.

Activities

Sheila Puckle, the National Secretary, writes: I am receiving enquiries asking 'We want to form a Branch. How do we do it, and what does it do when formed?'

The answer to the first question is simple: You get in touch with a few former members who want to keep in touch, and continue to support the work of St John, and you then fill in the pro-fo!'ma appears in the Review each month (see page 263) and send 1t to Sheila Puckle.

You now have a Branch. What is it going to do? We can only answer that by giving some examples of what is being done so far. Where Branches cover a fairly small area in a county, they are producing a programme of meetings (usually monthly! in different parts of the area, so that all members can get to a meetmg. These meetings either have a visiting speaker or perhaps invite the local Brigade Division to a social evening, or run a sale for some fundraising appeal, or a picnic or other outing. Where branches are not yet local, but may cover a whole county, t he y may concentrate on visits to members who are ill or housebound, and tend to run less frequent but larger outings or meetings, gathering members from far and wide by car or coach to a large house (kindly offered), where a hearty tea is provided by volunteers. There the senior Association and Brigade officers in the county bring members up to date on the latest news of St John, and perhaps may ask members to support coming events.

I hope Branch Secretaries will tell me of any interesting activities to add to this list. What are you planning for Christmas?

NATIONWIDE SJ RAFFLE

Please start returning all raffle ticket counterfoils to: The Public Affairs Department 1 Grosvenor Crescent London SW 1X 7EF

Remember Counties and D ivisions keep all the proceeds and need only return counter foils to Headquarters. PLEASE RETURN ALL COUNTERFOILS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND NOT LATER THAN DECEMBER 1

HA VE you ever heard people in St John talk about 'Them'? have And the talk is usually not very complimentary.

'Them' is the Headquarters staff at Grosvenor Crescent who are responsible for all the 'stu pid' rules and comments which come down from above. They are also the 'over-paid retired people from all walks of life who have previously never had any 'experience of St John

I don't agree with these views. One should remember that St John pays a pittance to the HQ staff and therefore t he only people who can afford to work there are those on good pensions. Also if they claimed fo r all the time and travel they put in during their HQ work, no doubt they would be even more 'wealthy', for they do an awful lot of extra, voluntary work in their jobs.

Possibly it is true that many of these people have had no or little experience of St John when they arrived at HQ, but they ha ve all had experience of 'people' 'industry' or 'organisation' at a high level, so can therefore offer our organisation a lot of valuable advice and ideas.

You may organise a division, an area or a county, but these HQ people have to organise a whole country of St John, and in some cases the 'world of St John', so their task is often many, many more times far reaching and involved than ours.

So come on everybody, stop knocking 'Them'! Let's support them. 'They' don't make rules for the sake of it; hopefully their ideas will help.

Perhaps a couple of ideas from me will help. How about a series of photographs in the Review with a short write up about HQ staff from top to bottom? (OK, I know it has been done, but let's try again.) And how about top HQ staff visiting counties more often at the invitation of the counties (counties to pay)? Thank you to 'them' from at least one of ' us'.

Moonraker

The Vatican 1983

NOVEMBER 1983 marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Concordat between the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and the Most venerable Order of St John. This famous document affirms that both Orders have the same eight pointed cross as their emblem and were founded to do the same job, to look after the poor and the sick. During these last 20 years the Concordat has become much mor e than a document, it is now a practical reali ty. For instance, every year doctors and nurses from the St John Ambulance come on the Order of Malta pilgrimage to Lourdes.

1975 was proclaimed a Holy Year by the Pope. The Vatican asked the Sovereign Order to provide a first aid post in St Peter's Square in Rome. The Brit is h Association was asked to do nine weeks of the dut y and immediately appealed to the Brigade for help. There was a flood of lette rs to Grosvenor Crescent from members volunteering to give up a week of their annual holiday to go to Rome. These nine weeks were a great success and 'Rome Duty' is now a familiar saying in the Brigade

It was not surprising therefore, when another Holy Year was proclaimed in 1983, that the Hospitaller, Count Joseph Czernin, should appeal to General Leuchars for help. This time the British Association was asked to do six weeks and again there was a flood of letters particularly from members who had been in 1975 and wanted to go again.

The unenviable job of deciding who was to go and who was to be disappointed fell again to SJA's Alan McKay, who had made all the arrangements in 1975.

It was my privilage to go with the last of the six teams that went to Rome It was Rome at its best, hot, bright and dry. We were lucky to hit the end of the tourist season so that each day half of the members were

able to go sightseeing and shopping. There were days when the post was busy wit h pilgrims but by and large it was not an arduou s duty such as we had in 1975.

At this point I want to pay my personal tribute to 'The Rome Lot' The SJA members were nothing less than wonderful. Cool, calm and wholly professional. There was nothing they could not cope wit h, from Rome tummy to an imminent birth, and as t he pregnant lady was whisked away in an ambulance I heard our midwife member say wistfully that she would have liked to del iv er a baby in St Peter 's Square!

For all of us the big day was Wednesday , the day of the Pope's General Audience.

Having see n the Pope on the television when he came to England it was a big thrill to see the Holy Father him self being driven up to the Post at 10 .00 am. to start the audience. It was very hot and we were kept bu sy.

Alongside the First Aid Post, sitting in the shade, were a couple o f hundred sick and handicapped people The Pope had spent two hours in the hot s un walking around the square greet ing groups of pilgrims from all over the world. Now he came to bless the sick individually, and on hi s way back to his car he walked down the long line of St John members and shook hands and thanked each one for coming to Rome What a wonderful personality that man has!

Special thanks to all our interpreters who seemed to speak every language under the sun, to General Doctor Melandri (with the whiskers) who suggested the Pope stop and talk to us, to Doctor Wenda (Count Dobrzensky) who sorted out our problems, to Count Kinsky who showed some of us round the Grand Magistry and finally to th e Grand Commander, Fra Charles Pallavicini , who called at the post to thank member s on the behalf of the Grand Master.

Gervase Elwes, Sovereign Military Order oj Malia

SAIL TRAINING

TH ai l Train in g A sociation (ST A) h as provi ionally re erved a num ber of places for St John A m bu la nce personnel (aged 16-24) on their training cruises during 19 84. P ersonnel are encouraged to take advantage of thi fine adventure training.

The STA s a charitable non-profit making organisation with widely different abilitie to contribute the full cost. The full cost of a twoweek cruise in 1984 ha been e t imated as £565 per per on. The STA allots bursarie of £ 185 on each berth. The opening offer for t h e tw Oweek crui e is £380. St John Ambulan e H ead quarter will allow a furt h er £ 180 per per on from training funds. So costs to the cou nty individual wi ll be £200 eac h berth. Personnel interested in taking part in one of th e 1984 cru ises s hould apply through Di s trict / Cou nt y Headquarter s, who wi ll in turn pass to Bri ga de HQ the nam e of tho e app li ca n ts which Commissioners recommend.

CRUISES 1984

Applicants should offer one firm da te bid and sta t e an alternative c ho ice. Bid for the cruises are very heavy and applica tion s sho uld be made as soo n as possible a nd fo r as far a head as po ssible. 0 money hould be ent initially. P ayment will be reque ted af er a berth h as been allocated; (the money is not finally required unt il 3 month s before the s tart of each cruise). Bid s are to be se nt throu g h Distr ict/C ount y Headquarters to the Staff Officer Brigade T r aining at 1 Grosvenor C re sce nt, and mu st state: a. Title and full perso nal names. b St John rank. c. Birth dat e. d Home address. e. Cruise required (Ser 0 and date) f. Alternati ve crui e c hoi ce, if any. g. St John Ambulan ce County. h Recommendat on of Commi sioner. (Successful allocation of berths will b e subject to a va ilabili ty, the number of applicant pr ea d through Counties and date of re cei pt of applications).

A QUESTION I have often asked myself about SJA is 'Are we boring?' And I always come up with the same answer - yes How exactly are we boring?

Well have you ever met members who talk about nothing but the t errible injurie s or illnesses they have encountered or heard of? Or who talk about every duty and task with a solemn face? Or recount without a smile those unforeseen disasters such as when the ambulance breaks down, or equipment fails? Or of course about those patients who are treated b y t he s e un-smiling first-aiders?

Ha ve you ever attended a Erst aid talk or lec t ure given by a very stern speaker, who seems to think it is a crime t o laugh or smile, and 10 and behold the class must never enjoy learning? have. What is wrong with a laugh and a joke? We all know injuries are serious for t he casualty, no matter how trivial the y may be, but surely it helps to see a smi i ng face and to ha v e a laughso long as the casual ty does no t suffer. Such glumness will onl y frighten off the new recruit.

Would you return t o a course that was dull and boring , or even think about joining an organisation that could not laugh or smile - especially at itself? I cert ainly wouldn't. And nor would I learn anything if I couldn' t laugh. So come on, St John - let's have a laugh and a smile. Some members do , some divisions do so for all our sakes let's see more members doing it. If we did, I bet you would see more recruits and members a lot happier, especially the young ones. We should never forget two very old sa ying: 'If you don 't laugh, you'll cry '; and 'Smile - and the whole world smiles with y ou.'

OK, know I have left myself wide open to criticism from everyone for saying this, but is not that what our magazine is for - to encourage discus ion and comment? These views are o f course personal and do not reflect ad v ersely on the excellent work done by our members

Moonraker

(Abovel A la n McKay, of SJA HQ (Below) Mrs Mary Seymour, of Essex. and Sheila Puckle (rig ht of HQ

(Above) Miss Sheila Cato, of Beds, and (rig ht Mr s Dor een Thomas of Warwicks (Below Jame s McAllister and John Fallon (right ), both of Belfast

AFTER BUYING a headquarters, buying an ambulance will probably be the most expensive purchase made by a Division. So buying with care is very important. Some Divisions buy new ambulances, when there is a large selection to choose from, but many buy secondhand.

It is generally accepted that the ideal ambulance does not exist. Vehicles such as the Ford Transit and the Bedford CF may be fine for transporting goods, but there is a vast difference between that and carrying a patient who may be hovering between life and death.

The vehicle manufacturer cannot be blamed for this situation as the ambulance market is so limited that it would not be viable for a manufacturer to develop the ideal chassis. A number of specially-built vehicles have been marketed but for economic reasons all have been dropped, although a British car manufacturer is currently producing an ambulance of futuristic design based on the Range Rover chassis. A compromise has to be reached and most manufacturers offer a range of options (some of which are compulsory on the ambulance chassis) which makes the commerical vehicle more suitable for ambulance use.

Commercial chassis vary in length of wheelbase. To a sack of potatoes it matters little whether the best ride is over or between the axles, but for a patient the most comfortable ride is always between the axles.

The Mark 1 Ford Transit had the option of a long wheelbase, but this was dropped when the range was revised in 1978. The Bedford CF is still available with the long wheelbase so the patient is able to ride between axles. This improvement in patient comfort conflicts with the original design and results in heavier steering and a reduced laden capacity

In Britain, t he conventional ambulance has always been based on a light commercial vehicle chassis Other countries have developed estate cars and many European countries use vehicles smaller than our own. The standard of patient care varies in these countries and the vast range of equipment to comply with the DHSS specification could not be accommodated in an estate car. Some of the Continental ambulances carry little more than a stretcher and a first aid bag. The Americans originally used large estate cars but, as in Britain, their concept of an ambulance has altered.

Originally crews recei ve d only a basic training and an ambulance was considered to be a means of transport to the treatment centre only. Crews are now trained so that a limited range of treatment can be given en route to the hospital. This demands a greater range of equipment and suitable headroom The Americans have developed the concept of care still further with para -me dical training. The extensive range of equipment which is then carried demands much larger vehicles and the trend has moved away from estate cars to commercial vehicles often much larger than those in use in Britain. The choice of ambulance design in Britain is limited. The specialist coachbuilders offer the option of a van conversion or a body based on a chassis cowl (no doors) or a chassis cab (complete cab). This chassis 244

Buying an ambulance is a big investment - so choose well

comprises engine and cab, or cowl, and a metal framework (the chassis) on which the body -builder creates his finished product. The body is normally produced in GRP (glass reinforced plastics, also known as fibre glass). The body-builder moulds the panels individually and assembles the vehicle on the chassis. This allows for greater flexibility in design, as the finished product is influenced by the design of the moulds in which, in theory, there could be infinite variation. In the event of an accident the panels can be individually replaced. GRP is a very versatile material. It is durable and will not rust. It can be colour impregnated so that the finished colour is produced in the mould (avoiding the necessity for spraying the body after completion).

In long term use it does lose its original gloss (but perhaps no worse than a sprayed finish); it does show scratch marks very rapidly; and areas of stress (for example,

A chassis cab, showing where the coach builder adds the body. Note the windscreen and doors are provided

A chassis cowl, showing where the coach

says BRIAN ROCKELL

door hinges) can craze or s how a series of small fractures resembling a spider's web. The durability of the body a lso depends upon t he thickness of GRP used, and th e reinforcements at areas of stress. Each manufa cturer has his own standards. The body is u sua ll y constructed of double skinned GRP, which ca n be insulated between skins (van co nv ersions w ith a single skin are much more prone to condensation problems). The skins are reinforced by wood or metal between them, and interior equipment can be bolted to these substantial supports (not always readily possible with van conversions).

The interior skin is also colour impregnated and can be a different colour to the exterior. Although most vehicles have a white interior, blue or green is believed to be more soothing by some authorities. GRP is an ideal interior fini h as it easily cleaned and is durable.

Ambulance bodies have been developed progressively over a number of years to the point at which they now exceed the cost of he chassis and will outlast it. Coachbuilders can usually fit a new chassis to an existing body.

With the van conversion the interior is trimmed and fitted with seats and stretcher. A conversion of this nature has the disadvanta ge of severely limited headroom (most vans h ave a height of under 5 ft noor to ceiling). Many co nver s ion s are based on a complete van with the roof cut off and replaced by a GRP extension to increase the headroom The major advantage of a van conversion is cost. The conversion is considerably cheaper than the GRP body but there are a number of disadvantages. The interior of a van conversion does not have the quality of trim possible with the GRP body, and is rarely so well insulated from noi e and the e ffe c ts of temperature. The width of the vehicle will also be more sev erely lim ited by the original width of the van. Even if the extension is GRP, a major part of the vehic le will be of steel and liable to rust.

Developments within the Health Service are a s ignifi ca nt factor in the purchase of St John vehicles and equipment, for coach builders design and build primarily for t he bi ggest marke t. This restricts St John Ambulance to t he s tandard s and design s use d within the Health Service, modified by the option available from the coach builder or the manufa c turer of the chassis.

A Divi ion wishing to purchase a new veh ic le s hould first determine [he use for the vehicle. All new ve hicl e are very expensive and if it i to be used only a few times a year at a public dULY, it doubtful if it will provide a se n s ible return on an inve stment of £10,000 upward s.

If a vehicle attend 30 public duties a year in a fifteen-yea r lifespan (an optimi tic life pan estimate) each duty will have cost at lea st £25 in depreciation alone (ignoring the 10 of interest on the original purchase price). In uch circumstances it may be more prudent to con ider the purchase of an exHealth Authority vehicle and replace it more regularl y. If it is to beysed for patients , it mu be a fairly lar ge ve hIcle WIth adequate mean of restrainin g he chairs. If it is to be u ed for long journe ys (eg, to the coast with convalescent patients, etc) then an estate car type may be a s uitable alternative, although there will be restricted luggage space. Having determined it u e, a deci ion must be made on the chassi for the proposed vehicle.

The most uitable chassi ma y be influenced by a number of factors. If there is a local dea ler for a particular vehicle who is prepared to offer a discount on a chassis, or offer preferential servicing then this will give a strong bias in chOice. Where the choice remains open, the following notes may be of h elp.

Ford

The Transit is a popular choice. It is a wel l tried design and available with a lar ger engine than its nearest competitor, t h e Bedford CF. It is available as manual or automatic and us ed by nearly all Health Authoritie Most authorities originally purchased automatics, but the manual gearc h ange with the 3-litre

engine is now the popular choice of Heal t h Authorities.

Bedford CF

Less powerful than the larger engined Transit (although no more economical on fuel), the Bedford CF is available with a long wheelbase option, and as manual or automatic. Most coach builders have a common body which can be mounted on the Transit or the CF.

Range Rover

It is very expensive to buy and run , but Jt does have a four-wheel drive. Lirruted in size as an ambulance. (If four-wheel drive is a major consideration, it is possible to convert a Bedford CF or Ford Transit to four-wheel drive)

Freight Rover (previously the Sherpa) Rather narrow to accommodate two tretchers, but may be suitable for some purposes.

Continental vehicles

Mo t of the major Continental suppliers have vehicles suitable for ambulances Renault has supplied a number of their Traffic Master Vans for conversions, and Volk wagen ambulances are used by a number of authorities. Peugeot, Mercedes and Citroen supply most of the ambulances on the Continenr, which are mainly of the estate car type although they may have extended headroom. Mercedes larger van chassis can be used as the base for a GRP body and a number of prototypes are in use.

Some Di v isions have also bought from ea tern bloc countries and Japan. Before buying a foreign chassis it is important to compare all of the costs. Do not be lulled into comparing only the purchase price. The co t of spares and servicing and the location of the nearest dealer should all be taken into account.

Buying your chassis

The chassis, whether for use as a van onversion or GRP-bodied vehicle, can be bought from the coach builder who undertakes the conversion or from the manufacturer's dealer. The coach builder may hold a stock, or a surplus chassis, and this is ce rtainly the most convenient way of buying an ambulance a the coachbuilder will contro l all stages to completion. The advantage in ordering the chassis from a local dealer is he may offer a better discount on the manufacturer's list price. It should not be difficult to get at least 100/0 di count (and

even more) if the local dealer has sympathy for our cause. Remember, discounts on the chassis are available, but generally only if you ask. If there are several dealers within your vicinity, draw up your specification and ask each to quote. Include all the options you require, so that you compare like with like. The dealer can arrange delivery from the factor y direct to the coachbuilder, so you will not see the vehicle until completion

Choosing the equipment

All coach builder s offer to supply a wide range of optional equipment. Make sure that your specification is functional and use the wealth of advice available from the coach builder to assist in drawing up the specification. You do not have to order all your equipment from the coachbuilder. If yo u have any surplus equipment, you can send it to the coachbuilder for fitting in the new vehicle and so save considerable cost even though the coachbuilder will make a fitting charge.

The Pub lic Duty Handbook (available from the Supplies Department at £2, Code P 12301) , gives useful lists of suitable equipment.

