SWASFT celebrates 75 years of the NHS
As the NHS turns 75 today, we’re thanking all of our NHS partners who help save lives across the nation, including everyone at the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT).
From our clinical and operational colleagues to our support services and wonderful volunteers, it’s the selfless heroes – past and present – across SWASFT who allow us to deliver the best care to patients across the South West.
We are also especially grateful to our blue light colleagues, who directly assist our teams by helping us to provide dedicated patient care and support.
To celebrate this historical event, we have invited some of our people to reflect on their time within the NHS and tell their own personal stories of how it has evolved.
You’ll see these in the blogs we’re posting throughout the day on our social media channels, and there will also be a special video message from our Chief Executive, Will Warrender.
When it was founded in 1948, the NHS was the first universal health system to be available to all, free at the point of delivery.
Ambulance services are a key part of the NHS, responding to 999 calls when people need help in a medical emergency.
SWASFT manages around one million incidents every year. We deliver care to patients with a wide range of illnesses and injuries; in some cases, our help can mean the difference between life and death.
Will Warrender, Chief Executive of SWASFT, said: “As we celebrate the NHS’ 75th anniversary, I want to take this opportunity to thank our people, past and present, who have contributed to the organisation that SWASFT is today.
“Since the NHS was founded on 5 July 1948, it has always innovated and adapted to meet to needs of each generation. 75 years on, the NHS’s founding principles remain as relevant today as they were then.
“As we mark 75 years of the NHS, it is a time to celebrate our past, but more importantly, a time to think about a future where together we continue to provide the best possible care to patients across the South West.”