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Ambulance & Medical Services

As the largest medical provider on the island, Malta Red Cross invests heavily in its volunteers, medical equipment and fleet of vehicles to provide the highest standard of medical support.

Ambulance service

Malta Red Cross operates the only fully fledged mobile clinic, fondly nicknamed ‘Cetta’, in the Maltese islands. It is central to the provision of medical services during mass events including national celebrations and concerts. It's also essential to disaster relief, providing crucial support to the Mater Dei Emergency Department with on-site stabilisation of patients. The clinic incorporates a state-of-the-art communications hub providing live footage of the event to the Health Department, CPD, Army and Police Force.

Malta Red Cross also operates an ambulance fleet, including the only bariatric ambulance in Malta which can facilitate the treatment of patients weighing up to 350kg.

Our fleet can cater for patients requiring life-support as well as those with minor complaints. 

In addition to our ambulance service, our volunteers are trained to carry out medical evacuations. Medical evacuation - often shortened to medevac - is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded individuals as they are evacuated from a battlefield or injured patients to a medical facility.

Working with the Department of Health, Malta Red Cross assisted in the evacuation of casualties from Libya in 2011 and 2014. Our volunteers worked side-by-side with personnel from the Mater Dei hospital including, nurses, doctors, anesthetists, as well as other government bodies.

Medical Risk Assessment

With each event requiring different Medical Provision, Malta Red Cross carries out a MEdical Risk Assessment on each of its services.  This assessment establishes the minimum medical requirement to safely cover an event.  this assessment would be presented by Malta Red Cross to the Emergency Services thus the client would rest assured that any possible medical risk would have been evaluated. 

Mass event medical coverage

With extensive experience in mass event medical coverage, Malta Red Cross is the leading medical coverage provider in Malta for Malta Community Chest Fund and event organisers among others. Our volunteers are specifically trained and equipped to provide medical coverage across a broad spectrum of events. We can deploy a triage tent within minutes and a field clinic for up to 20 beds, as well as site flood lighting, radio relay communications towers and other specialised equipment

Malta Red Cross has played a critical role in the provision of medical services during high-security events including:

• the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings (CHOGM) 2005 and 2015
• the visits of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI 2010,
• OPM organised events and national celebrations.

Working with the Health Department, Malta Red Cross also supplied medical coverage on land and water, during the harbor crossing and the Freedom Square activities during the visit of Prince William. We are also solely engaged to provide coverage for all OPM organized events and national celebrations.

In a recent innovative development, Malta Red Cross provided medical service in Paceville throughout Christmas and New Year 2015/2016. A Malta Red Cross ambulance crew and a medical emergency doctor provided first aid and medical service until the early hours of the morning. A total of 131 patients were treated by the team throughout the holiday period.

With our long-standing collaboration with the Malta Community Chest Fund, the Society has also supplied medical assistance at Rockestra, The President’s Fun Run, Paqpaqli Ghall Istrina, Cruising for Solidarity, the President’s Bike Ride and L-Istrina.

Our Operations team work with event organisers, offering essential medical support during annual concerts including the Isle of MTV and Joseph Calleja, as well as covering internationally renowned artists including Mark Knopfler, Brian May, Elton John, James Blunt, Carlos Santana, Rod Stewart, Afrojack, The Prodigy and Il Volo.

In 2015, Malta Red Cross was chosen by TOOM Productions to provide extensive medical cover during the filming of Assassins Creed which will be released in December 2016. This included on-site clinics, 30 First Aid volunteers and an ambulance and rescue vehicle fleet. We have also provided medical cover at the latest Hugo Boss advert filmed at the Azure window in Gozo. 

Interested in finding our more about our mass event services? Please email us at [email protected].