Buying secondhand

For reasons of econom y, many St John Divisions buy heir vehicles secondhan d, and this will usuall y mean an ex-Health Authority ambulance There are man places to buy a secondhand ambulance. Some authorities a ive St John Di visions a preferential but others release their to auction or by tendering. Your local Health Authority will tell you the method they use. Vehicles released in this way may be tripped of equipment and are unlikely to include stretchers. With a pai r of stretcher co ting nearl y £1 , 000 , it is worth trying to get a vehicle complete with a pair of secondhand stretchers (new mattresse s and parts are alway obtainable).

Vehicles relea ed through auctions or by tender may be purcha ed by motor dealers or by speciali t vehicle converters. The y may be refurbished as ambulance or find their way to new owners as mobile nack bar and caravanettes.

It must be remembered that dealer and converters are in business to make money and you still ha e to select with the greate [ of care. Some ambulance \ ill be found adverti ed in Exchange and klan (usually dealer elling stripped' Health Authority

A Hanlon GRP body based on a Ford Transit 3 litre chassis/cow

ambulances) or in the Sf John Review by other St John uni ts or specialist converters.

Buying secondhand can be a o-reat savinobut i t can also mean a headache if you not fully aware of the drawbacks. For many vehicles released by authontles may have an obsolete chassis means that, although spares available now, they will become increasingly scarce as the vehicle becomes older and n eeds replacement parts. It must also be remembered that lo ca l authorities sell vehicles ,:"hen they are considered past their useful lIfe, so they need considerable refurbishing. Most authorities do not relea se their vehicles until they have covered at least 100,000 miles. Try to obtain the vehicle's service record The Health Authority may be able to help, even if the ve hicle has been bought a dealer. Be prepared to put much work mto a secondhand vehicle before it goes out on duty , and never spend all of your funds bu y in g the ambulance without some reserve for the necessary repairs.

Always have a secondhand vehicle checked by one of the mo oring organisations (such as the AA or RAC) be f ore purchase. The modes fee is more than offset 'by the saving on pro?lems and t h e thorough exaI?ma.tlOn wdl detail most potential difficulties. If the dealer is worried by a thorough examination then that's the end of that Even organisations offering refurbished ve hicles, or those offering vehicles with new and more modern fronts use an ex-Health Authority chassis as base and these need checking just as carefully And carefully check the terms of any guarantee or extended warranty. Any secondhand ve h icle should be considered suspect unless given a clean bill ?f health by a motoring organisation mspector. Even afte r such an examination an even more thorough check and overhaul should be carried out b y a competent mechanic working to a specific check-list. The check-lists given in the Public Du ty Handbook will Do not be tempted by a cut pnce moonlIghting mechanic who has to impro vise tools and fits in the work when he can.

Particular points

I. Unless the service record s indicate an overhaul, brakes should have brake

fluid replaced regardless of its condition. Brake and master cylinders and pip es should be carefull; mspected. Id ea lly , all should be replaced, as ambulance brakes receive demanding punishment.

2. All worn pedal rubbers and damaged floor mats should be replaced (a foot can easily trip on torn mats).

3. All rust s hould be treated. An a mbulance s particularly prone to rustll1g of t h e cab f100r (especially when the mats are worn through) and around step areas.

4. Wear will ha ve weakened door hinges, rear-door catc he s, hinges and window mechanis ms. Any faulty components should be replaced - the coachbui lder can supply parts for the body and the local dealer for the chassis.

5. The stretcher mechanism is liable to damage. All parts should be carefully checked and lubricated. The major stretcher manufacturers offer a refurbishing service and maintenance of stretchers.

6 The bod y may need respraying. The local authority will have deleted their crest, which can be made good with a complete respray.

7. Heavy usage will have taken its toll on springs, shock absorbers and rubber moun t ing bushes - all should be examined with great care. Man y secondhand ambulances have a pronounced list to one si de due t o weak springs.

8. A comfortable and smooth ride is dependent on a taut transmission system and the gears sho uld not 'crunch' (indicating faulty synchromesh). There shou ld be no play in the flexible couplings of the t ransmission.

9. Hea vy wear (and drivers) wi ll have affected t he driver's seat. I t may have split upholster y , a cracked frame or have worked loose from the floor.

10. Electrical wiring may have corroded resulting in loose connections dim and intermittent lighting. All connections should be inspected and if necessary, cleaned and reassembled. Some connections may be loo se if the Author.ity has removed equipment (eg, the radIO). All hanging wires should be traced and safely terminated.

I I. All rubber hoses and the fan-belt should be replaced with new parts as a matter of course.

12 seat belts will probably be very SOiled and may be insecure or not working.

To sum up: Local authority vehicles will have had very. heavy usage over many thousands of mdes and only by stripping back to 'nuts and bolts' can it be certain that such a vehicle is sound and roadworthy to begin a second life. Even though an has an MOT certificate (now for even -yea r-old ambulances) it IS not a guarantee of safety or mechanical con di tion and will only cover a limited number of items.

Provided that this detailed examination of a vehicle is undertaken, it is pOSSible save many thousands of pounds on the eqUIvalent new ve hicle Members may be to lend a hand on general refurblshmg, but the essential checks should be skimpe d or le ft to anyone who has httle mechanical knowledge. B y using vol untar y labour and concessions obtained from local companies, it s hould be possible to put an Al vehicle into service. The purchase price from the lo cal authority will vary conS id era bl y. A very old ve hicle (which for the reasons given is not neces sar il y a good bu y ) could cost only a few hundred pound s but a secon dhand vehicle in good condition complete with all eq uipment , coul d several thousands. Naturally, reconditioning of the cheapest ve hicle - even if i t were worthwhile - would cost several hundred pounds yet the more expensive vehicle would be a better proposition as the replacement costs would be minimal.

A veh icl e with many years of wear IS unlI kely to be as reliable as a new vehicle, which s hould be borne i n mind if its main use is to be as a front- lin e vehicle fo r long journeys.

Grand Prior's Advisory Council

The Council, which met at St John's Gate June 28 -30 , comprised: (Back, L to R) Lord Westbury John Cowan, Secretary of the Ord er; Sir Peter Hudson Secretary General; Henry Cottrell, Receiver General ; Peter von Braun Director IPD; Sir Stephen Miller Hospitaller; Major Gen P. R Leu chars, Chief Commander SJA' Dr W S. Watt, Hospitaller New Sir John Paul Director Overseas Relati ons; Lord Grey Bailiff of Egle; Rev' d Eddie West, Secretary American Society W A P Jack , Chan cellor, Scotland; D J. M McDougall, Chancellor, Wales.

(Front) Sir Simon Bland, Private Secretary to HRH the Duke of Gloucester; Sir Randal Elliott Chancellor New Zealand; Sir Joh n Young, Chance ll or Australia; T H Coulter Prior South Afri ca; Lord Prior Grand Prior ; The Earl of St Aldwyn, Chancellor Lord Aberdare, Prior Wales Lord Arbuthnott, Prior Scotland ; Col J. C. Dubuc , Chan ce llor Canada ; Lord Caccia, Bai iff Gra nd Cross.

The nursery tent at Malvern Show

DURING THE Year of Nursing I was privileged /0 vis it among others the Malvern Nursing Di vision There J saw a great deal of their work, including a project with the mentally handi capped, which I encouraged ' them to submit as a project for the Keith Jo seph Welfare Cup compet ition. They were successful in winning this cup in the year J9 8J. Durin g the visit I heard about th e Nu rsery Tent at the Three Counties Agricultural Show and said how int erested would be /0 see their members af work, particularly as f had never had the opportunity of allen ding a county s how. To my surprise and delight in June of this year f received an in vitation 10 attend Ihe first day of the sholV. I was able to see and work in the first aid tent as well as visiling this superb nursery tent.

IT WOULD BE appropriate if rhi s [Ory tarred with 'once upon a rime' and ended 'and they a ll li ved happily ever afrer', bur after 25 years, just like the bean ta lk , it is till growing and year by year we ha ve even more happy memorie s of it.

In 1958 the Three Counties Agricultural Show made Malvern its permanent site. Set again r th e back-cloth of the Mal vern hills it make s an ideal setting for this popular how, deep in the heart of rur a l England. In order to attract orne of the well-known agricultural figures it was d ec ided [0 offer nur sery facilitie [0 tho e who wished to make u e of them, and with thi s in mind Mr Frances ewson, who was [hen Divisional Superintendent of the Malvern ursing Divi s ion, wa approached [0 et up a small tent [0 cate r for any children under th e age of five that may be i iting the how. A very mall white ca nva s tent wa put at her di sposa l near to the entrance gate. It was par ely furnished with two chair, a table and a bed, shou ld the children wish [0 re t. Being a mother herself Mrs New on realised that thi would not keep her charges happy all day long, 0 she gathered a few books , crayons, toys and so me favourite [Ory books and took them along with her th e how.

In the beginning the ent wa s open between 8.30am and 7pm, and three nursing member went along to help run th e tent. It was from this smal l beginning that he now popular lent began its long run. The ' Tent', as it is till affectionately known, is now a ve ry large marquee situated right in the middle of the how ground, easily identified by the St John flag flying above it. The 'Tent' is divided in[O a series of wellorganised room s, each equipped to fulfil different needs The emrance is approached through a fenced area a lon g a paved path to th e 'front' door and waiting to greet the children is Mrs Newson sitting in the' foyer'.

Mrs Frances Newso n, now the Di visional President, has run the project for 25 years and it ha s to be seen to be believed. Between 150 and 200 chi ldren attend each day, and among those on duty were State Registered and Pediatri c-trained nurses. The enthusiasm of the workers, the delight of Ihe. chi ldren and the gratitude of the parents was a joy to behold. I was told that in 1982 the number of breast-feeding mothers at the 2pm feed was so great (some 35 in all) they had to bring a second room into operation. Mrs Newson and Mrs Speare are 10 be congratulated on the tremendous organisation and efficiency oflhe un iI, and I would like to wish them every success with their second 25 ye ars.

Here the children are greeted, their names, ages and any ailment that they may suffer from is carefully recorded in a register, a name tag is pinned to their back and then they are introduced to the members and cadets who staff the tent. Down the centre of the tent runs a corridor with two rooms leading off, one fitted out to cater for tOddlers who need to be washed and changed, and the other carefully arranged for n ur ing mothers to feed and change their babie in privacy. On th e other side there is a dining room with an assortment of high c h airs, pretty nur ery cro kery and gaily co lour ed bib made by friends of the division waiting to greet the children at meal-times. Next door there is a fitted kitchen with cooker, refrigerator and running water. This is al\vays a hive of activity with meals being prepared almo t non- top by auxiliary members assisted by some nur ing members throughout the day. All the children's fa ourires are on the menu, from fish fingers and chip to je ll y and ice-cream. The average number of ch ildren taking meal i 75 per day. The far end of the marquee is divided into a covered playing area full of all sorts of push-along toys, dolls, building bricks, Lego and an assortment of crayoning and stOry book Often in a corner you can see a small group of hildren Ii tening to a tory read by the cadet who come along to help with this demanding duty, and in another corner cadet playing game with all the children dressing up

Out ide the 'tent' there i a large fenced area with the much loved and pit, tide, wing and lim bing frame. Here the child ren play happily for hour und r the watchful eye of the nursing members. In the afternoon the chi ldren gather for a picnic on the lawn and often a story as we ll.

The 'tent' today i run b y Ir Frances New on, now Divisional President, l\lr

Doreen Speare, Divisional Superintendent, and members of Malvern ursing Division, along with cadets from the Malvern Cadet Division. It is a duty that they all love and often those who work take holidays so that they do not miss it. It is estimated that over the years about 7,500 children have passed through the 'tent', and now the children of the first children are coming. Some children spend a few hours, others stay longer while their parents look round or take part in the show. Over the years we have witnessed the different patterns that the modern mother adopts in bringing up her baby. At the moment we are seeing a swing towards breast-feeding and the use of disposable nappies and carrying -swings instead of carricots.

The show runs for three days and the 'tem' is open between 7.30am and 6.30pm. The pre-show day is spent cleaning equipmem, repairing toy and fitting out the 'tent' ready for the next day. The equipment i either bought from fund or donated, often by families "vho have u ed the 'tem' over the year There i no charge but donation are gratefully received.

Thi welfare duty has brought the general public and St John loser together, a the publi now reali e that St John is not all 'Fir Aid' Everyone who u e the fa ilitie tates ho\\' grateful rhey are and deeply appreciate St John for all the hard work they do. I have been pri\ ileged to assi t with thi dury for the past t\\ 0 year and have thoroughly enjoyed my elf. Thi year i our Silver Jubilee, and we were honoured to have the Chief ur ing Officer with us for one day. As I said in the beginning the tory i full of many happy endings and we look forward to next year for the next in talment. Audrey \fy erscough COl/lily Sursing Officer H ereford & Jr"orcesrer

Rosemary Bailey, Chief ursing Officer

SALLY ACTS

NM Sally Surface, of Swanage Combined Division, was driving through Bournemouth when she saw a woman on the pavement violently shaking a child. She stopped the car and ran over to the frantic woman (the mother) saying she was a first-aider. Seeing the child was going blue from choking, Sally grabbed it, held it upside down by the legs, and smacked it between the shoulder blades.

A large ball of bubble gum ejected from its mouth. This prompt action of Sally's probably saved the child's life.

On Sept 19 the Sergeant il c of Swanage Division presented Sally with a framed letter of commendation for her action from the Cin-C.

SPECTACULAR PICS

I hear there are a few photographs available of the Cadet Spectacular which was held a year ago at London's Albert Hall. Anyone interested shou ld get in touch with Veronica Sharpe, Public Affairs Dept, St John Ambulance HQ, 1 Grosvenor Crescent, London SW1X 7EF. She can supply details of her own photographs and those taken by the Albert Hall photographer. Sorry that this information is rather belated, but better late than never, my mum always said. ·

LOOKING AHEAD

3 Nov: British Rail and London Transport (Rail) FA Competitions, Weston-Super-Mare

5 Nov: 10.30 am President's Conference, Inter-Continental Hotel, Hyde Park Corner, London, W.I.

12 Nov: Lord Mayor's Show 16 Nov: 6 pm First -aider of the Competition Finals, Robin Brook Theatre, St Bartholomew 's Hospital, London ECI.

29 Nov: Grand Prior's Trophy Competitions, Pa v ilion Gardens, Buxton Change of address The new address of the Council and Headquarters St John Ambulance, Warwickshire is: The Abbotsford, 10 Market Place, WARWICK CV34 4ST The telephone

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN

A ST JOHN FAMILY

degree sunburn on top of earlier sunburn, a boy with a dislocated shoulder, a young man with a head injury, broken nose and concussion , three cases of heat-stroke with underlying causes of heart or chest condition, and one case of cerebral irritation. Five cases were

248 taken to hospital.

In addition, a large car park fire caused alarm when onlookers got too close to a blazing car - and ASO Smith helped the police by controlli ng crowds with a loud hailer

As the rally was closing on Sunday in a hea vy thunderstorm, SJA was caIIed to a collapsed woman in a nearby house. ASO Smith SRN applied cardiac massage and mouth-to-mouth ventilation for 30 minutes until the arrival of the local doctor, who certi fied death.

Simultaneously, at the rally ground the

AB 01

BY THE EDITOR

police called for all available SJ A members to attend a three-car road accident involving six serious casualties. Four ambulances and three fire engines (one old timer) attended. The police and ambulance services later thanked SJA for their help.

It was only later than AISupt Smith learned t hat this was the rally's - 13th meeting.

RIGHT!

An 8-year-old Brownie from Slough had no difficulty in answering 'W hen somebody has an accident what would you do? in a que tionnaire. She replied: 'Ge t a grow nup to elp.' And 'Tel im e be orite.'

So now yo u know

ORDER SEC/SUPT

Following the retirement of Major Hamish Forbes on St John 's Day, John Cowan who took over as Secretary of the Order is probably making history as t he first secretary who IS also a SJA superinte ndent (of London District).

John first became involved with St John as a cadet in 1960, transferring to the adults three year later. In 1972 he joined staff of St John's Gate as Chancery aSSIstant, dealing mainly with Order ceremonial and procedure. On the s udden death of Peter Leach in May 1980, he took over as superintending clerk and two years later was appointed Secretary of Chancery.

John who was made a Serving Brother In 1977 Officer Brother in 1982, is well known in the co unties, particularly where Order services have been held.

Three beauties (See story TURNING BACK THE..

WORKING TOGETHER

IN CAMP

(Above) The newly appointed President of

Fenton, Commander; and John Gerrard, Commissioner

(Right) A 24 -hour spo nsored darts match organised by Windsor and Maidenhead Sports Assoc

MOBILE

Divis on, Leics, with whom she has spent much me whi e on ho iday in England Here on Elsie's last evening with the Division she exchanged pennants with D Sgt Mrs Jackie Co llins (Right) Louth Comb in ed D ivision (Leics) members AM

TURNING BACK THE

A SJA nursing member riding a sit -up-andbeg' bicycle of at least 50 years ago is something to make one stop and take noti ce. When she is dressed in whi t e blou se and long voluminous black skirt , with f irs t aid ki t in the basket of the handlebar s then one reall y looks But when not one but three su c h beauties of the past are seen in compan y with various bone-shakers , penny-farthings and other weird and wonde r fu l old cycl es -t hen the clock has really been t urned back to a more leisurely age or ha s it ?

This was seen at Rothley Leics , on a September Sunday afternoon Ro t hl ey Combined Division had been asked to supply first aid cover for a veter an cycle rall y, whic h they did in t his very imaginative way.

The National Association of Veteran Cyclists' rally attracted some 200 vintage and veteran machines. O v er a 14-mile route starting and fini shing at Ro t hley , the cycli st s in period dress gave a fa s cina t in g demonstration of the early da ys of cycling.

I

Di

y, prod uce d s ome £4,000 pro f it. A hal f goes to Mi le End

D iv ision s n ew HQ fund an d a ha l f t o war d s M aidenhead Di vis ion's new first ai d caravan.

Mrs Jo Ann Ke able , p res ident o f Mile End Combin e d , li ves in Mai d e n he ad , h ence the link up.

CADET HOLIDAY

I hea r t ha t t wo se n ior H er tford sh i r e cadets had a holida y o f a li fe -t im e t hi s su m m er -

w o r ki n g h a rder th a n th ey've eve r done before!

St ell a Mi ll s (R oyston) and Caren Pric e

(H e m el H empstea d) joine d a SJA team under th e d irec ti on of co unty nursing officer

M r s Betty Dea dm an wh ich took 20 severely h an d icap ped people for a fortnight's holiday to t h e Hertford Hou e Holiday Hotel at Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

The weat her was glorious and everyone t h oroughly enjoyed themselves. Duties incl u ded a wide variety of nursing procedures as we ll as learning t h e correct way to handle wh eelc h airs so h at g u ests could enjoy out ings a lo ng the sea front.

