HARLOW MP, Robert Halfon, has welcomed a recent £500,000 investment in the ambulance station at Princess Alexandra Hospital, improving conditions for staff, creating a ‘Make Ready’ facility for faster ambulance turn-arounds and providing life-saving services for Harlow people.

East of England Ambulance Service has made significant changes to Harlow Ambulance Station to create a modern and fit-for-purpose working environment. Refurbishments have included a complete re-modelling of the ambulance station and adjoining property to provide a bespoke ‘Make Ready’ facility, a new operational area and dedicated staff wellbeing area.

The ‘Make Ready’ hub will ensure that ambulances are always fully stocked, fuelled, cleaned, and checked ready for crews when they go on shift. In between patients, the specialist teams also work around the clock cleaning vehicles to Infection Prevention and Control standards and will re-stock any medication or equipment used on the last patient, freeing up more time for frontline clinicians to care for patients.

Harlow MP, Robert Halfon, commented on the visit, saying: “I was honoured to open the new East of England Ambulance Service station at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow. Along with the dedicated staff at PAH, the fantastic ambulance service staff have given so much to support our community over the past few years of the pandemic.

“The recently refurbished ambulance station not only gives staff improved working conditions, but also creates a state-of-the-art ‘Make Ready’ facility which will ensure ambulance service technicians have clean and re-stocked ambulances, allowing them to spend more time doing the thing they do best – taking care of patients, safely and efficiently.

“I would like to pay tribute to all of the staff at Harlow Ambulance Station for their tireless dedication to supporting the people of Harlow and the villages and for providing outstanding life-saving care.”

Claire Nehame, manager of the new Make Ready Hub said: “Make Ready crews save at least 15 minutes per shift for crews, which over a year, across the whole organisation, can add up to thousands of hours of clinician time which is released into the community.”

Ambulance Service Chief Executive Tom Abell said: “The works at Harlow are part of the Trust’s commitment to a region-wide Make Ready Programme and also will help accommodate the additional staff we need to achieve our employment targets and get more crews on the road, caring for patients.”