Sports Events

Marathons, Triathlons, Athletics & Cycling

With an ever-growing number of athletes, both Maltese and International, Malta Red Cross provides its services throughout the year to a number of event organisers including:

• Malta Marathon
• Malta Amateur Athletics Association
• Zurrieq Wolves
• Mellieha Athletics Club
• Malta Triathlon Federation
• Malta Cycling Federation
• Birkirkara St. Joseph Sports Club
• Zurrieq Wolves Athletics

These events include Full Marathons, Half Marathons, 10km & 5km races, Triathlons, Cycling competitions and various athletics meets.

Motorsports

With a team of volunteers who trained with the Spanish Red Cross in high speed vehicle incidents and attended the Catalunya Formula 1 and MotoGP Races at the Circuit de Barcelona in Montmelò, Malta Red Cross prides itself in being equipped to provide the best service available in the Maltese Islands

Malta Classic

Malta Red Cross has been the sole service provider of the annual Malta Classic Road Race held in Mdina every October.  From its origins in Valletta, then known as the Valletta Grand Prix, through it’s evolution of the Malta Classic the Society’s ambulance teams have been on the side lines, prepared for any medical emergency both on and off the track.

Island Car Club Hill Climbs

With the Hill Climb season running through from the end of September through to June, Malta Red Cross not only provides it’s medical services during the race but is also involved in the training of both drivers and marshals alike about the dos and don’ts during a high speed collision.

Extreme Trials

XTERRA

Malta Red Cross Operations, pools out all its resources with its contingency of Medical First Responders, First Aiders, Water Rescuers and Emergency Doctor .  The Society also covers this annual event with 6 ambulances (including 1 4x4 ambulance), a clinic, hydro ambulance, rescue jet ski, 4x4 rescue vehicles, paramedic motorbike, and first aiders on bicylces  to provide its usual impeccable medical services during each edition of XTERRA .  This is a gruelling international cross triathlon in which participants come from around the world to swim, cycle and run through the harsh countryside terrain of Mellieha.

The Grid

Initiated in 2016, The Grid and The Grid Sprint (introduced in 2017) are annual extreme obstacle courses which sees participants running through rough terrain overcoming numerous obstacles including high wall climbs, jumps, mud pits, monkey bars and more.  Malta Red Cross provides consultation sessions with the organisers in the preparatory phases and also its medical expertise during these events which are held in June and October respectively.

Community First Responder

A seasonal service offered by Malta Red Cross is the provision of Medical First Response Units patrolling the North and South regions of the island. Manned by at least two Medical Emergency First Responders per unit. the main purpose of the unit is to provide extra assistance to Malta Red Cross lifeguards. It also responds to emergency situations on beaches without lifeguard protection and also to establishments faced with a medical situation.

This unit is not an ambulance service, however, it assists the Health Department by responding to medical emergency calls made to the units by the Control Room of Mater Dei Hospital's Emergency Department.  Being in the area, the Community First Response Units would respond quickly to the patient and commence life-saving treatemnt until the arrival of a Mater Dei Hospital ambulance.  In 2016, the National Response Time was decreased by just ove 20%.

Medevac

Malta Red Cross volunteers are also trained to carry out medical evacuations to transport patients between the hospital and the airport.

In 2011 and 2014, Malta Red Cross assisted the evacuation of casualties from Libya by the Health Department. The casualties included adult and child victims suffering from a broad spectrum of injuries including gunshot wounds, blast injuries, and amputations for casualties on life support. The Malta Red Cross volunteers worked side by side with personnel from Mater Dei hospital including, nurses, doctors, and anesthetists, as well as other local government entities.

Training

With Basic First Aid training as a must for all volunteers, we encourage and support our volunteers to pursue the highest level of paramedical qualification in Malta.

Certification includes:

• Basic First Aid
• Paediatric First Aid
• Automated External Defibrillation
• Oxygen Administration
• Medical First Responder
• Emergency Ambulance Technician
• Leadership Skills
• Radio communication
• First Person on Scene
• Blue Lights Driving

We also offer Psychosocial Support Training to educate volunteers on the use of a holistic approach when treating distressed patients.

Should you be organising an event and require any further information, contact us at [email protected]