On t h e first evening Mrs Deadman warned members that they must be up, dressed and ready for duty at 7.1Sam. After the cadets h ad recovered from the shock of such an early start, they never looked back and the guests thoroughly enjoyed their youthful company.

FILMING

SJA R uislip Northwood has been involved in an instructional film for doctors which (Le ft ) Glos

T

ac t ress whi le Rui slip

ovi d ed an amb u lance a nd dr iver, Peter Fussey. The ambulance was fi lmed co ll ecting the victim from her h ome.

Ruislip No r thwood' Mrs Joan Spencer said: 'I never r ealised how much effort went into making a film. We did 14 'takes' of the stretcher going into t he ambulance and it will on ly be a I S-minute film!'

T h at'S why film making is so expensive. And exhausting.

GLOBE TROTTERS

I hear that Belfast HQ Transport Combined Division transported 90,000 patients and

ANOTHER plendid and successful instructor' seminar was held at White lan d s College, London, on Septem ber 9-11. A h is was the 10th anniver sa ry, the committee set out to make it an outstanding weekend and all their hopes were fulfilled.

With the growing interest and importance of 'instructors' in St John, it was not s ur p r is ing that this seminar was filled to capacity. There were 200 de legates from E n g lan d , 12 from Scotland, and the first f r om Wales. Many organisatio n s were p r esent, in clu din g t he MOD, Po lice, ar m ed fo r ces, British Te lecom and a host of ot h ers I has been felt for a long time that insufficient information is available on psychiatric emergencies in first aid. Dr J P. R. Young, P hysician in Psychological Medicine, St Thomas Ho pita l the first speaker on Saturday morning, did much to re m ed y the tuation when h e gave an interesting ta l k on 'Depression; Anxiety States; Anorex ia Nervosa a n d Dr u g Abuse'.

The second speaker, Dr A. R Maisey, S J A Area Surgeon, expo u nded o n competition j u dging, a subject close to all in structo rs' h earts. Dr Mai sey asked w hat are th e o b jects of competitions? Are the test act uall y test in g an yt h ing? And d oes t he j u dge kn ow a n y f ir st a id ? T h e fi rst speake r afte r lun c h , M r A. R Ma k ey, Co n su l ta n t T horac ic S ur geo n , C h a rin g Cross Hospita l , s p oke at l e ngth on t h e f irs t a id tr e a t m ent f o r t h o r acic injuri es, whi c h pro du ce d th o u g h t pr ovoking

Instructors meet

questions from the delegates.

This was followed by an expert on CPR, Dr Tom Evans, Consultant Cardiologist at the Royal Free Hospital, who outlined recent advances in this most interesting subject. He also introduced the delegates to that little known organisation the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the work they do.

One of the great benefits of this type of se minar is h e exchanging of views over dinner and late into the Saturday evening.

Sunday started well with Dr D. Craggs , a consultant psychiatrist from the Priory Hospital, on the subject of drug abuse, which inclu d ed (the chairman thought appropriately after the previous evening) alcoho lism.

REV EW BIN DE R

I'm delighted to report that our new man at Supplies, Brian Rockell, is soon to have Review binders for sale, something a number of readers have been asking for for some time. The Review will let you know price, etc, as soon as they are available.

SJA's first aid demonstrations at the Kent Coun ty Show were appropriate ly in the farm safety section Photo: RHP )

Parachute Field ambulance RAMC, then gave an enlightening talk on Injuries i n the Falk land War , illustrated by slides An interesting talk on applying first aid the hard way. The last speaker, Mr S. Miles, the consultant in charge Accident & Emergency Department, St Banholomews Hospital, produced an interesting talk on that e ver popular subject of Fractures and Treatment. The open forum, as popular as ever, aided the programme in giving delegates the opportunity to get their questions answered. The committee now meets to finalise the weekend and prepare for the 1984 seminar with the well wishes of the delegates to revitalise them. This year the eminar was at capacity, 0 apply early for the next one. Don t risk d isappointm ent.

Capt T. McCa b e, M BE of the 144 covered 660,000 miles (or 26 times round the world) during the last 15 years under Supt Edgar Williams, who has just retired. His successor is Supt T. Belshaw. Members gottogether to present farewell gifts to Edgar.

(Left) M s Elsie Kent, Sgt of Melbo u rne 's Cobu rg - Brunsw ck D ivision, wit h South Wigston

Instructors from allover the country

Healing the hordes

How do occupational health nurses manage in large crowds C?f people? CATHA,RINE SADLER visited the medical team at London s Wembley complex to find out

AT THE END of this new football season, as at the end of the last, 100,000 excited football fans will converge on Wembley Stadium to watch the much-anticipated FA Cup Final. The atmosphere inside the stadium will be electric, the noise deafening. The roar of the crowd, the chanting, singing and waving of flags, will all contribute to this unique, exhilarating occasion.

Just over a year ago a very different crowd

surgical problems - and how are they coped with on such a large scale?

To find the answers to these questions, I visited the awesome 72-acre Wembley complex on a quiet day to meet the three occupational health nurses who help to run the medical services there.

Although the Wembley Area, Stadium and Squash Centre all have their own first-aid rooms, the main medical department for the whole complex is situated in the easily accessible Conference Centre, In common with most occupational health medical centres, it comprises a compact bright treatment room and a comfortable office / interview area.

It was coffee-time when I visited Tina Harborne, Hazel Potter and Margaret Grogan at the medical centre's cosy office, where these nurses were enjoying a quiet time tidying up after the previous day's hockey match at the stadium.

Tina, the sister-in-charge, is from New Zealand and has worked at Wembley for nearly five years. Hazel is from Belfast a nd she is a qualified midwife in addition to holding an occupational health nursing certificate (OHNC). Margaret, from County Mayo in the Republic of Ireland, is the most recent addition to the occupational health team at Wembley. The only nur se of the three without her OHNC, she is currently studying for it at the West London Institute on a day-release basis.

Since the construction of Wembley Stadium in 1922 as part of the Empire Exhibition, the Wembley complex has grown from strength to strength. But although the first postwar Olympic Games was hos te d at Wembley in 1948 and the World Cup Final was held there in 1966, the Wembley Stadium company did not employ a full-time state registered nurse until as recently as 1977

On her appointment, this SRN helped to reorganise the voluntary first-aid personnel who had, until then, been responsible for medical coverage of all events in the complex. Today, the three full-time iii occupational health SRNs at Wembley are g. responsible for the well-being of the g company staff, the general public, performers and casual workers at the complex. Bearing in mind that the Wembley complex consists of the stadium, conference centre, arena, squash centre and maintenance depot, it can be seen as no mean task

supervises

of a minor surgical problem

in attendance. A well-equipped, bedded medical centre is always opened up on these occasions, complete with a card io sco pe and defibrillator (which go to all events), intravenous sets and basic first-aid drugs and dressings.

'Fi rst-aid points are set up around the complex,' said Tina. 'There is a telephone at each point and we are always concactable by radio or bleep in case 0 f emergency.' As an extra precaution, portable resuscitation satchels are distributed throughout the comp le x. They are clearly labelled and all personnel in formed of their position. Firstaid staff have been instructed on how to use t heir contents.

Each waterproof zip-up sho ulder satchel contains the following resuscitation eq uipment :

• one portable 300ml oxygen cylinder;

• one Ambubag;

adverse publicity, describing violent incidents, hooliganism and unpleasant injuries. Is this a fair assessment and, if so, how do the Wembley nurses cope with such problems?

Over-excitement can cause spectators to hyperventi ate and injuring themselves.

252 of people assembled at Wembley to hear the Pope speak. Only a few weeks later, in sharp contrast, an equally ecstatic gathering sang and stamped to The Rolling Stones in concert.

Sport and leisure is obviously a clock business and in addition to the baSIC 08.00-17.30h weekday hours, all weekend and evening events in the complex must have medical coverage. To assist with this, and for back-up during large events, eight part -t ime SRNs are employed in addition to more than 100 voluntary first-aiders (see diagram for the structure of Wembley's medical service)

Large events

But who cares for these frighteningly large numbers of people? What happens if a spectator, sportsman, performer or Wembley employee is ill or injured? Can large crowds actually produce medical and

Every event at Wembley is covered by at least one qualified nurse and supporting firstaiders. But during a large event, such as a football match or concert, three nurses, three doctors and at least 50 first-aiders are usually

• one portable, foot-operated suction unit;

• disposable airways, sizes 00, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5;

• one Brook airway;

• ambulance dressings and triang ular bandage s;

• labels, pens and a torch.

Satchel s are checked weekly by an occupational health nurse and six-monthly by the oxygen supply company who also replaces empty cylinders with 24 hours of notification.

Each year about 12 major matche s are played at Wembley Stadium. The media frequently give these events a good deal of

'Matches are often given adverse publicity before they even take place,' said Tina.

'Mo re trouble usually occurs outside the complex than within it. One of our problems is dealing with a minority of fans who have been drinking on their way to Wembley. We don't often have to treat casualties caused by violence.'

'It's so sad that some people save up their money for what should be a great day out at Wembley only to end up in the medical centre and miss the game,' said Tina.

Drunken would-be spectators are carefully lain on plastic-covered mattresses on the floor of the medical centre where they can be observed and are in no danger of falling

'We try to sober up people who have drunk too much by giving them coffee and washing them with cold water. We seldom have any problem with them once they are in the medical centre. They usually become very docile she said.

The Wembley medical team works in close conjunction with the Northwick Park and Central Middle ex hospitals. The e hospitals are notified of all major events in advance and severe problems, such as head injuries or fractures, are sent there by a permanent standby ambulance. But most surgical problems, such as suturing, are carried out in the complex. At la t year's cup final , for example, of 158 patients seen by the medical team only five needed transferring to ho pita!.

Fractures and prain ometimes occur and continued overleaf

Tina

the treatment

The pike pop up to say 'Good-morning' at this

SJA Training Centre

Canal Cottages at Ambergate (heard of it?) are now a residential centre operated by SJA Oerbys for St John

AS WE had reached a particular point in the development of our adventure training programme in Derbyshire, and as we had been frequently 'taken to the cleaners' costwise at the residential centres we used regularly, we felt it was time to acquire our own centre.

But that was far easier said than done Daunted by the prospect of buying Chatsworth House when and if the Duke decided to sell, we set about finding a less stately property. Now it came to pass that I was walking the route of our challenge walk (now available in booklet form with a badge fOJ completion of the 20 + miles, called the ' Aaventurers 8') one not-so-fine day when I came upon an ideal property at Ambergate.

- The place looked a bit neglected so I knocked the door. No one answered, so I peered through the letterbox. Luckily, the house was empty of human occupants.

Days followed during which I sort out the owners. Fruitless phone calls to all sorts of folk finally led me to the Wireworks about a mile up the road. Eventually they admitted ownership - eventually because they had forgotten they owned the place. After a lot of persuasion they wilted under the pressure of phone calls and sacks of pleading mail and agreed to let us have the place on a gratuitous licence which was determinable six months on either side. Not an ideal situation but any port in the storm - and I hadn't finished yet!

between a minor railway line and the disused Cromford Canal. The property - called by the way, Canal Cottages - was built about 100 years ago to serve the canal folk and still has a double-seater earth closet. A new toilet and shower block is now being built but until that is complete - well, it's like camping.

Initially, our suggestion was that we might empty the toilets onto the railway line and blame the passing trains But the Environmental Health man failed to agree (and smiled). The Canal Preservation Society man was similarly unimpressed with our alternative suggestion - and didn't smile.

The area immediately outside the front door (three paces forward and your feet get very wet) is a nature reserve which is as pleasant as it sounds. We often commune with the passing squirrels, woodpeckers, kingfishers , grass snakes and the odd pike that pops up to say good morning.

Work on the property took on a new lease of life in September 1982 when with a grant from HQ we were able to buy the property at a very reasonable price (l said I hadn t finished). Canal Cottages was now well and truly ours. Friends provided 3-piece suites, cups, saucers, pots and pans and all sorts of other things, indeed the place soon looked like an Oxfam jumble sale. Cars and minibuses regularly sort us out t o deliver a host

of goodies.

Work progressed and the workforce declined with the temperature - it was cold last winter with no heating There were many volunteers to burn the rubbish.

By last Easter we were ready for our first residential work party. Some ten cadets with officers spent their Easter vacation plastering, wallpapering and building fences Gallons of emulsion, reams of wallpaper and thousands of screws and nails later , the pla ce is now ready for use

In June we had the pleasure of a visit from the C-in-C, who declared himself very impressed with the property and with the project as a whole; hi s kind comment s and keen interest were very much appreciated and after such hard work very welcome inde ed.

Now what of the use of the place? As a county we are in a po sition to offer various weekend courses (all this year at a cost of £10) to our own members and to member s from other counties who might be interested.

Our county courses so far have been: How to run a residential course - a weekend

and Spring Bank Holiday week 1982 we moved in to start work on our own residential centre, and what a week that was! Enormous spiders vacated their homes to seek other accommodation, seemingly tons of plaster and bricks were relocated (mainly to the rubbish dump) , following old lino and mouldy carpets. By the end of a hot week of hard work our small army of now expert demolition workers had earned the rest that the start of our normal daily work offered. Then the bureaucrats appeared.

Someone s uggested that they too had crawled from the woodwork but actually every single one of them has been most helpful, meeting on site readily and all manner of ideas They have posed a few problems however and thereby created work -like the building of fire exits, the fitting of fire precautions and also the insistence of minimal toilet requirements.

A word here about our sanitary system. There isn't one. Our Shangri-la is situated

when ideas and experiences were exchanged and worked on.

A Cadet-Leaders training weekend. Theory and practice of leadership, with an element of adventure, and emphasis on the work and problems of cadet-leaders.

A young adu l ts weekend based on a 'Now get out of that' theme. Designed to be strenuous.

Cadet Activities weekend involving archery, orienteering, rock clim bing, etc. Plans for 1984 include brass rubbing proficiency, nature watching , map reading and rambling.

Divisions, Counties and Areas are invited to book the Centre for their own programmes (which we are only too pleased to assist in planning and executing) on a per head per night basi s. If interested, please contact me on Ilke sto n (0602) 326886. I can then send you more details on what the Centre ha s to offer. Booking s are now being taken for 1984.

Andrew Colling/on, CSO

The cottages by the canal

(Below) DI S David Spashett, of Cheltenham Spa Combined Div helps an injured footbalier off the lo c al ground (Photo: Cheltenham Echo

MALTA CELEBRATIONS

from Anthony D Zammit, PRO

The St John Ambulance Brigade Malta will be celebrating its 75th anniversary in September 1984. The event will be celebrated in much the same way as for the Brigade's Golden Jubilee in 1959 and in the Diamond Jubilee In 1969.

On both occasions we had a great concourse of visitors - members of the Order, Association and Brigade - who joined us in celebrating the event. It would be a great joy to us if we could welcome in Malta on this occasion too our friends from the United Kingdom and from all those countries in which we are known.

This is about the time when people start planning their holidays for next year. May I suggest that members take their holiday in Malta and at the same time join us on our 75th anniversary? We would be delighted to have them with us and we shall certainly do all we can to make their visit enjoyable.

For further information members should write to: The Principal Administrative Officer, St John Ambulance, 24 St John Street, Valletta, Malta GC.

Malta Anthony D. Zammit

SERVICE MEDAL - OLD STYLE

from Dr M. A. Weller, Commander

Mr Cyril Colin Palmer, of 1

Victoria Avenue, Saffron Walden, working at the Town & Country Work Centre for Physically Handicapped in Thaxted, kindly showed me a family heirloom (right) which had been handed to him by his mother. It belonged to Robert Gabriel, St John registration no. 94249, of Redhill in Surrey Apparently he was a Guard on Southern Railway and possibly passed his St John examinations as a Railway FirstAider. I was told that he was on duty for troop train movements in the First World War. Incidentally his wife was a local midwife, and she was nicknamed The Angel Gabriel'

It certainly reflects 15 years proud and loyal service Essex M. A. Weller

SLIGHT CONTRAST

from Mr P Dew

While agreeing generally with the sentiments of t he letter from Dr Galland (Review Sept), I think it is only fair to repeat t he litt e note which appears in the front of many of the old first aid manuals to which he refers. It said something on tbe lines of 'Lecturers and examiners are particularly asked to note t hat it is first aid and not anatomy which is to be lectured and examined on'. A slight cont rast from the sentiment of the two relevant sentences in Dr Galland's letter. Middx P. Dew

AREA/COUNTY FUNDS

from Mr J. E. Smith, Area Staff Officer

It is common practice for many Area and County staff to give an bour or so collecting on house-to-hou se collections for their lo cal divisions.

In East Surrey this year we extended thi s by asking divisions if t hey had any roads or areas that they were unable to cover with the houseto-house collection which Area staff could take on for Area funds. Once divisions realised what we were doing and that we did not want in any way to upset their collections all went well, and we now feel that this could be an annual activity to raise funds.

If divisions felt they were losing out on their flag day by this houseto-house collecting , a percentage of the Area collection could be given to the divisions.

E. Surrey J. E. Smith

from Michael J. Newbold, Div/Supt and REACT UK's PMR Director

As one of the original campaigners for legal Citizens Band in the United Kingdom, I have been following with great interes t the letter s in the Review over the past few months and have bee n surprised at the official views expressed by Mr Bareham

I fully agree that for the sake of confidentiality the CB channels could not be used for normal interchange of Brigade messages, but the facilities offered by s u ch organisations as REACT for traffic directions and locations when operating out of one's normal area seem to have been overlooked. My Division carries a good deal of patient s to town s and cities nationwide, and trying to find a strange nur sing home or hospital in a town of which you have no knowledge is difficult and it would be very reassuring to have this information 'o n tap' via Citizens Band Radio. From experience, there is always someone available to help at all hours of the day or night.

As stated by Divisional Superintendent John Springer in the October Review, REACT UK do have a channel on 86 MHz, very close to the Brigade channels, and as a member of both the Brigade and REACT UK I know that REACT is quite happ y for any Brigade Divisions owning PMR transceivers to be crystalled onto the REA CT UK allocated frequency, as is already happening in various areas :with the British Red Cross. This not only allows the various organisations to work together, but also to avail themselves of the se rvi ces ' REA CT UK can offer, such as traffic directions and road conditions, quite privately on PMR. What could be more use ful to a Brigade ambulance travelling in a strange area?

