The global pandemic has been impactful in so many ways, affecting people’s lives, jobs, freedom and a whole lot more. Perhaps nowhere has this been more acutely felt than in the NHS, with frontline workers putting their lives on the line every time they put on their uniform and go to work.
The NHS’s resources have been spread paper-thin over the last 12 months and the demand for ambulance drivers is as high as it has ever been. However, it’s not all bad news, as HGVC, the national HGV training provider has been doing sterling work in helping to provide more and more qualified ambulance drivers and other frontline drivers.
Continuing Training During Lockdown
Since the beginning of the pandemic, HGVC has been able to train 43 new frontline workers for the NHS, with an impressive first-time pass rate of 71%. They’ve been able to do this partly because the DVSA has ensured that medicals, theory tests and practicals have still been able to be conducted for NHS workers with access to limited training centres and testing sites.
HGVC’s Head of Business Development, Darren Clapich, had this to say about the achievement “We have been working shoulder to shoulder with our extensive supplier network to ensure that any trainee ambulance technicians working for the East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) continue to get training and tests to acquire their 7.5T licences.
Thanks to our connections with partner training centres, we’ve been able to prioritise NHS key workers in a unique way and ensure that they are equipped with their 7.5T licenses.”
Adapting to the Constantly Changing Situation
With the Covid-19 situation now approaching its second year, the East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) is still having to adapt to a continually changing situation and plan its strategy accordingly. The support that HGVC has provided – and is still providing – is proving invaluable in delivering this new man power that will ultimately lead to more saved lives.
Going forwards, HGVC is committed to continuing to make use of all available resources to help more frontline NHS workers to get qualified and out on Britain’s roads. As an industry-leading HGV training operator, they’re very well placed to offer this much-needed assistance.
Making a Difference During the Pandemic & Beyond
This is not the only way in which HGVC is making a difference during lockdown as it’s sister brand, HGVT, is also currently running discounted HGV training offers to ex-army veterans and those affected by Covid-caused redundancy. They are very much a company with a social conscience and the work they’re doing is positively affecting people all over the UK.
Transportation is crucial to an efficiently operating NHS, with medical supply trucks and ambulances requiring people with the right skills to make full use of them. HGVC has brought its considerable might to bear on the crucial issue of the UK’s HGV driver shortage and the need for new ambulance drivers and it’s something that everyone in society benefits from.
