Despite being terrified of heights, second-year medical student Jake McCandless is facing his fears to raise vital funds for the Keele Community First Responders (CFR).

Since its inception in 2015, the Keele CFR, which is made up of both staff and student volunteers, has provided vital support to the area’s emergency services. Jake says, “I joined the Keele CFR scheme in August 2023 after completing my week-long training with West Midlands Ambulance Service. I had always been interested in joining the scheme, having volunteered previously for St John Ambulance. From the age of 16, I also worked in Royal Derby Hospital on a Covid-19 ward and then as a Healthcare Assistant in the Children’s Emergency Department.

“We respond from our base at the University to 999 calls across the region and can be tasked with Category 1 or 2 calls. These are the most urgent, life-threatening calls, including cardiac arrests, strokes, breathing difficulties or paediatrics. As well as responding to jobs on campus, we also cover the surrounding local area, including Newcastle, Silverdale and Madeley. When the ambulance service is particularly busy, we often go further afield to help as well.”

In the last nine years, the CFR have attended more than 2,600 incidents in Keele village, on campus and in the surrounding local areas, and donated more than 13,000 ‘on-call’ hours. In 2023 alone, the team volunteered more than 1,525 hours of service, attended 242 emergency jobs, welcomed three new members to the scheme and even purchased its own branded response car with donations from the Keele Key Fund to reach medical emergencies more quickly.

In the second year of his degree, Jake is balancing his studies with volunteering around 40-50 hours for the CFR each month. As the group is funded almost entirely through donations, it relies on the generosity of individuals and organisations to continue carrying out its work, which is why several of the members also fundraise for the voluntary project in their spare time. Jake will be completing a 13,000ft skydive on Friday 8^th March (which is also his birthday!) in a bid to raise £1,000 for the group – despite being petrified of heights.

Jake says that staff at the Medical School have been supportive of his voluntary commitments – and some have even sponsored him already. He says, “Since fundraising for my skydive, the staff have been brilliant in helping me to raise awareness of it. In my university work, I can often bring unique experiences into discussions, and my lecturers and tutors are always supportive when I share these insights.

“I have always loved fundraising and feel that it is an important part of being a volunteer. I was watching the skydive challenge on I’m A Celebrity and thought to myself, ‘maybe I should do one’. I’m terrified of heights and avoid them at all costs so I thought it would be a really good way to push myself, but now it’s coming up, I’m starting to get more nervous about it!” The money raised will go towards fuelling and maintaining the CFR response car, supplying uniform to other volunteers, and buying/maintaining equipment.

Following his degree, Jake wants to continue his career within the NHS and work in pre-hospital care. His previous work experience and role in the CFR has provided him with a better understanding of the sector, and has demonstrated the importance of empathy when dealing with patients and their families.

Jake says, “Responding with the ambulance services has given me a unique insight as a medical student as I get to see the very start of the patient’s journey before they even arrive at hospital. Not only has this given me a better understanding of the patient’s experience, but it has also enhanced my interprofessional relationships and given me a much greater understanding of the role of pre-hospital clinicians. As CFRs we’re privileged to meet and support people in their time of need, and being able to care for patients and their relatives is something I cherish and feel very lucky to be able to do. I’ve always been interested in emergency medicine and pre-hospital emergency medicine, and being a CFR has enhanced this even more.

“The Keele CFR scheme is a fantastic group of people who I truly see as a second family. I have made friends for life as a volunteer, and we all share the same passion of helping people in their hour of need.”

To find out more information about Jake’s skydive and to sponsor him, please click here.