I always wonder why the Brigade chooses to remain on Low Band AM, when the statutory services operate on High Band FM in the 166 / 171 MHz band. Surely it would be common sense, now h at Home Office regulations virtually demand that all PMR equipment going in to service should be new, for us to be inve s tin g in the future and moving to High Band FM, along with the professional ambulance services, This would allow Divisions to have their own ba se stations and talk to their own ambulances, something we ar e not currently perm itted to do - a ridiculou s situation in this day and age. The facilities that could be made available by a move to High Band FM sho u ld be the subje ct of an independent commission. With the curr ent syste m one is luck y to be able to talk 3 miles car-to-car ' in London, but by adopting the profe ss ional sys t e m wi t h a ba se station with a talk-through facility, a car-to-car tran sm ission up to 50 mile radius would not be unusuaL

There are many vacant nationwide channels in the Hom e Office

'Ambulance' Band on Channels 21 to 35...\. Perhaps he greatest ben efit of moving Brigade Radio into the professional area would be the facility, wherever an ambulance " may be, to call on the Nation al Ambulance Emergency Channel 27AX and hav e acces s to a st a tutory

Ambulance Control, which is a life -sav ing facility on its own. For local duties most modern PMR equipment is capab le of not on ly working the two-frequency system, but having a wide bandwidth it can also be fitted with sing le-frequency simplex channel s, as currently available in the 169 MHz band. This would provide a fully professional radio system geared both to nationally integrate with the profes sional s

and to offer local communications. The latest radio communication systems should be fully utilised. Indeed there are now transceivers which are synthesised, no crystals required and up to 80 channels can be diode-probed into a s ingle radio no larger than the size of an ordinary car set. We must move forward with radio communications, not allow ourselves to continue using an outdated single frequency service that I believe was introduced for the 1953 coronation And why not offer Brigade officers the facility of having their own PMR equipment on the Brigade frequencies. Surely the more we use our valuable channels the better it wou ld be for everyone?

Morden Michael Newbold

EXPERTISE from Mr P. Dew

Further to the recent letter s about expertise (Rex Purchase, Sept

Review, for example) I would like to be assured that all the mo s t senior members, who after all have the authority to tell the ordinary member what to do, have got the basic knowledge, a fIr st aid certificate, which the rest of us have to possess before we can put on the uniform. The medical professionals, of course, come into a different category, but I think it

Hillingdon P

NURSING CADET HAT from

Romjord

How's

CB RADIO

NEWS from SCOTLAND

THE FIFE Order Commjttee held its annual musical evening in Naughton House, a beautiful and historic building near Wormit,

WALES

BRO DYFI Division, Powys, held a cadet enrolment service at t he Chur c h of St John at Carno, which incorporates remains of a 12th-century Hospice of St John. (Photo, right, by Alan Martin ) As is customary with this division, the proceeding s were in Welsh. Dr Tudor Howells, Powys County Surgeon, carried ou t the enrolment.

An address on the relevance of the histor y of the Order to life today was given by the Right Rev d Dr G. O. Williams, until recently Archbi s hop of Wale s , and Prelate of the Priory Following the address Dr Williams was presented wi t h the badge of a Friend of the Division.

Three weeks earlier, certificates for fj rst aid and home nursing were presented to cadets and adult members at Glantwymn by Canon Roberts, the Rural Dean and Rector of Machynlleth. Canon Roberts administered fir s t aid to the wounded at the battle of Arnhem in 1945 and with the aid of Dutch friends the Division has made contact with a first aid group in Arnhem and it is hoped to take a group of cadets to Holland. Northern the home of Brigadier and Mr s H. N. Crawford, on September 11. Mrs Janet Halkerston welcomed some 90 member s of the Order and their friends including the Prior and Lady Arbuthnott, and the Chancellor and Mrs Jack. Brigadier Crawford also ex tended a warm welcome to the assembled company and f ollowed this with an interesting short history of Naughton House

News from Divisions/Centres

Snakes in the news

Recently, in a Court of Justice in Sri Lanka (Ceylon), three snakes which came out from under the seat usually occupied by the judge caused the lawyers and the litigants to take part in a race to save their lives. This violent disturbance in the official court of the town of Chilaw (on t he west coast, North West Province) was caused when, minutes before judge would have taken his seat, the snakes came out. The police raced in and were astonished to discover a fami ly of 19 snakes and 25 eggs in a nest under an anthill!

A little while ago a 23-year-old. youngster of Gainesville , Florida, was giving his pet python something to eat when the snake, which measured 4 metres, began to twine itself around his head He yelled and two friends came running to help him. The y found that the python was trying to bury its fangs in the young man's forehead and opening its jaws in order to swallow all his head. There followed a fierce struggle before they were able to make the snake relinguish its prey. The victim says that from now on, whenever he gives his pet any food, he will take two persons with him to make sure that he does not become a meal for hungry a python.

Doubts about nuclear power

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS

Electricity from the waves In Norway engineers are constructing an exceptional experimental electrical station which utilizes the energy of the waves of the

A short time ago Hyman G. Rickover retired. He has often been called 'The father of USA's nuclear navy '. During his final speech to Congress this man, with so many years of experience, recommended that the Defence Department be abolished and warned that there existed a very real probability of nuclear war. I believe that probably we shall des t roy ourselves,' he said. 'I am not proud of the role I ha ve performed.

ocean. 'Not far from the coast, in waters which have a depth of approximatel y 30 metres,' states the publication U.S Maritime Monthly, 'a s eries of plates pla ced horizontally concentrate the waves into a crest of 30 metres which surges up a st eep ramp of 90 metres on the coas t. The water is collected into an impound and later falls back again into the ocean, operating a water turbine as it does SO.'

The engineers hope that the power of the waves will eventually suppiy a quart er of the electrical energy of Oslo.

of bees becomes corpulent. (6). 12. Mammary nipple. (4). 13. Section of hospital in charge of a Nursing Officer. (4) 15 Muscle u sed in inspiration, de f aecation , micturition, and parturition. (9). 18. Bone in vital use (4). 19 Profound sleep. (5) 2l. State o f insen si bili ty to pain. (9). 24. Impetuous feature of many infectious disease s of childhood . (4). 25 . Disc abnormality provides incrustation on wou nd. (4) 27. Preserved and restored to health. (5) 29. A red lip be comes rural. (7). 30 Art must change for a le vel in societ y (7). 31. Respiratory soun d indicative of laryngeal obstruction. (7). 32. Beco me a popular craze to understand a t last. (5.2)

Down:

1. Fever endemic in countries where sanitation is poor. (7). 2. Pus in the pleural spaces. (7). 3. Fine silk used for some dressing materi als. (5). 4. Vital organ with ear in centre. (5) 5. Localised impairmen t of blood supply (9), 6. Name for comple tion of period of pregnanc y (4) 7. Vitamin A (7) 8 Administers a tranquillising dru g. (7) 14. Stock Exchange animal. (4). 16. To inflict pain upsets Ruth. (4). 17. Having no blood supply. (9). 19. Indications of rank (7). 20. Founder of bacteriology (7) 22. A superficial wound is no handicap. (7).23

A twice daily sign in cavity below 15 Across (7) 26. Computer language for metabolic rate when at rest. (5). 27. Weight uni t for jeweller. (5). 28. Flatulence. (4).

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No. 10 (83)

REVIEW CROSSWORD No. 11 (83) by A A Potter

(83)

Across: 1. The desire for scabies (3.4). 5 Its cure turns to jaundice. (7). 9. Father takes pill with article for a nipple-like protuberance. (7). 10. Arteries supplying blood to the head. (7). 11. From nothing, mutation

Across: 1. Homesick; 5. Arabic; 9. Cod liver ; 10 Pascal ; 12 Inure ; l3. Near; 14. A'ria; 16 Pres sure sore; 20 Cha ng e of life; 23. Iri s; 24. Levy; 25. Stoma; 27. Laurel; 28. Lacrimal ; 29 Smegma; 30. Adenitis.

Down: l. Hectic; 2. Medium; 3. S' pin' e; 4. Cheyne-Stoke

EMERGENCY MEDICINE CLINICS

IJrlfjJJI AMBULA

A comprehensive new series, Emergency Medicine Clinics will help the clinician to meet the needs of patients in life-threatening situations.

April 1983 PEDIATRIC EMERGENCIES

Guest Editor: Robert Reece

Cardiorespiratory Resuscitation

Childhood and Adolescence

Dehydration and Fluid Therapy Emergencies Reye's Syndrome Seizures Head Trauma Sepsis/Meningitis Suicide in Poisoning in Childhood Multiple Trauma SIDS, Apnea and 'Near Miss SIDS' Child Abuse Hematologic Emergencies Croup and Epiglottitis Cardiac

August 1983 ADULT RESPIRATORY EMERGENCIES

Guest Editor: Richard M. Nowak

Respiratory Physiology, Assessment of Respiratory Function Airway Management, Mechanical Support of Ventilation Acute Upper Airway Problems Acute Lower Airway Problems Airway Trauma Acute Alveolar Edema Acute Alveolar Infections Alveolar and Parenchymal Trauma Acute Pulmonary Circulation Problems Major Pulmonary Vascular Trauma Acute Aspiration, Smoke Inhalation Pleural Space Emergencies Chest Wall, Diaphragmatic Problems

December 1983 RESUSCITATION

Guest Editor: Judith Tintinalli

Hardback illustrated ca 220pp per issue 3 issues per year 1983 Annual Subscription: £37.50 Single Copy:

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EMERGENCY BOOKSHELF

EMERGENCY MEDICAL THERAPY (2/e)

(Eds) M. S. Eisenberg, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Washington; Director, Emergency Medicine SeNice, University Hospital; Medical Advisor, Emergency Medical SeNices Division, King County Health Department Seattle, WA and M. K. Copass, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Neurology, University of Washington; Director, Medical Emergency Room, HarboNiew Medical Center; Deputy Director and Director of Training, Seattle Medic-I, Seattle, WA, USA

" a helpful addition to the casualty department shelf, and is a useful starting place for reading about management of the emergency patient " BRITISH JOURNAl OF HOSPITAL MEDICINE

Completely revised and updated, this convenient, practical sourcebook of emergency therapeutic information now includes material on selected major presenting symptoms such as headache, dyspnea, syncope, vertigo and abdominal pain. New information is also included on : additional arrhythmias; myocardial infarction; valvular disease; diarrhoea; pharyngitis; otitis media; prophylaxis; drug overdose; pulmonary embolus; alcoholism; TIA's and stroke; plus much more

o 7216 3354 4 Paperback 407pp ill May 1982

£ 14.00 (UK price); £ 16.52 (Overseas price)

EMERGENCY CARE

J. A. Boswick, Jr, University of Colorado Medical Center, Denver, CO, USA

A practical manual with easily accessible, concise information. The reader will find this book a handy reference to refresh the memory about symptoms, procedures, dosages, and preparation for the casualty department. SUbjects covered range in difficulty so that it should be useful to a broad spectrum of emergency personnel.

o 7216 18766 Paperback 225pp ill 1981

£7.50 (UK price); £8.85 (Overseas price)

EARLY CARE OF THE INJURED PATIENT (3/e)

ACS: The Committee on Trauma, Amerrcan College of Surgeons,

Editor: A. J. Walt, Professor and Chairman, Department of Surgery, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA

A thorough revision of a practical manual on Immediate care of the inJured patient. Includes a chapter on disaster management which covers all aspects from planning to implementing procedures, as well as new chapters on : infections, management of radiation injuries, and mass casualties Current important topics which have been significantly expanded in thiS edition include: nutrition, diagnostic innovations, plus management of embolization

o 7216 I 165 6 Hardback 465pp I 10 Illusts June 1982

£ 14.95 (UK price); £ t 7.64 (Overseas price)

CARDIOPULMONARY CEREBRAL RESUSCITATION

P. Safar, University of Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Published by Laerdal for the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists and distributed exclusively by W B Saunders, thiS important text reflects majority agreement by the members of the WFSA CPR Committee, and most of the techniques have been Incorporated into recommendations by the American Heart Association, National Research Council (USA), and several countries ' national and international Red Cross societies

82 990738 0 4 Paperback 230pp 2-colour Illusts 1981

£6.95 (UK price); £8.20 (Overseas price)

TEACHING SLIDE SET TO ACCOMPANY SAFAR: CARDIOPULMONARY CEREBRAL RESUSCITATION

56 four-colour slides coverrng all illustrations and the most important tables in the book A 4pp sheet with black-and -white prrnts of each slide and accompanying text is also included

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HANDBOOK OF PERCUTANEOUS CENTRAL VENOUS CA THETERISA TION

M. Rosen, I.P. Latta and W. Shang Ng, University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, UK

" this is an excellent handbook for the departmental library. "

ANAESTHESIA AND INTENSIVE CARE

" This is a well produced and excellently illustrated book which deserves a place on the shelves of any library that serves those whose lot it is to care for the critically ill It is to be strongly recommended to those whose operating theatres or intensive care units are lucky enough to have a case of 'emergency' reference books because its format makes it invaluable as a quick reference source " BRITISH JOURNAL OF PLASTIC SURGERY

Based on a review of available literature in the field, this book explores various techniques for carrying out catheterisation of the great veins and describes the major alternatives of percutaneous catheterisation of peripheral veins as may be needed in emergency situations. It has a systematic and practical format, clarified anatomical terminology and provides detailed and diagrammatlcal explanations of the techniques discussed.

0721676979 Hardback 134pp 51 figures, 17 tables 1981

£6.95 (UK price)

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FLINT'S EMERGENCY TREATMENT AND MANAGEMENT (6/e)

H. D. Cain, Chief of Industrial Medicine and Rehabilitation, Permanente Medical Group and Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Sacramento, CA; Assistant Clinical Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation; Assistant Clinical Professor of Community Medicine; University of California School of Medicine, Davis, CA, USA caters for all types of emergency, including medical, surgical, obstetric, gynaecological, psychiatric and medicolegal the book is well worth having " SOUTH AFRICAN MEDICAL JOURNAl

The sixth edition of this popular manual presents emergency care information In a convenient compact form. Detailing an effective treatment method for almost every medical emergency, coverage includes: resuscitation; eye and hand injuries; poisoning; pain management; obstetric, neonatal, psychiatric, haemorrhagic and orofacial emergencies; common knee injuries; triage; emergency medications and usual initial dose; rape and forced sodomy; child abuse; and much more

o 7216 2312 3 Paperback 846pp III 1980

£ t 2.75 (UK prrce), £ t 5.05 (Overseas price)

Announcing CLINICS IN ANAESTHESIOLOGY

A vital new series written for specialists in intensive care, pain, immediate care and surgery - as well as anaesthesiologists. Coverage will span all aspects of anaesthesiology- modern drugs and equipment; mechanisms of action; therapeutic applications, and more.

For further information, please tick the order form below.

Coming soon CLINICAL MANAGEMENT OF POISONING AND DRUG OVERDOSE

(Eds) L M. Haddad, Chairman, Committee on Toxicology, American College of Emergency PhysiCians, Emergency Department, Memorial Medical Center, Savannah, GA, USA and J. F. Winchester, Director, Division of Nephrology; Georgetown University, Washington DC USA, with 30 Contributors

A clinical, comprehensive reference for all levels of personnel involved in cases of poisoning. The emphaSIS of the work is on drug abuse problems, but the book also includes coverage of assessment, treatment potentiation by other drugs, and clinical pitfalls o 7216 4447 3 Hardback ca 800pp ca 300 Illusts due March J 983

For further details, when avaIlable, please tick the order form below.

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Tape-slide

ST JOHN REVIEW

St John Fellovvship

A MESSAGE from the chairman, Major General D. S. Gordon, and vice-chairman, Lady Moyra Browne: 'We send to all Branches of the St John Fellowship our warmest good wishes for a Happy Christmas. May the New Year widen your membership and your activities, and bring to every member increasing satisfaction and pleasure.

Sheila Puckle, National Secretary, writes: This is the first Christmas since the Fellowship was formed. In our first six months, Branches have been formed in twelve counties, and many more are at the planning stage. This is good news, but there is better: the Branches are already making a positive contribution to St John and the local community.

I am delighted to quote from a letter from a senior Brigade officer in Hampshire: 'It is indeed good to see the enthusiasm and enjoyment at the meetings as well as the endeavour. I should like you to know that the Guild (West Hants Branch)' has given £100 towards the Western Area Ambulance Appeal Fund, £100 to the holiday for handicapped young people run by Lady EUzabeth Godsal and Mrs Duke (County Superintendents, Berks and Hants), and £25 to the local Cheshire Homes Appeal. They have Bring & Buys among themselves, garden produce, cakes, etc, as well as jumble sales. Congratulations, West Hants! Can anyone match or better that?

Please tell me what you are doing and send me pictures (black & white, please) of Branch activities, social events, past and present members of a Division for publication in the Review.

Do get yourselves publicity in your local paper and radio, too. This is the best possible way to tell former members who have lost touch with St John that your Branch exists.

In the next issue (January) I hope to tell you of the plans for the 1984 Annual General Meeting. Meanwhile, a very joyful Christmas to you all.

MORI were commissioned to carry out an opinion poll for three reasons :

Firstl y , to a scertain t he public s awarenes s of St John

Secondl y, to determine the public's willingness to donate.

Th i rdly, to determine the public s willingness to join St John Ambulance.

The method MORI use to select a fair representation of the public , without bein g biased in an y way , is highly sophistica ed I won t go into t he method, but a full ex planation is a v ailable in the full report.

Two surveys were conducted.

The first sur ve y was a studio interview, involving 10 men and 10 women, and free discussion was held after the initial questionnaire. The people involved all carry out some form of community, social or welfare w ork.

The second sur vey was of 2,023 inter views carried out a t 172 sampling points in Grea t Britain.

The results are very interesting and in many ways depre ss ing.

The survey opened with general questions about charities and three quarters of the public , in the la s t six months, had done something for a charity 65 070 had g ven money Howe ver, 73% of the public felt they were unable to help any charity on a regular basis

Respondents were then asked to name the fir st four or five charities that came into their head Only 6% mentioned St John Howe ver, when shown a card listing 16 top charities including St John, 91 % had heard of us. 76% reali s ed we were an independent charity, 12% thought we were part of the NHS and 12% were not sure either way

As far as the public are concerned, the ideal charity to help is a caring organisation or a charity which provides a vital service to the community and 36%, which is high, said they would be willin g to help a charity which aids sick or injured people The above three point s are St John in a nut s hell. But, when

asked what type of c harit y the y w ould LEAST like to help he y lis t ed three major po ints.

1) A charit y or g ani sed alon g mi lita ry lines.

2) An organisation in whi c h a uniform is required

3) An organisation in w hich you pur c hase yo u r ow n un i f o rm.

Two other hi g h scorer s in this part we re religious organisation s and those w ho c har ge f or their se rvic es

So, unfortunately , th ere are major re a son s wh y the public don wa nt to join us. On top of this, he mos t unpopular time t o gi ve help to charitie s s at the weekend and St John is associated w ith weekend work more th a n any other charit y Onl y 6 % of t hose willing t o help c harities would work at weekends

Although people' s awarene ss o f St John is high it is a v er y pass ive aw a rene ss. T h e y know the name and that is all.

