Welcome

The College of Paramedics is the recognised professional body for paramedics and the ambulance professions. It is not, however, a Trade Union. Rather than representing individual practitioners in disputes with employers or acting as a forum for negotiating terms and conditions, as a professional body our role is to represent ambulance professionals in all matters affecting their clinical practice, thereby supporting the highest standards of patient care. Professions are defined by the unique body of knowledge and expertise that they hold, and this is developed through research and establishing standards for education, clinical practice, and personal conduct. The College is active in all of these areas.

We provide support to the profession by providing advice to our members, and to people considering joining the ambulance professions. The College further represents the interests of paramedics and ambulance clinicians by providing a contact point for the media, through membership of appropriate committees and advisory groups, by developing professional standards guidance, and by responding to consultation documents and requests for advice from government, and other professional and registrant bodies. Importantly, all members of the College are given the opportunity to comment on consultations, and we provide a synthesised collegiate response rather than the views of just one or two individuals holding leadership posts. It is only in this way that the ambulance professions have a voice in determining how changes in health service provision, legislation and clinical practice are shaped and implemented.

In 2008 and 2009 the College was represented in the following groups:

• Higher Education Ambulance Development Group (HEADG)
• National Heads of Ambulance Education Group
• Joint Royal College Ambulance Liaison Committee (JRCALC)
• JRCALC Clinical Guidelines Group
• UK Stroke Forum
• Allied Health Professions Federation (AHPF)
• Department of Health
• Ambulance Workforce Forum
• Connecting for Health (CfH)
• National Ambulance Education & Development Forum
• Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine
• Ambulance Infection Control Group
• Health Professions Council (HPC)
• The Trauma Care Council
• The National Ambulance Research Steering Group
• The Faculty of Pre-hospital Care Board
• The 999 EMS Research Forum Board
• Cardiovascular, Stroke and Vascular Specialist Collections of NHS Evidence (formerly the National Electronic Library for Health)

In order to undertake this work the College has a Council, consisting of a main and alternate member for each of the English NHS Regions and for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and representatives from the private sector and the military. It also has Research and Education sub-committees, and an Executive elected by Council consisting of a Chair, a Deputy Chair, and Directors of Finance, Professional Standards, and Membership Services.

The most important people in the College are, however, its members – the only purpose of those of us with ‘titled’ positions is to serve their interests. We can best represent the ambulance professions if the significant majority of practitioners join the professional body – so if you aren’t yet a member of the College please join by emailing .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), and don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

Thank you for visiting our website and for your interest in the College of Paramedics.