British Association for Immediate Care


The British Association for Immediate Care is an organisation which has the stated aim to encourage and aid the formation and extension of immediate care schemes. The organisation relies on volunteer medical professionals to provide healthcare assistance in support of the emergency services. It is registered as a charity, with two trading subsidiaries – BASICS Education Ltd and BASICS Trading Ltd – that are both registered as separate limited companies

Purpose

BASICS is an association of health care professionals, who undertake additional training as immediate care practitioners. The members provide their services in support of the statutory or voluntary ambulance services.
BASICS members are used to provide extra skills at the scene of major incidents, or for particularly difficult patients. For this, individuals may be summoned on a case by case basis by the local ambulance control centre.

The Role of Affiliated BASICS Schemes

BASICS schemes across the country assist the ambulance service trusts where a multi-agency response is required at a local level, or additional skills and qualification levels are required.
An example of this multi-agency response would be seen at an 'industrial accident' where for example a worker has become trapped in machinery. The ambulance service would work alongside the fire service to co-ordinate the rescue. Individual schemes can supplement the skill set available at scene with a medical doctor, nurse or critical care paramedics, who can provide skills outside the remit of most front-line paramedics. These supplementary skills include different methods of providing analgesia and, if necessary, surgical procedures which might be needed to extricate the patient. BASICS schemes may make use of all grades of first responder including doctors, critical care paramedics, paramedics and nurses alongside community first responders.

Local schemes

BASICS-affiliated schemes across the UK include:
The British Association of Immediate Care Schemes was established in June 1977. Kenneth Easton, a General Practitioner, was the first chairman of the organisation. Initially it was formed from the existing schemes. The organisation then offered individual membership to doctors that had an interest in immediate care, such as those working in General Practice, Surgery, Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Anaesthesia and Critical Care. Associate membership was open to paramedics and nurses which later again changed to offering full membership recognising the changing roles of these professions.
In 1991, the organisation increased their involvement in educational aspects, making available residential courses covering pre-hospital care and resuscitation. Around this time, it became clear that Scotland had different requirements to the rest of the UK, and BASICS Scotland was formed. In 1998, the organisation brought in a scheme for its members to have voluntary accreditation.
Further support for the work of BASICS during major incidents came after the 7 July 2005 London bombings. The following year the British Medical Association announced their support for a series of training courses, over three years, to be organised by BASICS.