As far as donating to a charit y is concerned 9% said they wer e willing to gi ve to St John and 5% were not willing to. Th es e two low figure s again s how that peopl e don t s eem to care either way about St John But one important factor ha s ari sen here Group discussions said it is not just willingne ss to donat e that s important, but opportun i t y, and many people indi c ated that, unlike other charitie s, they had never been given th e opportunity to give to St John. It al so came out that in St John s case the younger and older age groups in the lower classe s were more willing to give t o St John, although less willing to help charitie s. A c tive awareness of a charity does seem to s ignify a high e r income level.

When respondents were asked about St John's services, 57% identified us with first aid, 48% with attendance at large function s, while only 25% at sports functions s u c h a s football. The attitude in group di scu s sion s was 'somewhere to go until medical help

Talking Point is open to YOUR views

w hi c h is o ld fas hi one d and wea r s a unifo r m Th e pi c tur e b e in g b uilt h ere -s ho w s that f we publi cise our se l ves h eavi ly we h a ve a good chanc e of esta bli s h in g a good don a tion level. Bu t i t w ill b e ve r y di ff icu l t o in c rea se our nu m b e r of rec rui ts un less we take v a riou s form s of act i o n Th e group d isc u ss o n s ag r eed that u niform s o f a so rt we r e n ecess ar y, b u t ours were un a ttr a cti ve.

edral Choir and O rganist.

Nearly 1500 voices were ra ed

ing ing of the Nationa l A n

and the hymn 'People That on Earth Do D well' before the parade of St John Ambu lance Cadet carrying ban n er f r om over 50 nation s where St lohn Ambulance is repre ented. The programme, compere d by Richard Baker, included the bea u i f ul anthem I Wa G ad', Prokofiev's 'Pe ter a nd t he Wolf', Nunc Dim itti s, Kum Ba l ah, Day by Day from God pell, 'A Litt e Happ iness' and '[ n the Mood' amongst many other entertaining and wide ranging mus ica l items

The programme ended with Malcolm Arnold' Engli h Dance.

Again the Herald Trumpeter of HM The Royal Marine s ounded and Her Roya l H ighne s left the Cathedra l to g r ee t participating members of St Jo h n

A Night to Remember

ex is s but are unaw a r e o f our se r v ces. T h e sta nd a rd re a ct ion 's om e wh e r e to go un til proper medi cal h e lp a rri ves' m ea

A nne congratulates

cadet members of the choir A m bulance, th e performers and t he Dean a n d Chapter after signing the Cathedral visitors' b

Princess Anne was then driven to Devon County Hall where there wa s an official reception followed by supper. As Chairman of the St Jo h n Co u ncil fo r Devon, Captain W. J. Peek DL tha n ked H er R oya Highness for attending a nd asked the question 'Where else wo ul d you f in d a 'home-grown' enterta inme n so we ll supported but in Devon?'

St J ohn Ambulance in Devon must thank the Nationa l Westminster Bank for spo nsors h ip and the SI John Musica l Societ y for t h eir assistance and co-operation. We a lso t h ank the Lord P r ior, Sir Maurice Do r man, and Lady D o r man, Lady W il k inso n The choirs in front of the quire screen and the organ

and Lady Caccia of the Musical Society for t h eir attendance and strong support. Our thanks a lso to the Dean and Chapter of Exeter Cathedral and the Chairman of Devon County Council. The complete success of the evening was due to the totally devoted and tireless energy of many St John Amb u lance members in the county. As a fund-raising and public relations event, it fulfilled our wildest hopes and aspirations. A special vote of thanks must go to Devonair who recorded the evening which will be broadcast in it s entirety on Boxing Day. Not only that, but a recording on an LP record has also been produced by them and is available for sale from Devon County HQ, contact The County Secretary. M. 1. MALCOLM County Direc{or De vo n

,j':"Medical Conference, Api 15-17

I HAVE BEEN privileged to attend and write up both main St John conferences this year, the first starting when brilliant sunshine greeted over 250 delegates at Nottingham University for the Medical Conference, a firmly established highlight of the St John Ambulance year.

The conference began informally after supper on Friday evening, as always, with group meetings in the Medical School, and getting to the right place was a feat of navigation in itself (did he say right or left round the Science buildings?) However, all arrived there successfully (eventually). I was at the meeting at which two new American first aid films were shown. The multiple choice format used in these led not only to a heated discussion on the film itself but also on what kind of films should be used in teaching first aid. The group established a need for a good British-made film, and suggested that good use could be made of St John members in this. If this was representative of other group discussions, the conference promised to be extremely worthwhile. Discussion continued as delegates returned to Cripps Library for a glass of wine at the official 'ice-breaker', although in many cases the ice was already broken and turning to rather warm water as wine and conversation flowed

The main body of the conference got under way on Saturday morning after guests and delegates had been welcomed by the Conference Chairman, Dr E. Grey-Turner, CBE, MC, TD, MD. It was particularly fitting that the first main topic, on medicine during the Falklands crisis, should be given by a team from the Royal Naval Medical Service at a time when the visit to the Falklands by relatives of those killed during the conflict was very much in the news.

Lieutenant Alan Piggford began the morning by telling delegates about the organisation of medical support to the task force, the facilities which were available, and the way in which casualties were evacuated. This was a very comprehensive presentation and the audience was able to gain a good idea of the sheer scope of the tasks involved in caring for the many casualties on both sides.

A surgical view of the medicine in the Falklands then followed, given by Surgeon Commander R. J. Leicester, FRCS. As well as being responsible for surgery on board the SS Uganda, Commander Leicester was involved in many of the decisions taken in converting her from an educational to a hospital ship. This was definitely not a session for the squeamish, as Commander Leicester's remarks were illustrated by graphic slides of the various injuries, as well as of the various working areas, and complemented Lieutenant Piggford's slides of the land - based forces very well. He showed something of the way surgery was organised, pointing out that many of the practices laid down during the last war still held good during this campaign He also

Conference

Reports

by HQ PRO VERONICA SHARPE

explained the system of care which evolved, the patient being moved from one area to another with one attendant or nurse staying with him (all the land force personnel were male) all the time and thus providing continuity of care.

This presentation led very neatly into that given by Superintendent Nursing Officer Julia Massey, ARRC, QARNNS. She was one of 14 Nursing Officers and 23 nurses who flew to Gibraltar to join Uganda, working in the high dependency ward during the conflict. With the aid of more slides she took us through the various nursing areas which were set up, and explained some of the problems experienced. Traditional uniforms gave way to practical cotton trousers and tops or shirts, with woolly puBies against the very cold nights. A watch system was created so that the staff rotated between different times and areas so keeping up morale, and the nursing staff were supplemented by volunteers from the P & 0 crew (who also looked after the laundry and catering) and by Royal Marine bandsmen who acted as stretcher bearers, porters, etc. Many of the servicemen in the low dependency wards also looked after each other, being checked by the nursing staff. Everyone was able to appreciate from Sister Massey's explanations just how difficult it must have been to work under such crowded conditions and of the marvellous work that was done by all. After coffee there were two more presentations to round off the morning session. The first, by Surgeon Commander C. Chapman, OBE, FRCS, outlined the treatment of burns, especially important as there were so many burns caused by missile damage in general and by Exocet missiles in particular. He also showed slides of some of the dressings and equipment used in the treatment of these burns

This led nicely into the demonstration of the various types of clothing worn, equipment carried and stretchers and first aid equipment used, rounded off by a panel discussion involving all the morning's

Caring for the Sick and the Public Duty Handbook. All raised much discussion on such points as how to meet the demand for instructors, a guide to the First Aid Manual, the use of equipment or not (which often seems to come up at this conference) by Brigade members, and whether they are insured to do so, whether the high standards demanded of Brigade members were putting off potential recruits, and much more. This was a lively discussion and provided de legates with quite a few thoughts to take back to their counties.

The formal part of that day over, delegates retired to their residence to prepare for the equally hard work of the evening, assembling for a sherry and then to a formal dinner in Cripps Dining Hall This excellent meal was followed by dancing and the evening was enjoyed by all. There seemed to be little evidence of the morning after the night before - or perhaps doctors and nur ses have their own cures for after-effects?.

speakers. Delegate s had had a fa sc inating look at the tremendous organisation and hard work which went on during the Falklands war. The story was best summed up earlier in the morning by Commander Leicester, when he aid I t doesn't matter whether you're in uniform or not; working together, doctor s and nurses, you're all firstaiders' - a statement which appropriately carried over into the work of St John Ambulance

We were delighted to have as our guests for the weekend Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir John Harri son, Medical Director General Navy, the Matron-in-Chief of the Navy and the Depu ty Medi cal Director General.

The afternoon session brought member back home, as it were, to business, when seminar groups met to discuss aspects of St John after some initial introductions. The subjects were four recent publications - the new First Aid Manual, First Aid at Work ,

Divine Service on Sunday morning was this year taken by the Reverend Alan Caldwell, Anglican Chaplain to the University. The collection raised £15] for t he St John Ophthalmic Hospital, which was mo st gratefully received.

There then followed two more presentations, this time under the overall theme of 'Loss an d Grief' The Reverend Peter Speck, of the Royal Free Hospital, gave an interesting talk on the stages passed through by those who have been bereaved - of shock, denial of loss , tears, anger, guilt, sa dness or loneliness, loss of status and ideali ation. People may go through all or any of the se stages and in any order. This co mpar es with the stages also gone through by many people who are su ddenly disabled - as my own s tudies ha ve told me through the year.

Miss Marian Nevell, BA Hons, AKC, SRN, RNT , Senior Tutor at St

Bartholomew's School of Nursing, who works with students who are undertaking nurse training integrated with a degree in Social Science at the City University, then gave delegates some thoughts on the previous subject from a nursing point of view, remarking that nursing staff need to be aware of these stages so that they may be able to help relatives. She also stressed that quite a lot of help is usually available to people at first, but that there is a danger point when this initial support is withdrawn - perhaps this should be done gradually. Miss Nevell also thought that there was probably quite a lot which the voluntary organisations could do at this stage in providing that help, for example, by providing a sympathetic ear. It seems that sometimes people can be helped by simply li s tening, and Miss Nevell summarised this with an apt quote from T. S. Elliott: 'Teach me to care and not care; teach me to sit still.'

After coffee came the keynote address, which, a s an Open University student myself, was of great per so nal intere st. The Pro-Vice Chancellor (Continuing Education), Professor Ralph C. Smith, gave his impressions of where adult education was going in the future and of what the Open University was doing to meet this need. To this end he outlined many of the courses run by the continuing education section, which include health and social welfare courses which would be of possible interest to St John members. Listening to him talking about how the bulk of he work was taken to the students and the demands made on the students' time, I sat wondering what on earth had po ssessed me to become a student in the first place!

Dr Grey-Turner s ummed up the conference by commenting that we had seen, on the one hand, the outstanding work that was performed in the South Atlantic, which was balanced by a session on loss and grief,

important in this kind of situation where people will inevitably be killed. The Open University wa s looking to the future, and we in St John must also look to the future and a void becoming fossilised.

However, that was not qui te the end, for the conference could not close without delegates saying farewell to Lady Moyra Browne, retiring Superintendent-in-Chief, after more than 30 years' service with St John, which they did with a presentation. In her thanks, Lady Moyra summarised so me of the objectives of St John, and remarked on its friendliness. She fi ni shed by saying that 'the most morale-raising thing is the chance to have actually saved a life - and this makes the whole thing worthwhile.' All in all, the Conference produced a good deal of food for thought, and this was to be continued at Nottingham in September.

Nottingham - the New Approach, Sept 23-25

'THE NEW APPROACH', proclaimed the programme for t he 23rd Annual Brigade Meeting held at Nottingham University from Sept 23-25. The programme certainly was new, with pages of advertising making their first appearance.

The weekend began informally after dinner on Friday with three talks on different aspects of St John. The first, given by Mrs J Yeomans, gave a fascinating insight into first aid on four legs, as she told the story of the Central Derbyshire Mounted Divi sion from its formation to the present day and outlined some of the advantages (the firstaiders know how to handle injured hor ses as well as riders, can go where pedestrians and vehicles cannot, can move faster and carry

Colour copies of this group

...

The Royal Navy team who spoke on medicine in the Falklands war. IL to R) Surg Cdr Leicester, Nursing Sister Julia Massey, Surg Cdr Chapman IDr E Grey-Turner, chairman SJA Medical Board) and Lt Alan Piggford

more equipment) as well as the disadvantages (uniforms and equipment are expensive , and a horse transporter is needed for long distances). Available to the whole county, apparently this is only the second such division in the world - the first was a grassskirted all-male division in Fiji (no problems with uniforms there except if the horse felt hungry) In breaking down the Division's expenses, Mrs Yeomans touched on something that was to become clearer as the conference wore on - St John's need for both funds and publicity

A change of atmosphere followed when Mrs M. Holdman reminded us of the summer we had just left behind in telling delegates about the eventful and varied first aid duties undertaken at the Camping Club, Mer Estrange, in France. She said the duty needed self-reliance, since patients rarely got to hospital , stitching being undertaken by local doctors in t heir surgeries, and for an infinite amount of patience, with volunteers acting also as marriage guidance counsellors, mother /father confessors, etc. Although Mrs Holdman's talk was light-hearted, her slides showed that the duty was not, the most common problem being extreme blistering due to sunburn. Collapsible camp beds also accounted for a number of injuries

Perhaps the greatest tribute was when someone came to the first aid post to have their stitches removed, referred by a London hospital which had learned St John was going to be on hand. Surely an accolade of St John volunteers' true professionalism.

Aeromedical

The final presentation of the evening was given by Mr Derek Clark on another wideranging aspect of St John, the Aeromedical Services. Few people knew the full story of its development or the massive scope of the Service's work, shown in Mr Clark's excellent tape-slide presentation. With the large number of flights undertaken in fullyequipped, modern air ambulances it is difficult to imagine that in 1958 the patient travelled on the aircraft's floor together with the luggage! Sadly, this was all we were to see of Mr Clark, as work called him away However, his contribution was much appreciated. Together, these different aspects of St John provided a new talking point, as could be heard afterwards in the bars.

The conference was formally opened on Saturday morning by the Commissioner-inChief. After welcoming guests and delegates, who included Brig and Mrs G. N. Young from Australia, he summarised the planning behind this year's programme, and asked delegates to think about this year's aimsthe directions in which St John should move in the future and how this could be achieved

Our priorities, he said, must be to improve our public face and to improve our financial face so that we can give an even better service. Delegates and staff alike then had a surprise, as Herr Peltz presented St John Headquarters with a framed copy of the Johanniter-Unfall Hilfe's Charter, signed by

270

the Prince of Prussia and other dignitaries. In 'Impressions of a Newcomer', the opening talk, Mr Leo Budd, Chief Officer for Cadets, first summarised hi s life as a pilot, and then went on to give his impr ess ions of St John - its dedi cation, modesty, structure, need for good communications, for better awareness, for fun - to name but a few. He also stressed the similarity between pilots and St John Ambulance members; bo th had continuous training and constant checks, so that when an emergency happened Brigade m embers were ready for anything, as pilo ts must be. Illustrating his point with a true story of the pilot who lost all four engines in flight but coped with the problem, he remarked ha t 'training is about that impo ssi ble simulation which you've already done - it does happ en in real life.' He hi gh lighted the need for interesting continuous training for all, and saw St John as concerned with providing cadets with challenging, continuous training in preparation for becoming adults, becoming worthy members of any co mmunity. Mr Budd's own impressions summarised many of the good things about St John, as well as some of the needs and problems which W'::ie to emerge later in t he syndicate discussions.

At past conferences each syndicate was given a topic relevant to St John and asked to consider it; this year the plan was different, for sy ndicates were asked to consider St John's problems and solutions. They were also given so me sound guidance on how to consider them in the excellent

presents It alian - born Lady Younger with a copy of the Italian ed tion of his book on creativity

lecture on 'C reativity' by Dr Tudor Powell lones, which followed. Dr Powell lones opened by saying that everyone is creat ive to some degree, simp ly operating at different levels of creativ it y. He then explained that some people are predominantly convergent t hin kers, solving problems in fairly predictable ways; others are mainly divergent thinkers, looking for new ways to so lve problems, new questions to ask. He suggested that perhaps St lohn is at times too convergent in its thinking, and that some divergent thinking was needed - which was the basis of the syndicate work - and then outlined the different stages of the creat ive process. However, anything in li fe rarely runs perfectly smoothly, and this is also true of creativity, where obstacles may hold up the process, affecting the solution of problems. These were, as the speaker outlined them: the attitudes of society, of parents and of peers; the gulf between generations; personality clashes; tradition; parochialism; promotion sc hemes a 'them and us ' attitude; lack of communication. After applying these ideas to St John as he saw them, Dr Powell Jones gave one or two ideas for stimulating creativity, overcoming t he se obstacles. This presentation, with its d irect relevance to many of the problems which can be seen in St John, and which exist also in other large organisations, was highly acclaimed. Tudor later presented Lady Younger with an Italian translation of hi s book on creat ivity

Mr Gerald Easton, Assistant Commissio ner -in-C hief , had t he task of summing up

AT NOTTINGHAM

(Photos by Veronica Sharpe)

as a newcomer

the morning's work and at the same time briefing t h e syndicates - not an ea y one with so many points made He fi ni s hed by asking syndicates to look at a number of problems within St lohn based on Tudor Powell lones' headings, after which delegates retired for lunch their creative processes already at work we hoped.

Syndicate presentations were eagerly awaited. Had the morning's speakers been successful in directing delegates thoughts to lookin g at St John's problems - and future - constructively? It seems they had, for a number of very interesting point s emerged.

The problems of communication were mentioned more than any other, not simply as a subject on its own, but related to other problems. Communication i mu ch MORE than just passing on a set of order or announcements; it is about members taking every sing le opportunity of telling the public what St John does - what they as member do; about more visiting by area and county staff; about keeping up with the new s in the Sf John Review - and that means obtaining a copy and reading it; about holding more social occasions for parents, friends, and the general public; about getting together with other divi s ion s, areas and counties; about promoting the right person for the job even if you do not necessarily like him her as much as someone else; about Brigade and Association working together - they are, after all, ONE Foundation of the Order, having merged in 1968 (!).

