St John Ambulance - Get to know other cadets etc, show off your kit!

[theocd]

Awesome, shame it looks dodgy in a U.S. setting but I like the vehicle. Our division has just taken delivery of a brand new Nissan Pathfinder, I'm well excited

The OC-D

[Entonox]

:O!!! I want one.

[theocd]

It came in a few weeks ago with 1.7 miles on the clock. Plain white, no registration. Its just gone to the outfitters to get the stretcher carrier, O2, blues and twos etc. Shame I'm back down at LINKs but I'll see it when I go back. Its good, 'cos the only other 4x4 in the area is 'Triple 7' which is an ancient, but beautiful, Land Rover Ambulance Conversion.

The OC-D

[Entonox]

Shame you're not going to be able to use it, As i will be taking that off your hands

SJA Supplies are annoying me yet again, They want you to buy rank slides at £66 per pair. Making my own damn slides... Got 1 pair of Silvers, 1 pair of the New rubber ones,

but a friend needs a set So, Home made

[BritishArmyReserveCadets]

£66 for a rank slide? Jesus, i get my ACF ones for about a Fiver, and theyre DPM camo so a lot more work does into them

[theocd]

Yep, and we're volunteers. Really makes you feel appreciated. You really need the Maltese Cross on them not the Star of Life.

The OC-D

[Entonox]

By this time next year, There won't be Rank within St John Ambulance. Only Roles.

The reasoning behind it is due to it being old fashioned and not needed. Apparently.

And ik about the slides, It's just a pain in the arse to get some made up from scratch, So was just playing about with different designs. I've seen some in the past with the Welsh Dragon on it

[theocd]

Well, they keep changing that. Talking to my Divisional Superintendent, they might be getting rid of NCO Ranks (so no Corporals or Sergeants) but keeping Officer's Grade 1 and above. Even then, that's only a maybe. It is needed, we are the oldest military organisation in the United Kingdom, swearing fealty to the Knight's of St John, the day we get rid of ranks will be very sorry indeed.

The ones with the Welsh Dragon on are official though (could only find a good pic with Cadets):

Its like I wear a third badge on my sleeves, I have a Buckinghamshire Swan underneath my 'Advanced First Aider' tag, its just regional variations.

The OC-D

[Entonox]

Ah never knew it was official

This is the 3rd badge for me

[theocd]

Where are you? I was told there was only about 5 counties that had the 3rd badge, Bucks have the Swan, Oxfordshire has a round flower emblem I think...

The OC-D

[Entonox]

Leicestershire.

Also, Emails are changing again >.< @Area.sja are going, In with just @sja now for us.

[Entonox]

verymuchso.

[siemens45]

Hi my name is Stephen and im a Cadet for the Colchester Division in Essex.

I've been in SJA for 3-4 years now and i've made so many new friends and have learnt some important skills.

Currently getting organised for the olympic torch relay while it comes though colchester....

But anywhom SJA is a brilliant group and i'd like to meet other people who also go, so it was nice to have found this topic

So to sum up its nice to meet you

[met police999]

can i ask what is sja is it a company that runs the uks ambulance services?

[Freelancer]

can i ask what is sja is it a company that runs the uks ambulance services?

I may be wrong but I believe it's a charity run by volunteers and they go to a lot of events like football matches, running events (race for life) that sort of thing...

[theocd]

St John Ambulance is a charity that provides first aid at events for a cost but also voluntarily covers Ambulance Service Trusts when they need the resources. More information can be found on Wikipedia and the official website. St Andrew's Ambulance Association does the same or a similar thing in Scotland. SJA is the oldest and longest serving medical and military organisation in the UK, its Cadets have been running for 90 years now and the Badgers for 25.

The OC-D

[met police999]

Oh I see thanks lol

[Entonox]

Got my new Service uniform

It's looking a little scruffy, As i've just got it out of the box, needs ironing and stuff, Looks very impressive,

But my phone camera is letting me down with the quality pics

(The Jacket is reversible, The Arm pocket on the shirt is kind of weird, It's got 3 stitched in pen holders

(Or pen torch, Whatever you use them for personally) has the flap over it that when you have any pen/torches in

it, Doesn't close properly)

official advice, "if the transferred logo's fall off, Iron them back on"

(Same as the Cycle Responder Trousers, Can't get a good image of mine)

[theocd]

@Siemens45 Apologies, meant to say hi in the last post, nice to meet you.

@Entonox Looks alright, could be worse. So does the jacket have epaulette holders on the inside then? o.O I was told we weren't allowed to wear the green in case we look like paramedics

official advice, "if the transferred logo's fall off, Iron them back on"

So I see its made to St John's high quality standards then

I've got my conversion courses coming up that will transfer me from old to new skills so I'm hoping that goes OK. I already hold First Aid, AED and Med Gases so its just a bit of reordering and Moving and Handling for me

The OC-D

[Entonox]

The exact same is happening here, Everyone is being converted to the updated stuff.

Also, Yes, SJA Top quality standards...

Yes, The jacket has epaulette holders on both sides, Along with a role holder on both sides.

The Reason we're moving to green is because with the black and whites, It's old fashioned, and potentially dangerous, As out on duties, We don't look like Medic's we're more police/security, It's shocking how many times I've witnessed abuse towards us, because we look like the police.

Also, There should *NEVER* be the problem of being mistaken for Paramedics. We're 100% covered if we stick to the rules, "Hello, My name is X I'm a *insert role here*"

As long as members use the proper introduction, There should never be a problem of mistaken identity when treating people.

Personally, I love the Green shirt.

Also, We're still identifiable as roles within SJA with the new uniform, The Role slides are much more visible (On the front of the shirt, It states your role in LARGE WRITING)

The Trousers are still black, But they're combat trousers, with St John Ambulance printed on the pockets.

I'll try and get some closer ups on the uniform tomorrow when there's more light, But I'm impressed.

Also, Hi Siemens45, Nice to meet you

On the Below image, on the left side, under the radio loop, Is the slide holder for your rank (It's the same on the reversed side)

[theocd]

I've seen the stuff in the catologue, the trousers look the best bit. The guys in our area were told to move to the Black polo shirt, literally months after Thames Valley Police moved to Black Polo shirts. Doh! Looks OK, costs an arm and a leg though, don't it...?

The OC-D

[Entonox]

very expensive, And the trousers are really good, really impressed with them

[theocd]

Thought so, can't quite stretch to it on a Student Budget.

Ausavin, do you have anything constructive to say? You've posted on this thread twice with nothing to say - are you trolling because you can? Or are you a real paramedic who's a bit disparaging towards St John? Being as your profile says you're 15 and you like skateboarding, I suspect the former. I'd hate to report you for something so trivial, but please...?

The OC-D

[Entonox]

SJA should cover the cost of the Full uniform, shouldn't cost you a penny as a volunteer, As this is the NEW uniform for ALL Members (apart from PTA/ETA)

You should get in contact with one of your county members to find out what's going on, I know there's sometimes a delay between counties and getting updates, But surely, It's better to have the entire SJA group in the same uniform, Otherwise it just looks unprofessional imo.

[theocd]

Well damn right its gonna look unprofessional. We were told we were footing our own bill unless we did one duty per pound of the complete new uniform (~84 Duties) And I don't think it is the "NEW uniform for ALL Members"; bits we've been receving look nothing like you have.

We have no word on the uniform yet, for a CHQ we feel out of the loop.

The OC-D