St. John Ambulance Service Essay

St. John Ambulance Service

By Luke Warner

9PM

G&T Homework

Saint John Ambulance Service is a charity for healthcare. It was formed in July 1877, in Britain. However it isn’t a national charity; it can be found in 8 other countries around the world (not including many commonwealth countries). But where did this organisation come from? And what do they do?

This essay shall study St. John Ambulance Service.

St. John Ambulance Service is a charitable paramedic service, similar to The Order of Saint John. This is an older order, formed by some of the members of the Knight’s Hospitaller. They merged with monks in a Benedictine Abbey, who were already looking after pilgrims and warriors going to the Holy Land, to become The Order of Saint John. (The Knight’s Hospitallers were one of the many Orders in the Formed in the Medieval Age. They fought in the Crusades, and played a major part in politics in the Europe. Another similar order was the Knight’s Templar, however it was destroyed in the 1300s). These Knights would also form the St. John Ambulance Service in the late 19th Century. In 1877, some of the remaining Knight’s Hospitaller formed a charitable organisation called “Saint John Ambulance Service”. They would go around train stations and mines, teaching first aid to the workers there. Then, on 14th May 1887, the organisation grew, now teaching everywhere, and providing first aid for events. They also started wearing uniforms. Another Order, St. Andrew Ambulance Service, was given right to work in Scotland, instead of the St. John Ambulance Service. The organisation grew, and spread worldwide. In 1999, the Order of John celebrated 900 years of helping the sick and injured. The current sovereign is Queen Elisabeth II.

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But what do they do now? The St. John Ambulance Service still teaches first aid to children and students in schools and universities. The Order is very similar to The Red Cross, however they focus mainly on First Aid, and teaching people how to perform procedures that can save one’s life. They still perform first aid in major events, such as gigs, and festivals. The patients don’t need to pay; however the organisers of the event must pay. There are also groups for first aid that are very similar to scouts. One tries to get promoted to a higher rank. Members can even get national ranks. The groups are for children aged 5 to students in their early 20s. Members in Universities are called LINKS. They are different to the main Order, as they do not have ranks, or ranking. They have a democratically elected committee. Professional members of the St John Ambulance Service have to wear uniforms. They must have a white shirt, with their logo, a St. John Ambulance Service hat, or baseball cap, black trousers, and a luminous jacket. Their jackets are easy to find, because they are orange and green; the typical colours for a medical service. However they have other uniforms as well. A notable fact is that about 20,000 of the total 43,000 members are either 20 years of age or younger. This shows that the programmes must be very interesting and fun. One must also take note that the members are often faced with the last chance to save someone’s life. If almost half of the members are young, they must be trained very well in order to be given so much trust.

The organisation is international, not just present (just like The Order of Saint John) in the U.K. For example a major eye surgery, famous for its free surgery – “Ophthalmic Hospital in Jerusalem”, is just one of the many hospitals maintained by the Order of Saint John. However the Order of Saint John is a very religious charity, unlike St. John Ambulance Service, which has no set religion. However it is more Christian-orientated. Some of the countries to use St. John Ambulance Service are: U.K, Germany, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Canada, India and Malaysia. They also work for the British Armed Forces abroad. They usually work with the Forces in Germany and Cyprus.

St. John Ambulance Service is just one of the many medical charities in the world. They run courses for children as young as 5, to adults. The Order is a great help to society, and they contribute very greatly to us all. But one must remember that lots of the members are young, but that doesn’t stop them from saving people’s lives. St. John Ambulance Service is only one of the many providers of humanitarian aid in this world. Faced with very difficult situations, the courses must show one how to think quickly, and what would be the right, even if painful, decision to make in a life and death situation.

By Luke Warner