Some of the other points which emerged were the desirability of more structured

people were eating

After the interdenominational serv ice on Sunday morning, this year taken by Revd B. Brady, Roman Catholic Chaplain to the University, delegates heard three presentations. The first was given by Mr A. R. Gray, Secretary of The Prince's Trust, a charity which aims to help young people aged 14-25, who are disadvantaged in any way, by means of cash grants or advice. This littlepublicised c harity operates in some 20 regions, covering almost all the large city areas in this country, together with areas in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Mr Gray showed some slides of one particular project which involved 80 unemployed young men who spent a fortnight in Scotland building a bridge which was opened by Prince Char le s The project was so successful that they hope to repeat it on a larger scale next year in Dorset.

programmes for adults and cadets, more and more appropriate training for officers. Lntegration would be desirable; perhaps a n swe rs do lie in co mbined and quadrilateral divisions, with t he right leadership. Many young member s leave St lohn when they reach A-levels, so crucial to their chances of further education; if efficiency regulations were rela xed a little during these years more young people might stay with St lohn, forming a core of young members to replace those leaving or re t iring. Much more was discussed, and it was obvious that delegates welcomed this alternative approach to look at St lohn constructively; criticism is rarely of value unless it leads to considered s uggestions for improvement.

After the erious work of the day delegates were treated to a little light relief in a talk entitled 'So rr y Florrie' by Mrs H Kitson, a remarkable lady who took up nursing at the age of 57 and who goes rallying in a 1913 GWK 8-horsepower two-seater! An accomplished speaker, she entertained the audience with non- sto p tales of her training days. The delegates worked hard also - laughing from beginning to end! They showed t heir great appreciat ion by giving Mrs Kitson a standing ovation - the second in her life and only the second ever given at Nottingham. This was a perfect end to t he day' formal proceedi ngs.

That the evening's dance and disco were generally successful was evident from the amount of coffee consumed at breakfast the following morning, together with the chef not being able to understand why so few

After coffee Herr Wulfdietrich Peltz, Federal Dire cto r of Training of Germany's lohanniter-Unfall-Hilfe , himself no st ranger to Nottingham, gave delegates some houghts on the meaning of freedom'. This talk was well received, and was all t he more remarkable since Herr Peltz 's native language is , of course, German. The last official presentat io n of the morning was a fascinating one given by Mr P. Baker on behalf of the Mary Rose Trust. An amateur diver for more than 25 years, Mr Baker guided delegates through the mar ve llous story of the Mary Rose, which sank in the Solent in 1545, from fi rst discover y to the triumphant raising of the hull. Among all the artifacts reco vere d, one of the most prized is the barber-surgeon's equipment, which is perfectly preserved. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed se eing the results of this incredible achievement.

Delegates then received an unexpected bonus when Brig G. N. Young, Chief Commissioner for St John in Australia, was persuaded to say a few words about the organisation there - do all guests work as hard when they come to Nottingham?

In his closing remarks before delegates filed out to have a group photograph taken (another new departure), the C -in-C Sir lohn Younger summarised by repeating his earlier remarks and then pleaded with delegates not to forget these discussions at Nottingham, and to take back their enthusiasm to the counties, areas and divisions and make these discussions work. Perhaps the most apt summary came from Tudor Powell lones , when he said 'The time is ripe. The time is right. We are the people - if not, who? If no t now - when?'

By the way , it seems St J oh n is never off duty While driving back from Nottingham on the MIa car with four St lohn ladies passed me. Several miles further on I saw the same St lohn ladie s pulled up on the hard shou ld er and poking around under the bonn et of (we hope) another ar

P .S. Put it in your diary NOW! Nottingham '84 - September 21-23.

Herr Wulfdietrich Peltz presents a copy of J oh ann ter- U n f allHille 's charter to the Cin -C, Sir John Younger

Dr Tudor Powell Jones

Mrs Kitson (right), who

Ex Concorde pliot Leo Budd now Chief Officer for Cadets giving hiS ImpreSSions

TO MALTA

1984 is the 75th ann iver sary of the found in g of St John Ambulance in the island of Malta. This wi ll be celebrated by a week of var ious events in early September, arra n ged by SJA in Malta. To coincide w ith the celebrations, the Order of St John in England is running a package tOur to 1vl a l[a from August 28 to September II 1984. The cost of the tour ran ges from £257.00 to £329.00 per person, depending on type of accommodatioll req'Uired, with reductions for children between 2 and 12 years of age. Tra ve will be by scheduled flights of Air Malta from Heathrow Airport.

The tour is open to al l members of St J ohn and their families and is not confined to members of the Order. Anyone interested in joining the tour can obtain full de t ails from the Secretary of the Order St John's Gate, Clerkenwell, London , EC I M 4DA (telephone 01-253 6644 ext. 33).

LOOKING AHEAD

3-4 Dec: Count y Cadet Orricer s Confe re nce , HQ West Midlands , B rmingham 7 Dec: Ro yal G a la Ball. Hotel I nte rCont ine nt a l , H yde Park Corn e r, London

23 Dec: Ipm HQ clo ses for Chri s tm a s / New Year Holida

QUICK RESULTS

The Cambridge Evening News carried this repor t of a woman who had just been on SJA s 4-day First Aid al Work course: SHY heroine Syl via Brighton saved a man's life - just hou rs after passing a first aid course. The mother of three from Hartford, near Huntingdon, ga ve a heart attack vi ctim the kiss of life - and kept it a secret from her family and friends.

The 16-stone man had collapsed at a wrest lin g match and Mrs Bri ghton, 44, worked on him f or 10 minute s before an ambulance arrived. She gave him mouth-tomouth r esuscitation and heart massage with the skills she had learned in a week -lon g course run b y [he Cambridge St John

WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD OF ST JOHN SJA

BY THE EDITOR

THREE generat ons of the Avon' s Creech famil y represent four grade s o f the Order and 160 years of voluntar y ser vice - quite a record. George Creech (standing, left), who is a Knigh t of the Order, and his wife Mary (sitting centre), a Commander Si ster , ha ve recently retired as assistant count y commissioner and deputy county s uperintendent respectively, having joint ly given 101 years of voluntary ser vice. Younger son John (standing, cen re) , Ambulance.

But modest Mrs Brighton, of Duncan Way, said: I t was just one of tho se thin gs We were taught to help. As far a s I m concerned [ just did my job. I didn't do anything famous.'

Mrs Brighton used her ski ll s at a wres tling

A v on' s count y s taff o f fi ce r f or ambulance cadet s and a Ser ving Broth e r , ha s 25 year s' ser v ice to hi credit, whil e James (s tanding, right ) who is ar ea commi ss ioner for Mid-B erk s hire a nd an Of f icer Brother, ha s completed 2 9 ye a r se rv ice.

Jame s' two y oun g s on , M ic h a el a nd Rob e rt (s itting ) are foll o win g in th e foot s tep of their father and un c le by s tartin g a ambulan ce ca d et s. (Ph o to: C ha rl es H. Thorn)

m a t c h in Margate when s he saw a m a n slumped in a seat nearby. 'I tou ch ed him and he fell over,' she said. Mr s Brighton need ed help to lift the man on to the n o or and gave him mouth-to-mouth and heart ma ssage fo r five minut es befor e as kin g a by -s a nder for help.

DUTY AT BROOKLANDS

ng.'

Mr P igo tt h ear d o f th e res usci t a ti o n onl y

b y c h a n ce -wh e n t h e ma n 's ni ece wrot e to SJA a nd th a n ke d t h e m for M r Brigh ton sav in g h er un c le's li fe.

NEW MAN AT GATE

Fo ll o\\ ing recent appoin me nt in th e C h a n cery of the Order, the Secre taryGe n era l of the Order is pleased LO a nn ounce the appointmen t of [\ Ir George H ay ba ll as Superintend ing lerk of th e Or d er Mr H aybal l \\' ill be ba ed at l J o h n' Gate.

GUERNSEY TOO

P RO eil Tucker Il'ri les:

The pre idency of S t J ohn in G ue rn ey wa officially pre enled to t he Bai l iff of Guernsey ir Charles Fros a rd rece ntl y.

The Ba il iff pre ident of the G ue r n ey

P ar li ament - roughly the equ ivale n t of the Spea ker or t he H ouse of Co m mo n -a nd i a l 0 judge of t h e Royal Co urt , th e h ig he co urt in G uernsey. H e i the c iv il h ea d of t h e islan d and, inc id enta ll y, the na me Ba ili ff come f rom h e o ld French wo r d Ba illi e' t o g u ar d o r protect - it h as n o thin g to d o wi th th e man who ta ke a way yo ur furni tu re i f yo u do not pay your bill !

S ir Char les was appoi n te d Cha irm a n of t he Co un c il of St J o hn ea rli er th is ye ar , a nd

ha p r o mi ed to take a n ac ti ve int e res t in S JA

a ffa rs a ho ld er of th e tw o o f fic e

H e was pre e nt ed with h i warr a nt b y th e Li eute na n t-Gove rn o r , A ir C hie f M a r hal Sir

P e te r Ie Che min an t , who is th e Qu ee n 's re pr e en tative in Guer n sey a nd is al 0

Pr es id e nt of th e lo ca Co un c il of St John. Th e pre sentation was made at a pecial Rig ht At he rece nt pr ese n ta io n In Gue rn sey tL o R) C o mm an d e r Mr

FLAG FLIERS

TRAINED

luncheon party held by Bailiwick Commander Mr Harold Touzeau, accompanied by Mrs Touzeau and senior off icers and friends of St John.

His Excellency the Governor said that the Bailiff was inheriting a first class organisation, and the fact that it was so good was due largely to the unfailing efforts of Mr and Mrs Tou zeau. Sir Peter said the appointment marked the beginning of a new era for St John in the island, and everyone was confident that the high standards of the service in the island would be maintained and, if possible, excelled under Sir Charles's guida nce.

In reply, the Bailiff said it was a great honour for him to become President. It was

grea t public support it enjoyed locall y. He recognised that he would need to learn a lot in hi s new role, but was looking forward to it with enthusiasm and promised to do his best to further the cause of St John in the island.

PILLORIED

The frie nds of St John committee in Nottinghamshire, under the chairmanship of Mrs Eileen Tor z, was formed just two years ago. Fund raising events they have organised include fashion shows, coffee mornings and a Bucks Fizz' morning. They also recently benefited from a Charity Ice Spectacular at which international ice dance c hampi ons

60 years of continuous service to the Order - a photograph taken recently at St John s Gate.

The painting is of the Earl of Scarborough , KG Sub Prior of the Order of St John 1923-43 tRight) Lady Serena James (daughter of Lo rd Scarborough)

President of the North Riding of Yorkshire, St John Ambulance B ig ade 1940- 74

President of St John Ambulance C weiand 1974-80

Dame of Grace 1954

(Back, left) Lord Westbury Me DL tsonin-law of Lady Serena

James ): Vice President Cadets, North Rid ing of Yorkshire 1967-68

Commissione r East Riding of Yorkshire 1969-74

Commander, Humberside 1974

Chairman of Council of th e Order of St John for the East Riding 1969-74

Chairman of Council of the Order of St John for Humberside 1974-82

Chairman of Public Affairs Policy Committee 1977

Member of Council of the Orde r of St John 1977

Member of Chapter General 1977

Knight of Justice 1976 (Front left ) Lady Westbury (daughter of Lady Serena): Vioe President of St John Ambulance Brigade East Riding of Yorkshire 1954- 74 President of St John Ambulance, Humberside 1974-82

Superintendent-in - Chief 1983

Dame of Grace 1983

(Back, right) Major the Hon Ri chard Bethell

MBE S cots Guard s (son of Lad y Westbury): Lord Westbury'S Esquire 1976 Officer Brother 1983

Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean performed.

They really hit the headline, however, when they manned the stock and pillory at Nottingham's Medieval Market, held in the city centre. The pecial medieval St John costume, which were made by a committee member, attracted uch attention that they were given the centra l po it ion in the market.

Members of Nott County Football team visited the stand during the day and Jimmy Sirrell the general manager, spent half-anhour in the stocks. Their next venture i a sta ll at a local Flea Marker. (See photo)

NEW LONDON PRESIDENT Walter Hoadley wr;res:

The Grand Priory Church wa packed to capacity on Friday Oct 14 when London District held it annual pre entation of service awards.

It was also the first official engagement of the recently appointed SJA President of London, His Grace the Duke of We tminster, who kindly agreed to make the presentations to more than a hundred members. About half the award were

Service Medal to members of all five of London's Area and it Tran port Corps.

Among them was the on of the late 1 M ilr Joyce Young, to whom the medal had been awarded for what the citation aid wa 'not on ly her ery many escort dutie but al 0 her work and care in the homes of the elderly'. She had been a member of the Harr ow Divi ion.

Among the recipient of Service Bar were three member colle ting their 7th Bar, marking 50 year' ervice, and twelve who collected their 6th Bar, marking 45 year.

The latter inc lud ed Derek Fenton MVO, MBE, now the Commander of the Di trict, Deputy Commissioner George Smith, Public

Duties Officer Freddy Witch and former District ursing Officer Miss Dorothy Lee.

The Duke was introduced to the assembly by George Smith, who remarked on the good fortune of London District in having him a Pre ident. Re sponding, the Duke said he was 'acutely aware of the honour which had been accorded him in the appointment'; he aw hi s task as being to build up the trength and even further u efulnes of St John in London and this is the thing I shall be doing in the year to come.'

John Gerrard proffered 'our mo t incere thanks to him for fitting in thi presentation among his many other activirie' and everyone looked to a long and happy association with him. Afterwards the Duke and principal guests, together with the recipients and their guests, all ,vent over to the Chapter Hall for refre hments. A truly happy and ucces ful evening.

NOTTINGHAM GROUP PHOTOGRAPH

The group photograph taken at this year's' otting ham ( ee page 268) ha turned out really well, with features clearly distinguishable. Measuring a gigantic the photograph is printed in fu ll colour. Copies of the photograph are now avai l able through your County / Di trict Headquarter price £5 each. Please be s ure to place )our order before January 31 ]984.

A friend of St John in the stocks See story PILLORIED

(L to R) Eileen Torz (chairman ), Frances Smyth Warren Torz, Sandra Souter (victim)' John Carter (chairman of St John Council as Friar Tuck) Elsie

IN 1982 BERKSHIRE held its first young St John/Disabled Holiday for SJA members and disabled youths between the ages of 16 to 25. We felt that it was important for young disabled people to go on holiday with normal youngsters and also for the ablebodied to mix and learn to treat the disabled as they would anyone else.

The holiday was meant to be a 'one-off', but it proved suc h a success that everyone wanted more , next year. One visitor, Glenys Duke, County Superintendent of adjoining Hampshire, was so impressed by the atmosphere and the whole set-up that she went home wondering why SJA Berkshire was doing this in Hampshire and why SJA Hants wasn't involved. Later, she asked if they could join the holiday in 1983... And so we started planning our second disabled holiday, this one a joint SJA Berks Hants venture, with a few Oxon friends joinin g in. Sadly, as this holiday drew nearer, the number of Hampshire SJA helpers dwindled to four, but it is hoped that more young Hampshire members will be able to come next year. For now there's bound to be a third and a fourth such holiday

As in 1982, the disabilities of our 1983 holiday-makers varied widely. The most moving sight was a crippled bo y pushing a wheelchair with an even more disabled lad in it. One patient from Rivermead Rehabilitation centre who could not move from his wheelchair and had to be turned every four hours, day and night - a task willingly undertaken by our helpers - soon learned to smi le and joke again, and by the end of the week told his social worker that he felt normal again. Another boy, who had lost an arm in a motorbike accident, told us - after watching Tom, a thalidomide boy with no arms but an excess of energy and fun - that he now realised life wasn't over, after all. We all learned so much from each other

First we had to spend many months fund raising, for the holiday was to cost about £ 100 per person and we hoped to charge everyone £30. Many could afford more but we felt strongly that everyone must pay the same - able-bodied and disabled. £2000 was raised by the young members themselves from a sponsored swim, a half-marathon, discos, and a raffle. Tickets for these were sold by everyone going on the holida y. The rest of the money - there were 77 of us, £7700 to be raised - came from private companies, Rotary Clubs, Round Table and var ious charitable trusts. This holiday-forthe-disabled idea had tremendous appeal and hardly a letter sent out did not produce a cheque. In fact, finding the money was one of the easiest tasks of the whole project. One of the main reasons for the success of our holiday is, I think, because there is no 'staff' involved. The young SJA members do as much as possible in the running of the whole affair. The only two 'older' people involved (except for Jim Mitchell, the coach driver) were Elizabeth Godsal, from Berks, and Glenys Duke, from Hants, who was also the senior SRN, the other two nurses being 276

Getting the Disabled away on Holiday • IS fun for all

But first, £8000 had to be raised, and one helper provided for each disabled person

much younger. On each day of the holiday different young members were responsib le for seeing that everyone was in the right place at the right time. Two young members were sent off on a canoeing course before the holiday so that they could take charge of this activity. The only person we could not find from within St John was someone to teach arts and crafts, and we were lucky enough to be able to recruit Sally Davies, a London art student who comes from Hampshire. She was a great success in every way, and we ought to try to get her to join St John as there were certainly plenty of boys from Berks who \vould welcome her.

At last, on Sept 17, seventy-seven of us set off for our holiday in the New Forest, at Avon Tyrrell. The young SJA members numbered: four from Hampshire, hree from Oxfordshire and 30 from Berkshire. The disabled all came from Berks, Hants and Oxon We hired the same coach as last year, which has a special lift for wheelchairs, with the same driver - Jim Mitchell, good friend and helper to all. This year we also had two minibuses, from Oxford and Hampshire, with another on call from Eastleigh Division for day outings. We took our own disco and equipment for making a video film of the week.

New participants on the holiday were somewhat confused at first by the hustle and bustle at Avon Tyrrell, which is a large mansion converted into a residential centre of the National Association of Youth Clubs. It has a heated swimming pool just outside the door, fishing, canoeing, and facilities for nearly every sp o rt imaginable.

Unfortunately the weather was not as good as last year - our glorious summer of 1983 had come to an end - but the swimming pool was put to good use, both vo lunta ri ly and involuntarily, as spirits were running high as usual. We had just one very wet day.

Taking a holiday in the same place and with so many of the same people, we thought we might have problems in finding interesting things to do - but here SJA Hampshire came up trumps. Their programme included a day at Portsmouth with the Royal Navy looking after u s. The wheelchairs were carried on to a boat, and we all set off for a trip round the harbour.

Then we went on board HMS Victory. After that it was fish and chips at SJA Portsmouth's Charles Dickens HQ, thanks

to Mrs Joy O'Neill and the ladies and cadets for their hospitality, and for 'Pam Eyres' who entertained us. The day ended at Southsea Fair, where the staff were marvellous. The Fair was quiet that evening so the staff came round with us, lifting our disabled out of wheelchairs for a 'go' on everything. Soon they were waving from the top of the big wheel manning all the dodgem cars and roaring round on the roundabouts The staff told us groups such as ours could go on everything free if we had written to the manager a couple of weeks before. As it wa they weren't allowed to give u s free rides without vouchers from management. We know for next time.

