MEDICAL students are getting a head start saving lives after forming a community first responder team.

The trainee doctors at Keele University's Medical School have formed the team to gain important experience while providing a valuable service to the community.

Seven students are volunteering on the scheme, which covers the campus and Keele village, with a further five soon to complete their training.

First responder schemes, provided in conjunction with West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS), are already established in other parts of North Staffordshire.

Team leader David Rawlinson, a fourth year medical student, volunteered as a first responder in his home city of Sheffield so was eager to get involved in the scheme at Keele.

David, aged 23, said: "It can be difficult for medical students to gain experience in a pre-hospital environment, so this was one way to get around that while at the same time helping the community.

"We discussed it with the West Midlands Ambulance Service and it turned out that Keele was a good place to base a scheme. There is a similar first responder team at Cardiff University, but the training provided by WMAS is in a different class.

"The scheme allows medical students to practise skills that they wouldn't be able to do in hospital, which will help them gain experience for their future careers.

"There was a big response when we asked for volunteers, with about 50 people replying."

Helen Price, aged 24, from Manchester, is a second year medical student who has nearly completed her first responder training.

She said: "It's really good experience for me, because I'm looking to go into emergency medicine. I don't think I would have got an opportunity like this anywhere else in the country.

"In some ways, being a medical student is irrelevant, because first responders have a different approach to patients."

The first responders attend 999 calls and carry life-saving equipment such as defibrillators. Once trained, each first responder is expected to volunteer for at least 16 hours a month.

WMAS trains the teams but they must fund themselves.

The Keele team is raising £10,000 for a vehicle, uniforms and other equipment.

Andy Garner, dean of the faculty of health, said: "I think it's an absolutely fantastic initiative. The students are getting the chance, early on in their training, to improve their skills, and lifesaving skills at that. I think we're going to extend this across the faculty, so nurses, physiotherapists and pharmacists get the chance to benefit."

David added: "Different students have different term dates, and medical students tend to move around a lot, so we are looking to recruit people from different departments. We're also looking to recruit staff who live on campus who can volunteer over the summer."

Anyone interested in joining Keele Community First Responders should email email@keelecfr.org.uk