Coroner imposes regulation for staff to wear correct epaulettes

A coroner has issued a regulation 28 order, which is an action to help prevent deaths, for all staff at EEAST to wear the correct epaulettes with their skill level and the name of the Trust.

The regulation follows a case involving the death of a patient who was transferred from one hospital to another in the care of a crew who was unable to give them life-saving treatment en-route. The coroner said there needs to be more clarity about skill levels of our staff and that this needs to be visible to other healthcare providers.

We cannot assume that all colleagues in the NHS recognise the different roles that make up our frontline service and hospital staff can make a presumption that a paramedic is part of every crew. This confusion has the potential to compromise you and the care you give to patients, as the expectations of the treatment you can deliver may be incorrect.

We will be putting some information on our website for health service colleagues but also need you to wear your correct epaulettes to ensure your role is clear. Please contact your duty operations manager to get the right epaulettes from stores as soon as possible, which displays your skill level e.g, ECA, technician or paramedic and the East of England Ambulance Service, i.e. not Norfolk / Essex / Suffolk Ambulance Service etc.

Published 25th July 2014