In the bustling city of St Albans, where life moves at a fast pace and many commute into London on a daily basis, having access to reliable and efficient healthcare services is paramount. We have all read or watched news features about the pressure on the NHS over the last 12 months. You may have tried to call your GP at 8am for an urgent same-day appointment only to be in position 80 in the queue and then being advised all of the appointments have gone. You might have insurance and want to go to one of the London private clinics where you can be seen immediately. The idea of 12-24 hours in A&E is simply your idea of hell.

It might be your child is ill, and you want the peace of mind that it’s nothing serious. You googled their symptoms and Dr Google advised it might be meningitis. Or your elderly family member has fallen on the floor outside, and waiting for an ambulance means they could be freezing for hours on end. Here’s where our private urgent care service comes in.

MET Medical’s experience in providing paramedics and ambulance crews in Hertfordshire means we have a really good understanding on how to navigate NHS services. Traditionally, ambulances would arrive and take every patient to hospital. As the sector has advanced over the last 2 decades, over 50% of 999 calls we now attend involve treatment at home or referral to other services. The paramedic role came about in the early 1970s when ambulance workers were given additional training to deal with cardiac problems; in 1979, they were trained in advanced resuscitation. The official role of Paramedics becoming allied healthcare professionals occurred in 1999. Since then, the paramedic role has developed further, and paramedics have become experts in out-of-hospital care. Development has led to specialist roles in both urgent care and critical care, and paramedics have developed roles in treatment centres such as Accident & Emergency and GP surgeries.

MET Medical’s paramedic-led private urgent care service enables members of the public to access urgent healthcare directly without using 111. It’s important that you still call 999 in a life-threatening emergency, such as difficulty breathing, cardiac chest pain, stroke or major trauma.

What can our paramedics offer?

Depending on the situation and of course, availability, we can send either a paramedic in a car that is fully stocked with emergency equipment and medications; the paramedic can stabilise any serious conditions, use specialist equipment to lift someone off the floor or provide a range of tests, and carry out assessments and diagnostics; they will then develop an onward care plan. Alternatively, we may send a double-crewed ambulance. An ambulance will also be able to transport the patient to either an NHS hospital, such as one of the local emergency departments or to a private clinic/urgent care facility, such as those operated by Bupa or HCA Healthcare.

How quickly can our ambulances come?

Our response time is dependent on availability. Currently, we offer a first-come-first-served policy. If you call us we will advise immediately of our availability and expected response time. Please. note this is a relatively new service and is currently operating Monday to Friday 0900-1700. We do hope to offer extended hours of operation and increase capacity as the service develops.

Can I get a blood test at home?

We are not currently operating blood tests but will be soon.

Do we cover all of Hertfordshire?

We currently operate our urgent care services on a case-by-case basis. We are based in AL4 and primarily cover St Albans, Hatfield and surrounding towns and villages. We provide long-distance ambulance transfers nationally and internationally and pre-booked services across Hertfordshire, London and the surrounding counties.