26th January 2023
On Wednesday 25th January 2023, Northern Ireland’s first bespoke children’s ambulance was officially launched by Children’s Heartbeat Trust, a charity that provides practical and emotional support to children and their families affected by heart disease in Northern Ireland.
The bespoke ambulance is equipped with LED lights, toys and sensory equipment designed to make children as comfortable as possible during a time which can be a time of high stress, anxiety and fear. The purpose of the bespoke children’s ambulance, which is also equipped with a Playstation and a tablet to help keep young people entertained on their journey, is to provide a calm and comforting space to travel in and make such a difficult time easier for the family. The ambulance is also adapted with wheelchair tracks, enabling older children to make the journey in a wheelchair as opposed to a trolley.
NIAS Director of Operations, Rosie Byrne, shares: “We’re delighted to have contributed towards the funding of the new children’s ambulance. Given the amount of journeys that families have to make each year for their children to avail of life-saving treatment, this ambulance truly is a very much needed service. A lot of effort has been put into the interior and exterior of the ambulance – to make it feel more homely than a typical ambulance – and we really hope that the children benefit from surroundings that they’re more familiar with to make the journey that little bit easier.”
The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service will remain responsible for funding the upkeep of the vehicle.
To find out more about Children’s Heartbeat Trust, visit their website at: www.childrensheartbeattrust.org.