Another afternoon a large party of football enthusiasts went to the Dell and met the Southampton team Lawrie McMenemy, the manager, welcomed us and took us on to the pitch, where those capable of getting out of wheelchairs trie d their luck against Peter Shilton, their goalie. We visited Marwell Zoo, where everyone had the chance of holdin g snakes as well as see ing many species of rare animals. We went to Bournemouth, some to see Hi-de -H i at the theatre, some to see the James Bond film Octopussy. We had plenty to do

On the last evening we had a grand banquet of five courses b y candlelight, with a talent show to follow. Then. as mo st evenings ended, there was Roger 's di sco but this time as a toga party with everyone draped in sheets.

We had many visitors during the week, in c luding the C-in-C, General Peter Leuchars, who stayed for dinner. He was looked after entirely by the young SJA members , and after the ini ial shock of sitting next to so meone who ate with his feet, he seemed to enjoy everything.

So much was packed into such a short time, and there was so much happin ess for everyone. Glenys Duke said s he had not laughed so much for years - it was one of the most rewarding weeks of her life. Next year she and SJA Hampshire will be organising the holiday Avon Tyrrell is already booked, from September 1 to 8. And what about other young SJA people, from other counties, joining her? Make it a big fun week for everyone. If you want to see how we enjoyed it, borrow our video film from HQ's PR Dept, at I Grosvenor Crescent.

G D (Hants) and E G (Berks)

Te rry R ivers, from Slough. shows what he can do with his wheelchair

(Be low) Sports in the garden, with the ball at Tommy 's feet

(Above) At the Dell home of Southampton s football team. with manager Lawrie McMenemy signing autographs. Extreme leh is SJA Hants Glenys Duke (Leh) Talented Tom Yendell thalidomide with no arms plays snooker football and tries anything. (Right) Jim Mitchel l, our coac h driver with Susan wearing the mask she made

(Below) Arts and crahs were taught by the one non - SJA member Sally Davies, with (Ieh) Mary Kelly and Katherine McCoy

LONDON, with its famous museums, art galleries, theatres and other attractions provides infinite possibilities for a group visit. There are also five Youth Hostels available in London. If you are planning a trip to London the Y.H.A. can supply details of theatres, London Transport Rover tickets, museums, riverboat trips, the zoo, and cycle hire to name but a fe w, as well as further information about the youth hostels. Write to London Hostels Information Service, 36 Carter Lane, London EC4U 5AD, for further details.

Learning, Living & Leisure

Three major themes of he Y.H.A. are combined in the title of this information pack which is aimed at Youth leaders. The free pack contains A4 size loose leaf sections introducing the Y.H.A. and its resources To assist the organisers of groups, the pack contains sections on field studies, films and facts, preparation, an ideas page and an upto-date location map of all hostels. For your pack write to The Education Department, Y.H.A. Trevelyan House, St Albans, Herts ALl 2DY, or telephone St. Albans 55215. Duke of Edinburgh's Award

A new series of activity guides has been introduced to help participants with their chosen activity. Titles are Community Care, Dressmaking, Fishing, Motorcycle Maintenance, Sailing and Your Dog The books cost £2.75 each and are available from Purn II Publi s hers Freepost, Paulton, Bristol BS18 5BR, or through local award operating centre.

Youth Exchanges

r have received a request from a Youth Group in a town near Cologne, Germany, who are intere ste d in setting up links with a similar group in this country with a view to possible exchange visits. If your group is interested pleas e write direct, in English, to Susanne Kadin g & Klaus Bereux, MalteserHiIfsdi enst, Overfeldweg 80, 5090, Leurkusen 1, Cologne, W. Germany

Horse riding and stable management

(age 11-20)

Reproduced below are details of another proficiency subject for cadets: Riding only will not be acceptable under any circumstances. The welfare of the horse / pony is of prime importance.

278

SYLLABUS - General Knowledge

All candidates must:

1. Know the Highway and Country Codes.

2. Know the points of the horse.

3. Know what is meant by the horse's 'centre of gravity' and why this is important in relation to the balanced seat' .

4. Know what is meant by the following practices and show ability to adhere to them: a relaxed seat, riding tali, gri p, quiet hands aids, harmony of the aids, sitting the trot, make much of horse

5. Know one essential item to carry, for the benefit of the horse, when riding in the country, its purpose and how to use it.

6. Explain what to do if the hor se goes lame during the ride.

7. Be able to lead and tie up a horse / pony correctly.

8. Be able to mount and dismount correctly, unaided

9. Demonstra te balance and suppling exerci.ses at the halt, using stirrups but no reIns.

Novice riders (less than 12 months' experience)

10. Show ability to control a suitable horse / pony throughout - walk, collected trot, extended trot, canter.

II. Show a seat independent of reins.

12. Show harmony of the aids' through increase and decrease of pace circles turns on the move, etc. ,

13. Show ability to jump small ditches.

14. Show ability to open, pass through and close a gate, preferably from the saddle.

Experienced riders (in addition to all the above)

15. Show ability to ride t he following paces showing a seat independent of stirrups, (which sho uld be crossed over the pommel of the saddle): walk, trot (both collected and extended), collected canter.

16. Show how to c hange leg s while riding the extended trot.

17. Show ability to clear a jump of not less than 3 ft in heigh t.

Note: All candidates, in addition to re g ular schooling, must ha ve undertaken at lea st 12 cross country rides of not le ss than one hours' duration

Stable management

All candidates must complete this sec tion:

Grooming:

18. Know the essential kit and order of sequence for its use in grooming a horse /po ny. Name each item of equipment and explain its purpo se.

19. Know t he points of the horse requiring particular attention. How to lift and clean the feet and why an examination of fetlocks and feet is es se ntial at least once daily and before and after exercise.

20. Demon st rate ability to groom the horse/pony.

Equipment

21. Know the co rre ct use of the Harness Room, the names of its fittings and how

to keep tack therein

22. Name the parts of the saddle and bridle

23. Demonstrate ability to strip down, clean and reassemble a saddle and bridle using correct cleaning equipment.

24. Demonstrate ability to saddle and br idle a horse / pony for work, and how to ru g up after exercise and / or grooming.

25. Candidate should name the bit in use on his / her horse and one other type , explaining their different purposes

Stabling and welfare of the horse

26. Know the essential requirements for stabling, with particular reference to suitability and cleanliness of buildin gs, utensils, rugs, feed bins, corn and fodder st orage, water, bedding, etc.

27. Know the correct corn, feed mixtur es and straw to use and how to judge good hay

28. Know the correct feeding and watering procedures; why corn s hould not be fed immedia te ly before and after work, and the possible ill effects on the horse / pony if it is.

29. Demonstrat e ability to ta lk to and approach a stab led hor se, without up setting it, for feeding, harn essing, mucking out (without undue wastage) and bedding down

30. Understand the care and working of a hor se/pony at grass.

31. Be able to recognise a lo ose or worn s hoe risen clench and its danger , lameness, broken knee, over-reaches and colds, colic and know what action to take in the stable/at grass /o n the ride.

Instructors and examiners

Qualified riding instructors approved by County Staff Officers (Cadets).

Note: Not all Riding Schools' have qualified instructors or employ satisfactory method s of teaching riding, stab le management and welfare of the horse.

SOLUTION ...

Outdoor Activities

D / O A. H Morris , Skewen Divis ion , W. Glamorgan, writes: I SEE from the article by Chris Kimberley (Sept Review) that he ha s experienced similar problems when introducing outdoor activities and adventure training into a county programme as r did when sta rtin g on thi s trail.

Since a start in map reading, to a short hill walk, a five-day course involving six Divisions , A TC cadets and a mountain rescue team, my experiences follow closely those of Mr Kimberley.

We found a number of officers relu ctant to pass information to cadets about forthcoming co urse s If the officers were not attending t he course, did they expect their cadets to be spirited away to another Division more interested in outdoor activities? The object is to recruit cadets, not to poach them.

'T he opportunity or desire to take part in their youth', is a strong point that ha s to be overcome. The general idea of St John Ambulance is a lecture followed by a practical, and an officer brought up on such a diet is not easily conv in ced that hill walking and rock climbing, etc, are good for cadets.

The method we u se is to take a series of slides about outdoor activities at courses, and then show them to parents at a social function of a local Division. They can then judge for themselves the value of these courses, and usually their reaction is ve ry favo urabl e.

For our courses we use a well equipped and well run centre - the Boys Club of Wales Centre, Abercrave, Swansea Valley, where SJA personnel have trained L1 staff members in first aid. Eight members of the Mountain Rescue team also now hold firs t aid certificates.

F inall y, does the system of outdoor training produce an influx of cadets, and make cadets more se lf- relian t and confide nt ?

The article Adventure Time (Aug '83 R eview) was written by Philippa Roberts, Cadet Leader, from my Division. Philippa, who is a prod uct of a first aid, pro ficiency and outdoor activity system, is rapidly becomin g a leader in her own right in class and in the mountains.

We must remember : Cadets thrive on challenge. Cadets are small but tough, and don't break easily. Cadets can wash off dirt when they feel like it. Cadets come back for more. Our job is to keep them coming back.

Ealing Cadets 4th Visit to Germany

eN Ealing's D / S June Page writes: LAST JULY, for the fourth year running , cadets from Ealing Divisions were g uests at the annual camp of Malte se r - Hilfs-Dienst (W. Germany's Catholic Order of St John) at Metelen , Kries Steinfurt.

I was contacted through the public

Forces radio

studio in Bielefeld June Page and Herman Huging Ileh) with OJ Andre Pastouna (Photo: Segeler ) (Right) with German friends, a local press photo

relations department of Ealing Borou gh late in 1979 by MHD Metelen with regard to St John cadets from Ealing being the guests of MHD at the camp. A group of us from Ea lin g Adult Divisions made a week's visit to Kries Steinfurt in May 1980, staying at homes of MHD member s, and it was then that 1 met Herman Huging who organises Camp Malta.

In the Autumn of 1981 r signed a partner s hip document on behalf of Ealing Cadets with MHD Metelen to promote the friendship of our two organisations which have mutual aims

The MHD run Camp Malta each year for the benefit of the children and parents of the s urrounding district. The MHD member s and we as their guests sleep in camp under canvas and the local children are transported to and from the camp daily by MHD vehicles. The daily number of lo cal children is normally in the region of 100, and they attend every day for the two weeks of camp

This in many cases enables their parents to continue their emp loyment or even take a holiday , when grandparents will care for the children each evening. This camp, unlike others in the area, will accept c hildren with handicaps, but because of the terrain of the field and the surrounding woods they are on l y able t o accept children with slight physical handicaps. Therefore the majority of disabled children attending are mentally handi capped.

That fir t year there were twelve in our group, including three boy cadet The weather was a washout to say the least! It rained a lmo st non-stop and we ended up pumping water from the field into the swo ll en river that urround the camp field.

The cadets spent their time with the young MHD group exploring and organising activitie for the children.

In 1981 there were eight in our group and t he cadets were more at home with their German friends and fo und it easier to comm unicate with the local c hildren, so spent more time with the children in their gro up activi tie s.

In 19 82, because older cadet were now working and unable to join us, the vi iting gro up was reduced to five and for the fir time we took a St John Junior. We were

apprehensive about taking such a young ch ild but she obviously enjoyed it, as this year she returned and encouraged two of her friends to join her

Our medical needs are always well attended to by MHD. As well as the usual camp injuries in 1981 I tripped over a guy rope and wrenched my neck. J was aken to hospital for X-rays and treatment. This year one of the girls got a foreign body in her eye and was taken straight to an eye specialist for its removal.

In 1983 our group was sixteen, and when we all met at Liverpool Street Station I began to wonder what I had taken on! After a reasonably uneventful but sleepless night travelling, we were warmly greeted b y old friends at Bad Bentheim station and transported with bags and baggage l.O Camp Malta.

This year the weather, as in the pre vio us two years, was glorious and ve ry hot, and those who dared to remo ve clothing either got a good suntan or were burnt. Much of the cadets' time was spent with the groups of children, taking part in such activities as setting trails in the woods, building outdoor shelters, playing games and swimming. And of course, at the end of ever y day we had a campfire singsong.

Our involvement in Camp Malta is always well reported in the local papers and this year it \ as arranged that I should go to he British Force tudio in Biel e fe ld to make a broadcast about our visit and pa rtnersh ip with MHD.

We were a l so visited by Colonel W. E. I. Forsythe Jauch , from the Briti h Military Hospital in Munster and a Commander of he Order 0 f St John.

To the delight of Herman Huging, who likes the ound of bagpipe the British Army arranged for two pipers from the 1st Battalion Irish Guards to play at the er ice held in camp the da y before our departure.

Although we see the purpose of the e annual visits a promoting friend hip and helping with the chi ldren , our German friends are most concerned that we enjoy our elves and t he y make sure that we return each year with happy memorie of Camp Malta We ha e been invited - and are going again - next year.

FOR THOSE who have not yet heard the great news, Cleveland now has its own ou tdoor activities centre at Commondale in the North Yorkshire moors It is available for hire by any unit that would like to visit the area.

Sandhi lis has just completed its first full year in operation and what a year it has been!

The centre has been used by divisions and areas from more than ten counties and from as far apart as Essex and Northumbria, some making return visits in the same year. Without fail, all expressed satisfaction with the facilities of the centre and delight with the surrounding moors, with its many opportunities for camp and adventure activities.

As booking secretary I have had a great year meeting fellow St John members from the length and breadth of England and have made many new friends. There's been many a laugh along the way as well, like the Div Supt who tripped over a spare toilet bowl in the dark and the minibus which got stuck bet\'r'een the gate posts - women drivers

(sorry Northumbria!). One camp awoke to find the toilet block occupied by local sheep - who tend to be rather friendly.

What about the future? Work is about to start on the final stage of the centre, which will include another leaders' dormitory, with toilet, washing and shower facilities, a storeroom and leaders' day-room. Hopefully, this will be ready for next season's campers.

So if you haven't decided on a venue for your 1984 camp, why not give the North Yorkshire moors a try? We can accommodate about 35 campers and are designed for mixed groups. Sandhi lis has a fully equipped kitchen / dining facilities, dormitories and toilet/washrooms. We charge around £30 a weekend, £60 a week. All you need is some enthusiastic cadets or members, food and sleeping-bags, and a programme of activities. The nearby coast and moors provide the rest.

Incidentally, Commondale is on the main Whitby to Middlesbrough railway. A party from Wiltshire thi s year brought their cadets here for as little as £1.50 return on family railcards. So why not give us a try? Bookings have already started to come in for 1984so book early.

D O Mike Dickinson,

Field

Thornaby, Stockton-on- Tees, Cleveland, phone 0642 617628.

Self-help HQ for Stevenage

ST JOHN Ambulance, which has been in Stevenage s ince the turn of the century, ha s maint a ined a proud record of service to the Lown both at Old Steven age and in the modern New Town, where it is represented by three divisions based strategically for the needs of the developing community. The opening of this new headquarter s is the c ulmina tion of mu c h e ffor t, planning and f und-raisin g, and not least, real physical e ffort assoc iated with a se lf-build project. Jt has taken much courage and conv iction to carry through and has cost SJA dear in terms of money, membership, and the health of some of those closest to the problems. The opening was a real tribute to them all, and acknowledges the assistance give n by the St John Ambulance Emergency loan fund, without which comp letion by thi date would not have been possible.

The old headquarters building was timber framed, clad with corrugated iron and had a wood floor. It stood on a series of sma ll brick pillars which gave an underfloor ground separation of some nine inches. This cau ed much discomfort in the lon g winter evenings, and latter ly betrayed fatique in the st ructure. Just prior to demolition the floor bowed six inches in its 20ft spa n and the roof

HAYING been in Sl John since my cadet years, I feel [ have been on the fringe of nursing for a long time. For many years, like so many other, 1 have had 't hought s' about doing nursing training, but children and family commitments, etc, have prevented me However, three years ago I fina lly made up my mind. I gave up my part-time office job, became a Nursing Auxiliary at my local ho s pital and app li ed to do SEN training.

I am still not quite ure what the final traw was that made me act. I suppose 1 cou ld see the year s lippin g away and nothing getting done about it. Someone said that 50 years was the deadline, and my h a lf -century was getting ever nearer, After my first month as an auxi liar y on a women' s m edical/su r g ica ward I wa nearly on my knees and thought I h ad made a ghastly mistake, but I grad ually got used to the s heer physical work load As I took in my s urrounding s and looked about me, r cou ld see that there were quite a numb er of m ature pupils doing training and 1 was thus e ncouraged.

I am one of those optimists who think that everything is going to be 'a piece of cake'.

1 am nearly always proved wrong, but at least 1 am not inhibited from having a go. I recall one of the other auxiliaries saying to me 'won't you feel awful if you fail?' I mu t admit that failure had never occurred to me. r duly commenced training in May 1981. We were a mixed bunch of all ages and [ was the oldest one in my set. However, we all got

(Northern); Commander H erts, Mr C, J , N, Longmore; and County Commissioner R L Duffett

sagged about the sa m e in irs 40ft length. Miraculously, the se r v i ce connect ion s continued to pass safety inspections up to d e liberate severa n ce, although many had susp icion s about the foul water link!

The new building is L-shaped, with pitched roof tiled to blend with the surrounding residential area. It includes a hall 60ft by 20ft, an admin istrative office which doubles as a second meeting room , and the usual offices, The insulated concrete floor is vinyl covered, the walls are plastered, and rhe roof i fibreglass-lined to minimise heat lo ss from the gas centra l heating, Next door is a garage for the ambulance, and a car park for 12 vehicle fronts the premises within a 6fr-high fence.

Following excavations, the Division had to spe nd over £5000 to get back to ground

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE

To take up Nursing

on exceedingly well, We started off with a month's study block and rhen had intermittent weeks of study throughout our two years of training, I enjoyed these study blocks enormous ly. They were intellectually stimulating and I enjoyed the camarade rie of the other pupil s. We used to look forward to eeing each other and catching up on news. It was of course a long time s in ce I had done any seriou study, and ['m sure it did me a lot of good w oil the rusty old grey matter and get it working again.

1 found Illy basi c Sr John training a greal asset. I t gave me a foundation on which to build, particularly with regard to anawmy and physiology.

I cannot say enjoyed every moment of my training. Inevitabl y, I preferred some wards to others, and much of the work wa routine. Some wards were de perately hea vy and busy (ie, geriatrics) and others not o. However, the broad spec trum of work wa challenging and stimulating.

