Biking angels to help deliver emergency hospital supplies

Jan 23 2008

A charity which delivers emergency medical supplies to hospitals out of hours is planning to start running the service in Merseyside is setting up a branch in Merseyside.

The Service by Emergency Rider Volunteers, or SERV, ferries urgent medical equipment and blood out-of-hours and free of charge to hospitals.

Motorcyclists give up their free time, pay for their own fuel and make deliveries around the clock.

Co-ordinator Dave Sammons said it would save the local NHS £75,000 a year which could be put back into patient care.

"All of our guys give up their time, and their fuel and their use of their personal vehicles to provide the NHS with an out of hours delivery courier service."

Two dedicated riders will be based on Merseyside to deal with the two to three calls expected from the Liverpool Royal Hospital and Broadgreen hospital each night.

The service, set up 27 years ago, already operates in the South Midlands and East Anglia aims to "give something back" to the public health service.

The organisation covers 11 hours a night, 365 days a year.

The charity already operates in the south east.