TWO members of the St John Ambulance Brigade are bidding to launch a pilot emergency first aid team in St Helens town centre which would be on hand if shoppers experience health problems.

John Hawkins, from Brookland Lane, Parr, and Tony Vickers, of Heathfield Avenue, Sutton Heath, believe there is a need for an on-the-spot emergency service to bridge those valuable few minutes while waiting for an ambulance.

The pair have devised Heartbeat, a service which would be staffed by four, full-time, employees fully trained to emergency medical technician status who would also have access to semi-automatic or manual defibrillators and mask airways.

They believe the service would be the first in the country and could be successfully expanded into other areas in the future.

John said: "Heartbeat staff would be placed in such a way as to allow an emergency to be attended within four minutes, as opposed to the typical time of eight to 10 minutes of a paramedic ambulance. This could prove vital in the treatment of, say, a casualty who has stoppped breathing or a cardiac arrest situation. Quite literally, it could be the difference between life and death or could at least give the casualty a better chance of survival. In less serious situations, our staff will be both trained and equipped to stabilise the person and help their recovery."

However, Tony emphasised, Heartbeat would complement, not replace the Paramedic Ambulance Service. He said: "We would only be acting to stabilise proceedings before an ambulance arrives. In addition, Heartbeat would be run as a non-profit making service, although the staff would be professionally trained."

Now John and Gary are investigating the possibilities of financial support for the scheme, which, they estimate would cost around £110,000 annually to run, in adidtion to the cost of equipment. They have already approached the NHS and Town Centre Partnership, among other organisations, to get the idea up and running and are looking at possible bases for the service.

Any company or individual willing to offer sponsorship or donations can contact John on (01744) 754110 or Tony on (01744) 817044.