Amazingly quickl y the two years sped by. We all managed to pass our three practical assessments, and most of us pa sed our Hospital Finals, and a we awa ited to take our State Finals the possibility of failure loomed ever more threatenin g ly.

The State Examination takes the form of

level, incorporating foundations, services, drainage, etc. With dogged effort they then built the premises to its finished state wirh a further £12,000. Over 8,000 hours of voluntary work have gone into the project, which h as resulted in a fine cent re at which the skills of first aid and nursing can be taught in near ideal conditions to SJA adult and cadet members, industrial groups and the public. When not used by SJ A it will be made available to other organisations which provide a service to the community and whose aims are compatible with those of St John.

We were delighted when Professor H. C. Stewart, a former Association Director General and father of our local MP, Ian Stewan, agreed to open rhe new HQ on September 24.

Says SHEILA WOODWARD

DI O Felbridge and East Grinstead Comb Div a multiple choice paper. We did a number of them in our study blocks to familiarise ourselves with them, but before this I had never come across one. They are quite alien to people of m y generation and I do not really think that they are a good and balanced form of examination. However, they are cheap and ea ily compiled and can be marked by computer.

I am happy to say [ was one of the lucky ones who passed, and experienced a great wave of achievement .vhe n I heard the news. Throughout received support and encouragement from my family. M daughter, who was at university, was alway interested and en ouraging My son appeared indifferent and was mainly concerned with getting his dinner on time but was pleased (or rather relieved) when pa ed. My husband, regrettably, suffe red ill health half-way through my training, but 1 \ as ab le to carryon and e eryone was very upportiv e.

So in conclusion, my advice to all you middle-aged mums (and dad s) who think it is too late is that it is NOT so, SEN training is, alas, being pha ed out, although belie e orne ho pitals till undertake it However , the 3-year SR course can be commenced up to age 4S in many hospitals. So why not have a go?

EYE CATCHING

from P. Dew, Ambulance Member

Two items in the October Review immediately caught my eye. First, the photograph (page 219) of the member trying to remove a glove to shake hands with the Pope - excellent proof of what a nuisance gloves can be. And secondly, the cover picture which a sharp eyed cadet will probably refer- to one day if she or he is ever criticised for wearing jewellery. After all, if it is OK for the Commandant-in-Chief of Cadets to wear a bracelet, why not ? Hillingdon P. Dew

WE ARE GIRLS.

from Christine Rand, Sargeant

Does Sgt Kelly (WE GIRLS Oct Review) really need an explanation for the stated incidences of seemingly 'blatantly discriminating' actions?

Have you ever been on duty at the Notting Hill Carnival when it has turned nasty? I have; and I can assure you that the ruling, no women unchaperoned by a male, whether he be teenager or a pensioner, is a sensible one if looked at logically and objectively.

St John members, especially females, are often on the receiving end of a lot of verbal 'stick' - the uniform, black stockings, etc. At an occasion such as Notting Hill, the atmosphere is wonderful, the majority of participants are there to have a good time and generally let their hair down. However, and most unfortunately, there is always a mindless minority at such events that tend to be just looking for trouble. These people are cowardly bullies who pick on the weak, the unsuspecting - and women! Two women, on their own would be easy pickings for these thugs , and the presence of a male, no matter how fresh-faced, can be a deterrent.

I suggest therefore that whoever offered the explanation had, maybe, condensed the reasons a mite too much; but bear in mind there are a lot of dark alleys in Notting Hill.

As to the lining of processional routes; after the incident at the Trooping a couple of years back, the ruling about male personnel came, not from the Brigade, but from the police.

I agree that cerrain senior officers do tend to ignore their female personnel when briefing , etc, at large duties; but the general trend is one of equality of delegation, as discovered at this year's London Marathon. All personnel at County Hall were briefed and u ti lised to the full, male and female and cadets.

We are moving into the 20th -centur y, and I would s uggest that the reason we are not moving faster is not entirely due to the men. I f we females want equality and recognition we've got to earn it, not expect it. The way to do this is to improve and maintain our standards of training to such a degree that we cannot be ignored.

DO, not say, is a much better way!

It is all very well telling people that we're highly skilled and dedicated, but can we back it up with ability? In the majority of cases we can, but again there is a minority (at least I hope it's a minority) of nursing personnel within the Brigade who should not be in uniform.

I realise that this applies to some ambulance personnel, but they tou are realising that the writing is on the wall! The biggest anomaly in the Brigade, I feel, is the fact that female personnel have to take a nursing exam within one year of joining the Brigade, but males do not. I hope that this will be rectified in the near future. A closer combination of first aid and caring for the sick would be one remedy. Let us females accept these rulings and conduct ourselve s in a manner that cannot be ignored. Let us prove ourselves worthy of delegation and authority by our actions and our general conduct. There are enough females in respected senior posts at District HQ to show that it can be done.

If we must be feminIST, let us not forget that we are feminINE and should be proud of that fact.

Dartford Christine Rand

from John Gerrard , Commissioner Sgt Ann Kelly asked whether there had been a change of policy in London District regarding the employment of nursing members on public duty events. The position is that on some very exceptional duties, such as the Notting Hill Carnival and New Year's Eve in Trafalgar Square, we do not allow unaccompanied nursing members to carry out foot duties for two reasons:

1. The conditions are such that it is an unnecessary risk and I think anyone who has been in a crowd on these occasions will be well aware of what I mean.

2. The ambulance members are deployed on foot duty primarily

as stretcher bearers to collect and evacuate casualties to the f ir st aid posts and mobile unit s where the initial treatment is carried out. In these circumstances physical strength a first requirement. Nursing member s are far better employed in these reception units, where their skills and training can be fully u t ili sed.

As for the lining of processional routes - the security si tua t ion has meant that on some occasions the police have d ecree d that we do not line the route. When this occurs alternative arrangements are made such as sta tioning stretcher parties in specia l designated areas at strategic lo cat ion s. The initial decision for lini ng doe s not rest with Br iga de pesonnel.

On non-controver s ial and ceremonial duties, s uch as the Lord Ma yor 's Procession, there a re no such constraints and the ladi es are indeed welcome to s tand in one place and freeze for several hours along with the men!

I hope thi s puts the matter into perspective and reassures member that we in London District have to deal with each event in accordance with the pre vai ling circumstances, and obviously we utilise the services of all our member s to the be st advantage.

London Distri ct John Gerrard

ASTHMA AND FRACTURES

from Gareth L. Greenslade, Divisional Superintendent was disturbed to read Mr Freeman's let ter on 'The New Book' (Oct Review). Grouping asthma with dandruff and ingrowing toenails, suggests that Mr Freeman is oblivious of the fact that a severe asthma attack may kill the victim.

Asthma is second only to road accidents in the number of young adults killed each year. It is not a joke. The people it kills are young and in their prime.

On the subject of open fractures, I should like to contrast two cases of motorcycli sts , both aged 18, both with open fractures of the femur involving the femoral artery. The first was seen by me in the course of my work. He had died due to blood lo ss. He had no other injuries that would ha ve caused disablement had he not have been allowed to bleed to death The seco nd had hi s accident outside our then Area HQ. His blood loss was limited to about one unit, by ve ry heav y digi tal pressure on the bleeding point. He recovered Incident s vary, both in the injuries that they produce and the circumstances that exist. First-aiders need to have a good stock of techniques in their repertoire, so that t hey can produce the right one to match the patient' s needs.

Finally, I should like to co mplimen t Mr Renny on his repl y to the October 'Talking Poin t'. Now that we hav e admitted that there may be problems vis-a-vis uni for mity of standards in our non-HSE course.s, we can start to rectify the problem. How refreshing to see such a can dId reply!

London Gareth L. Greenslade

FOR HOW MUCH LONGER?

from Mrs Elizabeth Thorn, Divisional Superintendent Richard Radcliffe in 'The Silent Majority' (Review Sept) ca ll s us to be proud of the work we do and to advertise the fact. But how can we have 'a feeling of honour' when tho se who dictate our rules and regulations do not honour us?

We are 'voluntary' workers. We spend our time - and our money - serving the sick and the disabled, standing on draughty corners

covering duties at marathons , turning out in filthy weather for gymkhanas and football matches, .tria ls, fetes and galas. You name it, we do it. We also keep our famil ie s happy and fed , and show an interest in our children's interests. And all for what?

To be told that our members are not 'trained' and therefore are not able to show people the practical side of first aid. then, can I allow them to go on duty?) To be informed that there 15 t<? be a new 'instructor's certificate' to replace the 'Methods of InstructJon' and the 'Lay Instructor 's', which will only be endorsed to allow you to instru c t in one subject - the example being 'Drill' Ye gods and littl e fishes!

Of course SJA members working in indu stry or instructin g for the F.A.W. course must have the relevant certificates, but le t us be proud of our 8-weeks course and keep it for all ordinary members. It is a St John certificate and stands on it s own merit as such It does n o need to be statutory (endorsed by the Government)..

I am proud of my member s - home helps, nur SIng ordinary hou sew ive s - who spend hour s on nIght duty and stil l turn up on duty or to help fund raising 'beca use they promised'. Who come off duty and run down the road to pick Mrs X up off the floor, or to help Mrs P to get her 20-stone hu sband into bed be cause he's di sa bled.

And what do we offer in return? Blood, sweat, tears and army rules and regulation s. ' You can always resign.' But we can't because we care:

For the good name of St John.

For all the charities which rely on our F.A. cover at their events.

For the people who insist on com in g [Q our F.;. courses 'beca u se the Red Cross 14-w eeks course is too long and because It is all we need - we've looked into it' (and this from a Min of Ag stat ion!) And 'we know you and lik e you.'

We cannot let these people down. We cannot let do wn people who see us in uniform and ay: 'St John - thank goodnes s - can you come and sit with Mrs to give her daughter a rest?'

All of us 'Indians' doing and caring for free. But for how much longer - when our 'chiefs' do not care about us?'

Lymington Elrzabeth Thorn

I'M PROMPTED

from Glynn Reave Divisional Superintendent

The October Review has prompted me to express my feelIngs on a number of subjects.

F ir st ly, Goldfinch's.letter LET'S REVIVE THE OLD SPIRI JT is w hat [ think IS needed In St Jo hn and fully back hI views. 'A e must look to the future and become more proficient and therefore, I feel, more efficient as an organisation. The argument from Mr Brown that thi would cause numerous problems IS not relevant, as other organi ation cope and we a lr eady have problems which we seem to overcome so why not this challenge? Also wh y can '.ve not have a two tier system of fir t-aider - mo t ambulance services do in one way or another. .'

As for recruiting, it not time that we topped bleatIng about lO SIng recruits or not getting them, and do something abo ut it. When I see what some divisions do on their 'training' evenings I despair, and feel this is our biggest loser of members and recruits. However, it is no good the members blaming the officers. Everyone mu.s t help and produ ce ideas. Come on, members, get off your backSides and get the 'training' go in g! You'll all enjoy it more.

Next, following John Springer's letter regardin g ladies! it has been the policy of my division for the ladies to take part In all du.ues (wearing the appropriate uniform) and for all men to tak e nur s in g' certificate and re-exam each year. After all, sure ly lookmg after a patient in an ambulance is nur s ing?

With regard to cadets, this time agree with Mr Brown, CADET STATUS , para 3 - I feel this system leave s t h e Brigade open to a lot of criticism. We also find here in Salisbury that we lose less c adets if we encourage them to transfe r as early as possible. They can continue with the Grand Prior subjects but act as 'ad ult s' within an a dult environment, and if the training is interes ti ng the ex-cadets soon fit in and enjoy themselve s.

Finally can we all tr y to support our Dir ector of Publi c AffaIrs, Richard Radcliffe (THE SILENT MAJORITY Sept R eview ) , who is doing his best to promote St John. Holidayin g in this country recentl y, I visited many towns and in all of them I saw reference s to our sIster organisation but not once did I see reference to St John Perhap s we can all do a bit more , myself included, to promote 'us' and so help to put our organisation more in the limelight.

Salisbury Glynn Re eve

NEWS frol11

SCOTLAND

t that the

n sion is (Right) Winners o f the Cadet

Jubilee Quiz, Cadets Paul Da vies (Bettws Di v) and Paul Jones ( Gwent Hospitals D iv), rece iving Air Wing ties from Capt Tim H arrison, during their visit to the Wing at Cardiff Airport

Their day out included a flight in an Air Wing plane an d being nterviewed on radi o. Ph oto Keith Dunn

Co uncil So cial Services D e partment in conj un ction w it h the emerge n cy service s and the vo luntar y a d soci eties , took place in Flint on October 12 The exer cise was aimed at tes ting the home less plan of the Social Services Depa rt ment, together with t h e respo nse of St John BRCS and the WRV S.

The call out was implemented by a phon e ca ll to the Commissioner at 6.30 pm when det a il s of the in cident an d locat i on we re r evea led. T he Brigade di saste r plan was put int o effect a nd the three lo cal Divi s io n s alerted. (Re so ur ces in th e Co unt y on tha eve n in g were st retched owing to a n internat io nal football match at Wre x ham)

The in c ident it self in vo lve d a tanker carrying l qu efied petroleum ga s cras hin g and exp loding in the town cent re Mor e than 20 casua lti es, with a wide variety of injurie s, were involved.

On a rri va l per s onne l were dir ec t e d by the incident control off icer to the s t e a nd deployed accor din g ly. Following initial tr eat ment casualti es were ev acuated by Brigad e ambulances to a nea rb y sc h oo l for furth e r treatment, recor ding, and transfer to ho sp ital. (cont nued on next page)

a lread y fully paid for Thi s whole pro j ec has been hail ed as a great ach evemen t by all who work and serve in the ho s pit a not least by the pati ents themselve. Our warmest congrat ul ations to all co n ce rn ed.

NORTHERN IRELAND

OVERSEAS

Meet the PRO for SJA Powys, Majo r J. G. D. (Denny ) Elvin who keeps the SJ flag flying at his cottage at Llanbadarn - Fynydd on the A483 a busy trunk road between Llandrindod Wells and Swansea. Denny and his wife Patrici a also operate their cottage as a first aid post, with 1500 cars a day passing during the summer. An accomplished xylonphonlst and fund · raiser, Denny and TV astronomer Patrick Moore played a duet and raised (400 (Photo: Keith Hills)

News from Divisions/Centres

ST JOHN REVIEW

Display Training Session

ON OCTOBER 9, 32 members from Romsey, Surrey and Basingstoke bands met at the Carnival Hall, Basingstoke for a special display and presentation da y. The object of the get-together was to give members the chance to see how an arena display is put together and, more importantly to learn and perform such a display in a day. That in itself was judged to be impossible by National Federation chairman David Minney and was made more difficult by the fact that the display band was to comprise 24 members drawn from the three bands, one being on Eb trumpets and the other two on Bb bugles

The day started with a new training film on video showing The Sussex Knights ; performance at the Royal Tournament this year, and how the display was worked out and rehearsed. David Minney was then let

loose on the unsuspectin g members for a session on basic band drill and movement, which would be u se d later in the routine. Lunch came as a welcome reli ef but t urn ed out to be the lull before the storm.

The stor m struck at 1pm when we went off to try to prove our chairman wrong, with but four hours at our di sposal to do it. With frantic effort and concentration, and with only one short break, we achieved our goal b y producing a routine which invol ved 12 different pieces of mus ic and la sti ng 13 minutes. And i t took us only 2 1/2 hour s!

It is hoped that these three bands, based within about an hour' s drive of Ba singstoke, will get together again in the New Year for more constructive practice.

The mentor of this da y was Southern Area rep Roly Gillam, of the Sussex Knights, who had suggested the get-together after carrying

out area MOT inspections. He was assisted by chairman David Minney, ASO (Su sex ) David Townsend, and myself. Thanks mu st go to the BasingsLOke band for providing the accommodation and their parents committee for the refreshments

Weekend

Following the success and spirit developed last year between Wilnicote, St Audries and The Sussex Knights , these three SJA bands have been looking for an opportunity to get together again. I hear that provisional plan s are in hand for a weekend rehearsal at St Audries and a Sunday afternoon concert at the Brewhouse Theatre, Taunton, over the weekend Oct 20121 1984

PRO Mark Gillam, 95 Applesham Way, Porlslade, Sussex.

h ig h, hollow instep. (3.5). 9. Cen tr e in low er parietal area of cerebrum. (6). 10. Innermost layer of meninges. (3.5). 12. Ready for inci ion and drainage. (4). 13. Web-lik e ti ssue h as a s tr a n ge tale. (4).14 All turn to distribute officially. (5). 16 Obtained from patient prior to anaesthesia and s urg ery. (7). 17 Lotion for irrigation of the conjunctival sac is pretentious non se n se. (7). 20. Di slocated or extracted. (3). 2 1 Micro -orga ni s m s dependent on presence of free oxygen. (7). 22. Her pain produ ces a llli-coagulanr formed by the liver (7). 24. In vigo rating type of mu sc le spas m. (5) 27. Light fawn co lour s an unusual cure. (4) 28. Flap of a heart va l ve. (4). 30. Di ges tiv e a nd carminative from East Ind ian tree (8). 31. Crocodile s perpetrator of robbery with assault. (6). 32. Disease confusion. (8). 33. Unable to bear ch ildr e n. (6).

Down:

1. Digestive juice containing hydrochloric acid, pepsin, and rennin. (7). 2. Surprise provided by lid retra c tor s? (3.6). 3. Immoral business on c arpenter 's bench. (4). 5. Prison reformer and a founder of modern nur s in g. (9 .3) 6. Bacillus causing cho lera has many in co ma. (5). 7. Essential to life (5). 8. A period in prison to tighten he muscles and extend the limb s (6) II Hormone stimulating d evelopment of male sex characteristics. (12). 15 Medicinal and culinary plant in s h erbet. (4). 18. Detect vi s ually. (4) 19. Restless dyspnoea produced by severe blood loss or acidosis. (3 6). 21. Preparation giving temporary relief from pain of peptic ulceration. (7). 23. Functional unit of the kidney. (7). 25. Seventh or ninth day of the Roman months. (5). 26. Carry aloft in triumph. (5). 29. Reduced endurance for one of the meninges. (4)

SOLUTION TO CROSSWORD No. 11 (83)

REVIEW CROSSWORD No. 12 (83) by A. A Potter

Across: I. The It c h 5. Icterus; 9. Pa' pill· a; 10. Carotid; II. O· bese; 12 Teat; 13 Unit; I S. Diaphra gm; 18 Tal'us; 19 Sopo r; 21. Analgesia; 24. Rash; 25. SC'ab; 27. Cured; 29. Predial; 30. Stratum; 31. Stridor; 32. Catch-on.

EMBIEie=-

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I Ii IIoli1Li

'11

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